Giant space structure found: it is 20 times larger than the Milky Way

Using the 19-beam receiver of the 500-meter aperture spherical telescope (FAST), scientists carried out

observations and mapping of 21 cmlinear emission in the region of the famous compact group of galaxies “Stephen’s Quintet”. As a result, astronomers discovered a very large atomic gas structure spanning about 2 million light years. This is about 20 times larger than the Milky Way. The scientists' results were published in the journal Nature. The discovered atomic gas structure is the largest ever found around a group of galaxies.

Atomic gas is the main material from whichall galaxies are formed. Their evolution is mainly a procedure of accretion of atomic gas from the intergalactic medium and its subsequent transformation into stars.

For this reason, observation and researchatomic gas in and around galaxies is crucial for studying patterns of star cluster formation and evolution. The most direct method of studying an atomic gas is to observe the radiation of atomic hydrogen in the form of a fine structure 21 cm long in the radio range.

FAST is currently the largestand the most sensitive single-dish radio telescope in the world, and its 19-beam receiver is the largest L-band multi-beam feed array for observations with a 21 cm line. The full commissioning of the 19-beam FAST receiver has opened a new window for studying atomic gas in the Universe, especially low-density diffuse gas far from galaxies.

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