Virgo Cluster
The nearest large cluster of galaxies and the gravitational heart of the
Local Supercluster. It lies in
the constellations Virgo and Coma
Berenices, is centered about 50 million light-years away, and contains
about 2,500 galaxies, about 150 of which are large. The Virgo Cluster completely
dominates our small corner of the universe, and our entire Local
Group of galaxies is being gravitationally drawn toward this huge concentration
of matter (an effect known as the Virgo infall). At its core lie three supergiant
ellipticals, M84, M86, and M87, which probably
formed from the merger of many smaller galaxies. Recent observations have
shown that the Cluster's principal axis is aligned with an immense filament
that is part of the large-scale
structure of the universe. The major axis orientations of Virgo's brightest
elliptical galaxies, as well as M87's jet, also appear to fall in line with
this filament, which can also be traced to even larger distances, where
it eventually intersects with the rich
cluster Abell 1367 some 160 million light-years away. Abell 1367 itself
forms one node of a well-known supercluster
with the Coma Cluster, raising the
intriguing possibility that the Virgo, Abell 1367, and Coma clusters may
all be members of a colossal filamentary network.
Related
category
• GALAXIES
Also on this site:
Encyclopedia
of Alternative Energy & Sustainable Living
Encyclopedia
of History
BACK TO TOP
|
