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Images and spectra found that the two clusters were linked by a bridge of hot, ultra-low-density gas. The astronomers believe that such gas permeates the filaments of the cosmic web around the universe. "The hot gas that we see in this bridge or filament is probably the hottest and densest part of the diffuse gas in the cosmic web, which is believed to constitute about half of the baryonic matter in the universe," said lead researcher Norbert Werner of the SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research. "This is only the beginning," he said. "To understand the distribution of the matter within the cosmic web, we have to see many more systems like this -- and ultimately launch a dedicated space research laboratory with a much higher sensitivity than possible with the current satellites." The research has been published by the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters, ESA said in a press release. Related Links: |
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