Astronomers have mapped the cosmic watershed in which our Milky Way Galaxy is a droplet. The massive structure, which the research team dubs the Laniakea Supercluster, extends more than 500 million light-years and contains 100,000 large galaxies.
Camille M. Carlisle, Sky and Telescope- Great Attractor
- Laniakea Supercluster (Wikipedia)
The Laniakea Supercluster (/ˌlæni.əˈkeɪ.ə/; Hawaiian for “open skies” or “immense heaven”) is the galaxy supercluster that is home to the Milky Way and approximately 100,000 other nearby galaxies.
- The Great Attractor (youtube.com)
No matter where you are, you are always moving. The Earth orbits the sun, and the sun moves round the galaxy. But what is it that makes the galaxy move? That is going to be our topic today. Everything in our local galaxy supercluster, Laniakea, is being dragged towards a very high concentration of mass hidden behind the plane of our galaxy. It has all the ingredients for an epic space mystery, it is the Great Attractor.
- The Milky Way has several satellite galaxies and is part of the Local Group of galaxies, which form part of the Virgo Supercluster, which is itself a component of the Laniakea Supercluster.
- Virgo Supercluster