These are the first images of that cosmic filament that unites two galaxies in formation, dating back to when the universe was only 2 billion years old. It is an extraordinary discovery that of the “cosmic spider web” (in the photo) which structures the universe obtained thanks to a study led by researchers from the University of Milan-Bicocca. Thanks to Muse, an innovative spectrograde installed at the Very Large Telescope of the European Southern Observatory, in Chile, the team captured a cosmic structure dating back to a very young universe. The discovery was published in Nature Astronomy and opens a new perspective to understand the essence of dark matter. By exploiting the skills offered by the sophisticated tool, the research group coordinated by Michele Fumagalli and Matteo Fossati, professors in the Astrophysics unit of the University of Milan-Bicocca, conducted one of the most ambitious observation campaigns with Muses ever completed in a single Region of Heaven, acquiring data for hundreds of hours. The study led by Davide Torntotti, a young doctor of the University, used these ultrasensible data to produce the most clear image ever obtained from the cosmic filament that extends over a distance of 3 million light years through two galaxies that each host a hole Nero supermassive. «By capturing the weak light from this filament, which traveled for just under 12 billion years before reaching the ground, we managed to precisely characterize its shape and traced the border between the gas that resides in the galaxies and the material Content in the cosmic spider web, “explained Davide Tornotti.
Under the effect of the force of gravity, the dark matter draws an intricate cosmic plot composed of filaments, to whose intersections the brightest galaxies are formed – explained Michele Fumagalli – this cosmic spider web is the scaffolding on which all the structures are created Visible in the universe: inside the filaments the gas flows to reach and feed the formation of stars in the galaxies ».