According to a recent press release by NASA, astronomers have discovered evidence for what could possibly be the largest structure anywhere in the observable universe. The evidence discovered points to an immense concentration of galaxies over 6.5 billion light years away in the largest known group of quasars. The galaxies absorb light from the spectra of even more distant quasars - located behind the large quasar group. It is this light absorption that made the discovery possible.
Huge structures are generally rare in space.
The universe at the distance of the cluster is seen at only about a third of its present age. According to the press release, if the concentration of galaxies and quasars is caused by a larger than usual amount of matter in the area, traditional theories of the evolution of the universe have difficulty explaining how gravity could pull extremely massive structures together over such a large distance, in such a relatively short time. To find out whether the theories still hold, it is crucial for the actual amount of matter connected with quasars and galaxies at such great distances to be measured. Located south of the heart of the constellation Leo, the massive galaxy concentration spans a region up to two by five degrees - forty times the area of the full moon. It is found within a large quasar group, measuring roughly 600 million light years across, making it the largest structure known in the early universe.