Long description
This image shows a top-down view of galaxies in the part of the Universe closest to the Milky Way. The image is presented in polar co-ordinates, so that the Milky Way is at the centre. A redshift scale is shown to the right, ranging from redshift zero at the centre to redshift 0.15 at the edge. A scale in right ascension runs around the edge, beginning at 7 hours where the axes intersect to the image’s right, and proceeding anti-clockwise around the full 24 hours of the sky; 0 hours right ascension is at the bottom.
The circle these axes define is divided approximately into quarters. Two quarters are empty, because the survey did not cover them. The other two quarters show the positions of the galaxies at that right ascension and at that redshift. Many overlapping filaments can be seen, defining the bubble-shaped voids that permeate the Universe and form the cosmic web.