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2 M I N U T E R E A D I N F O G R A P H I C O F T H E D A Y

Visualizing The

Cosmic Web That

Holds The Universe

TogetherHow is the visible universe organized? This model

is helping physicists answer that long-standing

question.

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S U B S C R I B E

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01 /06

J O H N B R O W N L E E 0 4 . 1 4 . 1 6 1 2 : 0 0 P M

There's a lot more to the universe than thestars we see in the sky. Invisible to the nakedeye, the broader universe is made up of a vastcosmic web: filaments of gas which stretchbetween galaxies, and which we've only

. Now,you can explore it for yourself.

Although the cosmic web has been proven toexist, there's still a great deal of uncertaintyabout how it is formed. What determines theweb's pattern? Why do galaxies connect tosome neighboring galaxies, and not others? AtNortheastern University's Barabási Lab,German designer created agorgeous visualization of three possible modelsto try to understand the network principles thathelp shape the universe. You can navigatethrough the interactive's 24,000 galaxies—andthe more than 100,000 connections betweenthem—right in your browser.

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recently been able to see for the first time

Kim Albrecht

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visualizes three

separate models by mapping those 24,000 real

galaxies as single specks of light, then drawing

connections between those galaxies that

depend on which structural model you're

exploring. One model connects galaxies when

they are within a certain radius of each other,

the second connects them based upon the size

of the galaxy (where the larger the galaxy, the

longer the connections it is capable of making),

and then the third model simply connects

every galaxy to its nearest neighboring galaxy.

Even if you don't have a

background in the physics

behind each model, it's fun

to travel through Albrecht's

viz. You can rotate and zoom

into each galaxy, traveling

millions of light years across silk strands of

cosmic gas in just a few seconds, all within your

browser tab. Outside of being fun, though, the

bigger goal was to help physicists understand

which model most closely aligns to the real

universe. (Spoiler: the structure of the real

The Network Behind the Cosmic Web

Albrecht's Cosmic Web model

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cosmic web is closest to the third "neighboringgalaxy" model.)

According to Albrecht, one of the most excitingaspects of his work as an in-house data-visualization expert for a group of physicists isthe way it help open up science. "Usually, thesesorts of theories are negotiated between a verysmall number of people in a very specific field,but this makes their work understandable tothousands of even millions of people," he says."Data viz is a big and unique way to get scienceout there, and while that worries somescientists, I'm excited about how it can helpchange the field."

All Images: via Kim Albrecht

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