NSF–DOE Rubin Observatory's view is cluttered full of galaxy clusters: collections of hundreds or thousands of galaxies that are gravitationally bound together.✨ While the Virgo Cluster itself is the nearest galaxy cluster to us at 55 million light years away, there are many more of these massive structures visible in Rubin's Cosmic Treasure Chest in the distance! They can be identified as similarly colored smudges concentrated together. Did you know❓The colors of galaxies in a cluster enable scientists to measure the cluster's distance from Earth. Thanks to the Universe's expansion over billions of years, very distant clusters appear redder than they actually are. This is called redshift! Hunt for even more galaxy clusters with Rubin's Skyviewer 🔭 skyviewer.app
