May Be in Early Birth Stages : Seven Galaxies Found in Area Once Thought a Void

WASHINGTON — Peering deeply into a part of the universe once thought to be an enormous void, astronomers have discovered seven rare galaxies that they say might be in the early stages of birth.

Astronomers said Wednesday that the void--300 million light-years in diameter--still appears to be the biggest vacant area in the universe, but the new discovery shows it is not totally empty.

Light-Years Away

The middle of the void, discovered in 1981 and noted for its lack of stars and much other matter, is about 600 million light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Bootes, the scientists said.

The region that was thought to be mostly empty space is so vast that it could contain 2,000 galaxies the size of the Milky Way. The sun and Earth are parts of the Milky Way, which is 100,000 light-years in diameter.

A light-year is the distance light can travel in a vacuum in one year--about 6 trillion miles.

The National Science Foundation, which sponsored the work and announced the discovery, said the rare galaxies will have repercussions on theories concerned with how matter is distributed in the universe.

The finding also could help scientists understand how galaxies--collections of millions of stars--and clusters of galaxies form in space, it said.

The astronomers, who are publishing their findings in Astrophysical Journal Letters, said the seven galaxies are unusual because they contain more charged particles and energetic gas than most large groupings of stars.

Stephen A. Gregory of the University of New Mexico’s Institute for Astrophysics said in a telephone interview that this activity indicates that the galaxies contain regions where stars may be forming from the dust and gases of space.