“The Virtual Universe” -Includes a Stunning Zoom-In of the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies
A stunning new simulation reproduces iconic structures within our Local Universe, such as the Virgo, Coma and Perseus clusters of galaxies, the ‘Great Wall’, and the ‘Local Void’. At the center of the simulation is a pair of galaxies, the virtual counterparts of our own Milky Way and our massive neighbor, the Andromeda galaxy (see image above). An international team of researchers, led by the University of Helsinki, and including members from Durham University in the UK, used the supercomputer simulations, named SIBELIUS-DARK, to recreate the entire evolution of the cosmos, from the Big Bang to the present.