Hubble telescope discovers a new type of cosmic object and astronomers are on 'Cloud 9'

The location of Cloud 9, a "failed galaxy" packed with gas and dark matter but absent of stars.

Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered a new type of cosmic object, a cloud of dark matter and gas that contains no stars. The object, located around 14 million light-years from Earth at the outskirts of the spiral galaxy Messier 94 (M94), has been nicknamed "Cloud 9."

That's a fitting nickname, given the delight scientists would have if Cloud 9 lives up to its scientific potential. The new object could not only potentially help explain how galaxies formed from gatherings of dark matter in the early universe, but could also grant insights into the very nature of this most mysterious "stuff."