On a clear night, it might look like the stars above are distributed more or less evenly. But that isn't the case — all stars are part of a gigantic cosmic web that links galaxies across the universe like threads of spider's silk, leaving unfathomably large swaths of nothingness in between. Now, in two papers published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on June 29, scientists detail evidence that this massive cosmic highway stretches back nearly to the dawn of the universe.
Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers discovered a massive, gassy tendril composed of 10 closely packed galaxies stretching over 3 million light-years. According to the researchers, this ancient filament of gas and stars may represent the oldest known thread of the cosmic web.
