
This is a list ofvoids in astronomy. Voids are particularly galaxy-poor regions of space betweenfilaments, making up thelarge-scale structure of the universe. Some voids are known assupervoids.
In the tables,z is the cosmologicalredshift,c thespeed of light, andh the dimensionlessHubble parameter, which has a value of approximately 0.7 (the Hubble constantH0 =h × 100 km s−1 Mpc−1). Mpc stands formegaparsec.
The co-ordinates (right ascension and declination) and distance given refer to the approximate center of the region.
| Name | Coordinates | Distance | Diameter | Data | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local Void | 18h 38m +18° | cz=2500 km/s | 60 Mpc | [1] | |
| Northern Local Supervoid | 61 Mpc | 104 Mpc | Virgo Supercluster,Coma Supercluster,Perseus–Pisces Supercluster, Ursa Major–Lynx Supercluster,Hydra–Centaurus Supercluster,Sculptor Supercluster, Pavo–Corona Australes Supercluster form a sheet between theNorthern Local Supervoid and theSouthern Local Supervoid.[2] TheHercules Supercluster separates the Northern Local Void from theBoötes Void.[2] ThePerseus–Pisces Supercluster and Pegasus Supercluster form a sheet separating the Northern Local Void andSouthern Local Void from the Pegasus Void.[2] | ||
| Southern Local Supervoid | 96 Mpc | 112 Mpc | |||
| Giant Void | 13h 01m +38.7° | z=0.116 | 300–400 Mpc | "Giant Void in NGH" or "AR-Lp 36"; NGH stands for "Northern Galactic Hemisphere"; discovered in 1988.[3] It is the largest void in the NGH where z<0.14.[4] | |
| KBC Void | 600 Mpc | Void containing theMilky Way andLocal Group[5] |
| Name | Coordinates | Distance | Diameter | Data | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boötes Void (Great Void) | 14h 20m 26° | 150 Mpc | 100 Mpc | TheHercules Supercluster separates theNorthern Local Void from the Boötes Void.[2] The Hercules Supercluster thus forms part of the near edge of the Boötes Void.[8] | |
| Canis Major Void | |||||
| Columba Void | |||||
| Coma Void | Discovered in 1975, along with theComa Supercluster, it lies in front of theComa Cluster.[9] It was the first void to be discovered and is approximately 1/3 as far away as the much larger Boötes Void.[10] | ||||
| Corona Borealis Void | |||||
| Eridanus Void | This void is separated from the Sculptor void by a sheet of galaxies.[11] | ||||
| Eridanus Supervoid (Great Void) | 03h 15m 05s −19° 35′ 02″ | z=1 | 150 Mpc | The claimedEridanus Supervoid or "Great Void", reported on 24 August 2007 by theNRAO fromVery Large Array Sky Survey data.[12] This void, if real, would be much larger than the others listed here (except theGiant Void), about 300h−1 Mpc in diameter and 1800–3000h−1 Mpc distant (whereh is thedimensionless Hubble parameter). It would be associated with (and be the explanation of) acold spot in thecosmic microwave background at the sky location. The evidence for such a "Great Void" is disputed by Smith and Huterer.[13] They showed that the claims made of observational evidence for such a void from survey data neglected systematic effects and did not account fora posteriori choices made in analyzing data. | |
| Southern Eridanus Void | The Southern Eridanus void is connected to the Eridanus void by a hole in the distribution of galaxies separating the two. A hole in the distribution of galaxies separating Sculptor and Southern Eridanus voids the size of (redshift) 1250 km/s appears to exist.[11] | ||||
| Fornax Void | |||||
| Hercules Void | 15.5h +30° | cz=7000 km/s | [14] Discovered in 1979[8][15] | ||
| Hydra Void | The Hydra Void lies beyond theHydra–Centaurus Supercluster[16] | ||||
| Leo Void | 11h 30m 0° | cz=4000 km/s | [16] | ||
| Microscopium Void | A hole in the distribution of galaxies separating Sculptor and Microscopium voids the size of (redshift) 1250 km/s appears to exist. This is roughly 1/2 of Microscopium's diameter.[11] | ||||
| Ophiuchus Void | near17h −25° | < 5000 km/s (the outer limit) | 25% of average universe density is the void density of matter. The far end of this void is defined by theOphiuchus Supercluster.[17] | ||
| Pegasus Void | 22h +15° | cz=5500 km/s | 40 Mpc | [18] ThePerseus–Pisces Supercluster andPegasus Supercluster form a sheet separate theNorthern Local Void andSouthern Local Void from the Pegasus Void.[2] | |
| Perseus–Pisces Void | 1h +10° | cz=8000 km/s | Discovered in 1980,[15] it is also called thePerseus Void | ||
| Sagittarius Void | |||||
| Sculptor Void | 23h 48m −24° 39′ | 34.8 Mpc/h | Corresponds toSRSS1 Void 3 andSRSS2 Void 5[19] This void is separated from theEridanus Void by a sheet of galaxies. A hole in the distribution of galaxies separating Sculptor andSouthern Eridanus Voids the size of 1250 km/s appears to exist.[11] The Sculptor Void lies next to theSouthern Wall orSouthern Great Wall. | ||
| Taurus Void | 30 Mpc | TheTaurus Void appears large and circular, and has walls of galaxies surrounding it. It lies next to thePerseus–Pisces Supercluster, and is the most visually identifiable. Several galaxies have been found to reside in the void, such asUGC 2627 andUGC 2629, both approximately 185 million light years away.[20] | |||
| [6][7] | |||||
| Designation | Location | Coordinates | Distance | Diameter | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bahcall & Soneira 1982 void | z = 0.03 – 0.08 |
| [21] This suspected void ranged 100 degrees across the sky, and has shown up on other surveys as several separate voids. |
In 1985, Tully determined a local dominant supercluster plane, and found thePisces–Cetus Supercluster Complex.[22]
| # | Coordinates | Distance | Diameter | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (h−1 Mpc) | ||||
| 1 | 17.0h 80° | 90 | 140 | |
| 2 | 21.0h −7° | 100 | 136 | |
| 3 | 8.6h +13° | 150 | 150 | |
| 4 | 21.5h +5° | 170 | 173 | |
| 5 | 14.3h +52° | 180 | 158 | Boötes Void |
| 6 | 23.0h −16° | 190 | 171 | |
| 7 | 12.8h +14° | 190 | 174 | |
| 8 | 10.0h +35° | 250 | 170 | |
| 9 | 2.6h −11° | 280 | 229 | |
| 10 | 8.7h +58° | 310 | 243 | |
| 11 | 16.8h +5° | 310 | 270 | |
In a 1985 study of Abell clusters, 29 voids were determined, in the sphere z<0.1 around Earth.[23]
| # | Coordinates | Distance | Diameter | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (h−1 Mpc) | ||||
| 1 | 0.0h +20° | 293 | 100 | |
| 2 | 0.3h 0° | 276 | 100 | |
| 3 | 0.7h +10° | 284 | 100 | |
| 4 | 2.0h −13° | 275 | 150 | |
| 5 | 8.0h +60° | 300 | 100 | |
| 6 | 9.0h +18° | 220 | 100 | |
| 7 | 9.0h +67° | 180 | 120 | |
| 8 | 9.2h +26° | 137 | 140 | |
| 9 | 9.5h +45° | 262 | 200 | |
| 10 | 9.8h 0° | 285 | 110 | |
| 11 | 9.8h +35° | 219 | 110 | |
| 12 | 10.8h −10° | 293 | 120 | |
| 13 | 12.0h +14° | 206 | 110 | |
| 14 | 12.3h 0° | 276 | 100 | |
| 15 | 12.4h −12° | 272 | 150 | |
| 16 | 12.5h +32° | 237 | 100 | |
| 17 | 12.9h +64° | 105 | 110 | |
| 18 | 13.6h +35° | 154 | 200 | Boötes Void |
| 19 | 13.8h +20° | 297 | 110 | |
| 20 | 14.2h −4° | 265 | 210 | |
| 21 | 14.7h +70° | 283 | 160 | |
| 22 | 15.2h +42° | 286 | 140 | |
| 23 | 16.0h +7° | 295 | 110 | |
| 24 | 16.4h +41° | 291 | 130 | |
| 25 | 16.5h +59° | 110 | 100 | |
| 26 | 17.2h +58° | 237 | 100 | |
| 27 | 22.2h −2° | 155 | 130 | |
| 28 | 22.5h 5° | 284 | 160 | |
| 29 | 23.5h −7° | 203 | 120 | |
A redshift survey of galaxies in the southern sky in 1988, out to a distance of 120 Mpc/h, revealed some voids.[24]
| # | Coordinates | Distance (V) | Dimensions W × H × D (h−1 Mpc) | Constellation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.5h −50° | 3000 km/s | 30 × 30 × 40 | Phoenix/Eridanus | Located just behind the galaxy concentration in Eridanus-Fornax-Dorado |
| 2 | 21h −25° | 5000 km/s | 30 × 30 × 30 | Capricornus/Microscopium | |
| 3 | 23.5h −35° | 6000 km/s | 70 × 30 × 50 | Sculptor/Grus | |
| 4 | 4h −40° | 9000 km/s | 50 × 100 × 50 | Horologium/Eridanus |
In 1994, a redshift survey in the southern sky identified 18 voids, 11 of which are major voids.[19]
| # | Coordinates | Distance (r) | Diameter (h−1 Mpc) | Constellation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1h 33m −16° 45′ | 85.7 | 54.3 | Cetus | major void |
| 2 | 3h 34m −28° 50′ | 99.7 | 56.2 | Fornax | major void SRSS1 Void 4 |
| 3 | 22h 25m −14° 46′ | 107.2 | 60.8 | Aquarius | major void |
| 4 | 21h 43m −14° 40′ | 66.7 | 35.6 | Capricornus | major void |
| 5 | 23h 48m −24° 39′ | 53.0 | 34.8 | Aquarius/Sculptor | major void SRSS1 Void 3 (Sculptor Void) |
| 6 | 3h 56m −20° 11′ | 56.5 | 32.0 | Eridanus | major void |
| 7 | 3h 17m −11° 40′ | 77.2 | 25.5 | Eridanus | major void |
| 8 | 23h 20m −12° 32′ | 83.9 | 27.8 | Aquarius | major void |
| 9 | 3h 06m −13° 47′ | 114.6 | 39.0 | Eridanus | major void |
| 10 | 0h 26m −9° 17′ | 104.7 | 34.8 | Cetus | major void |
| 11 | 0h 21m −29° 43′ | 112.8 | 42.9 | Sculptor | major void |
| 12 | 23h 03m −32° 35′ | 74.8 | 25.0 | Piscis Austrinus/Sculptor | |
| 13 | 1h 23m −19° 36′ | 31.0 | 22.1 | Cetus | SRSS1 Void 1 |
| 14 | 21h 28m −29° 28′ | 87.2 | 21.3 | Piscis Austrinus/Microscopium | |
| 15 | 21h 24m −33° 17′ | 116.1 | 27.3 | Microscopium | |
| 16 | 21h 43m −18° 41′ | 36.5 | 20.3 | Capricornus | |
| 17 | 3h 42m −21° 21′ | 32.1 | 19.0 | Eridanus | |
| 18 | 4h 18m −8° 42′ | 85.9 | 21.1 | Eridanus |
A 1994 census lists a total of 27 supervoids within a cube of 740 Mpc a side, centered on us (z=0.1 distant sphere).[25]
| # | Coordinates (B1950.0) | Distance (Mpc/h) | Diameter (Mpc/h) [Note 1] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19.0° −57.1° | 134 | 88 | |
| 2 | 28.2° −12.3° | 207 | 96 | |
| 3 | 34.8° −61.9° | 216 | 72 | |
| 4 | 36.6° −33.5° | 241 | 86 | |
| 5 | 37.8° −36.1° | 129 | 92 | |
| 6 | 46.0° −21.4° | 236 | 72 | |
| 7 | 62.0° −8.0° | 248 | 100 | |
| 8 | 71.2° −38.3° | 201 | 76 | |
| 9 | 121.7° −1.5° | 96 | 112 | Southern Local Supervoid |
| 10 | 130.0° +49.3° | 246 | 144 | |
| 11 | 140.4° +10.5° | 160 | 92 | |
| 12 | 146.9° +27.4° | 227 | 106 | |
| 13 | 153.1° −11.4° | 246 | 94 | |
| 14 | 159.9° +1.2° | 167 | 68 | |
| 15 | 161.6° −32.2° | 241 | 98 | |
| 16 | 167.4° +22.8° | 222 | 74 | |
| 17 | 186.9° −15.6° | 216 | 94 | |
| 18 | 196.8° +9.5° | 119 | 102 | |
| 19 | 204.8° +35.7° | 119 | 108 | |
| 20 | 214.6° +13.6° | 216 | 78 | Boötes Void (Great Void) |
| 21 | 216.7° +56.5° | 143 | 116 | |
| 22 | 219.8° +57.9° | 246 | 96 | |
| 23 | 220.2° +33.9° | 219 | 72 | |
| 24 | 256.1° −4.8° | 61 | 104 | Northern Local Supervoid |
| 25 | 353.0° −59.4° | 198 | 74 | |
| 26 | 356.6° +22.2° | 246 | 80 | |
| 27 | 358.9° −33.1° | 241 | 70 |
In a 1995 study of IRAS data looking for large-scale structure in the Galactic Anticenter in theZone of Avoidance, four voids were discovered.[26]
| # | Coordinates (B1950.0) | Distance (km/s) | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| V0 | 5.2h +18° | 1000 | 96°×36°×2000 km/s | |
| V1 | 3.5h +18° | 3750 | 15°×36°×3500 km/s | V1 and V2 are connected, and block thePerseus–Pisces Supercluster from traversing theZone of Avoidance. |
| V2 | 3.5h +29° | 8000 | 25°×14°×2000 km/s | V1 and V2 are connected, and block thePerseus–Pisces Supercluster from traversing theZone of Avoidance. |
| V3 | 8.0h +10° | 7000 | 30°×20°×2000 km/s | This void lies in front of theCfA2 Great Wall. |
Analysis of the IRAS redshift survey in 1997 revealed 24 voids, 12 of which were termed "significant"[27]
| # | Supergalactic Coordinates (r,X,Y,Z) | Diameter (h−1 Mpc) | Data | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | (55.2,−10.4,−53.8,6.1) | 51.0 | significant void | |
| 2 | (49.6,−25.3,31.4,−28.9) | 43.8 | significant void | |
| 3 | (46.0,−24.8,26.7,28.1) | 44.5 | significant void | |
| 4 | (46.5,8.7,24.7,38.4) | 45.0 | significant void (Local Void) | |
| 5 | (32.0,−13.0,−23.9,−16.9) | 36.0 | significant void | |
| 6 | (51.5,17.0,−32.2,36.4) | 41.4 | significant void | |
| 7 | (57.1,31.2,44.9,16.5) | 43.5 | significant void | |
| 8 | (60.4,−25.8,−22.7,−49.7) | 39.5 | significant void | |
| 9 | (49.8,35.9,−25.6,−23.0) | 36.0 | significant void | |
| 10 | (63.3,−48.0,−40.9,6.0) | 33.6 | significant void (Sculptor Void) | |
| 11 | (48.6,11.8,46.6,−6.9) | 32.0 | significant void | |
| 12 | (49.9,−15.6,−35.7,31.3) | 31.5 | significant void | |
| 13 | (62.8,14.2,29.3,−53.7) | 40.3 | ||
| 14 | (19.0,0.7,−16.4,9.6) | 28.8 | ||
| 15 | (37.6,32.4,−17.0,8.6) | 30.4 | Perseus–Pisces Void |