The great attractor

The great attractor, as we call it is a fascinatingly mysterious region. It has immense mass (equal to that of a 1000 trillion suns!) This mass is so much that it increases the gravitational force of the region, driving it to pull galaxies (including ours) towards it.

Let us dive deep into the mystery.

The great attractor is located in the gravitational centre of the Laniakea Supercluster of galaxies (which includes the Milky Way). Now it is not a single star or a blackhole. Instead, it is a massive concentration of mass. The great attractor is about 150 to 250 million light years away from us.

However, we cannot study it much as it is located in the Zone of avoidance meaning it is difficult to observe it using any telescope. However, scientists are trying to use X-ray and infrared observations to study the Great Attractor. 

But with what we know right we and some other galaxies are being pulled towards it at the speed of 600 kilometres per second!

But, we're not done yet. There is another supercluster called the Shapley Supercluster whose gravitational pull is stronger than that of the Great Attractor. This is why the Milky Way and the Great Attractor, are both getting attracted towards it. 

And now, before you get worried know that we will actually never collide with the great attractor. This is because of the rapid expansion of our universe. The fabric of the universe is expanding faster than the speed of light! So, we would kind of move further away from it reather than getting close.

But the great attractor is still an unsolved mystery.