What galaxy cluster are we located in?
Emily Wilson
Updated on June 05, 2026
The Laniakea Supercluster is the supercluster that contains the Virgo Cluster, Local Group, and by extension on the latter, our galaxy; the Milky Way. It contains the Local Group with our galaxy, the Milky Way. It also contains the Virgo Cluster near its center, and is sometimes called the Local Supercluster.
Which galaxies are found in large clusters?
Notable galaxy clusters in the relatively nearby Universe include the Virgo Cluster, Fornax Cluster, Hercules Cluster, and the Coma Cluster. A very large aggregation of galaxies known as the Great Attractor, dominated by the Norma Cluster, is massive enough to affect the local expansion of the Universe.
What kind of galaxy are you more likely to find in a galaxy cluster?
elliptical
In rich galaxy clusters the most common kind of galaxy is elliptical, while in poor clusters and for galaxies not in clusters, spiral types dominate.
What is the closest galaxy cluster to Earth?
Distance Information The closest galaxy cluster to ours that is shown on this image is the M81 group located 104,060,000,000,000,000,000 km (11 million light years or 3.3 Mpc) away.
Why do galaxies exist in clusters?
Astronomers think that galaxy clusters form as clumps of dark matter and their associated galaxies are pulled together by gravity to form groups of dozens of galaxies, which in turn merge to form clusters of hundreds, even thousands of galaxies. The gas in galaxy clusters is heated as the cluster is formed.
Which is the biggest cluster in the universe?
A new report in 2014 confirms the Milky Way as a member of the Laniakea Supercluster. The Caelum Supercluster is a collection of over 550,000 galaxies. It is the largest of all galaxy superclusters. Also known as the Coma Wall.
Is the Milky Way a rich or poor cluster?
Sometimes, a poor galaxy cluster is called a group. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is part of the Local Group, the name for a cluster of a few dozen galaxies that includes the Milky Way Galaxy. A rich cluster is typically crowded at the center with galaxies.
Where can I find Virgo Cluster?
The Virgo Cluster, which sits 65 million light-years away, is near the center of our Local Supercluster; their coincident positions are why it is called the Virgo Supercluster.
What galaxy is Virgo?
Its brightest member is the elliptical galaxy Messier 49; however its most famous member is the elliptical galaxy Messier 87, which is located in the center of the cluster….
| Virgo Cluster | |
|---|---|
| Binding mass | 1015 M ☉ |
| See also: Galaxy group, Galaxy cluster, List of galaxy groups and clusters |