| Himiko | |
|---|---|
| Type | Lyman Alpha Blob |
| Observation data (Epoch J2000.0) | |
| Right ascension | 02h 17m 57.563s |
| Declination | -05° 08′ 44.45″ |
| Redshift | 6.595 |
| See also: Astronomical object, List of astronomical objects | |
Himiko is a large gas cloud found at redshift of z=6.6 that predates similar Lyman-alpha blobs. Researchers say it "may represent the most massive object ever discovered in the early universe."[1] It is 12.9 billion light years from Earth, or about 75×1021 miles (122×1021 kilometers).
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It is 55,000 light years across (half the diameter of our galaxy), but is said to "hold more than 10 times as much mass as the next largest object found in the early universe, or roughly the equivalent mass of 40 billion suns", making it the most massive object in the known universe.[1]
Masami Ouchi, a researcher at the Carnegie Institution in Pasadena, Calif stated "I have never heard about any [similar] objects that could be resolved at this distance...[i]t's kind of record-breaking."[1]
The object was named by a Japanese scientist after a 3rd-century Japanese shaman queen Himiko.[1][2]