The Big Ring is the seventh large structure discovered that contradicts the understanding of smooth matter distribution across the largest scale of the universe.
[5] The discovery of the Big Ring was announced on 10 January 2024 by PhD student Alexia Lopez from the University of Central Lancashire.
[6] It resulted from her ongoing research into large-scale structures of the universe using MgII (singly ionized magnesium) absorbers detected[7] in quasar spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS).
Other suggested explanations were Conformal Cyclic Cosmology or effects of speculative cosmic strings (which are filamentary ‘topological defects’ of great size) passing through.
[8] The discoveries of the Big Ring as well as the Giant Arc are significant as they challenge the Cosmological Principle, which asserts that the universe is homogeneous and isotropic on large scales.