Astronomers suspect it’s a piece of a vast galactic network.

An international team of astronomers has discovered an "interstellar tunnel" in our Solar System’s neighborhood, potentially linking star systems and serving as part of a galaxy-spanning network.

As detailed in a new study published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, this tunnel appears within the Local Hot Bubble (LHB), a massive structure of hot gas with a radius stretching hundreds of light-years around our solar system. Remarkably, the findings suggest the LHB might connect to an even larger neighboring bubble.

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Using data from the eROSITA telescope - the first x-ray observatory fully deployed outside Earth's atmosphere – the researchers created a 3D model of the LHB.

This model confirmed previously theorized features and revealed unexpected discoveries. One is that it leads towards the Centaurus, carving through the cooler interstellar medium.

The LHB concept was proposed over 50 years ago to explain unexplained background x-ray radiation. Normally, the interstellar medium - a diffuse collection of gas and dust that forms stars - should absorb such emissions. However, the local bubble provides a compelling alternative: a vast void created 14 million years ago by a chain of supernova explosions that cleared out surrounding material.

Remnants of these supernovas can still be observed today. Evidence for the LHB has grown over time, particularly with the detection of young star clusters forming along its edges.

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According to the study authors, the interstellar tunnel is part of a vast network of cavities in the Milky Way, shaped by the energy released from stellar explosions. Their modeling also revealed a temperature gradient across the LHB, with its northern region significantly hotter than the southern. This may suggest that recent supernova activity, within the last few million years, has reheated and expanded the bubble.

The findings underscore the dynamic nature of the interstellar medium and hint at a complex, interconnected structure spanning the galaxy.

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