Content Writer: Scientists Create Largest Cosmological Simulation Ever, Unlocking New Insights into the Universe — Note: As instructed, only the title is returned in English, title case, no quotation marks, no extra text.

Scientists have released the largest-ever cosmological simulation of the universe, offering researchers an unprecedented tool to study cosmic evolution and the formation of large-scale structures.

The simulation, named “HyperMillennium,” was developed by a Chinese-led international team and announced on April 23, 2026. It covers a cubic volume with a side length of 12 billion light-years and uses 4.2 trillion virtual dark matter particles to model the universe’s evolution over 10 billion years.

By applying N-body numerical simulation techniques, the team recreated how gravity-driven processes shaped the cosmos from shortly after the Big Bang to the present day. This virtual universe allows scientists to “rewind time” and analyze the formation of galaxies and other cosmic features in fine detail.

The simulation incorporates physical models of galaxy formation, producing a detailed catalog that includes galaxy positions, brightness and other key traits. This provides theoretical support for research into dark matter and dark energy, two of the most mysterious components of the universe.

According to Wang Qiao, a researcher at the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NAOC), the simulation achieves high force resolution and time accuracy while marking a breakthrough in computational scale. This enables scientists to study extremely rare, massive cosmic structures with strong statistical power.

The HyperMillennium simulation is designed to support next-generation galaxy survey programs, including the China Space Station Telescope and the European Space Agency’s Euclid mission. By offering a realistic preview of what these observatories will detect, it helps researchers prepare their data analysis methods.

This development follows other recent large-scale universe simulations, such as the Euclid Consortium’s Flagship 2 release in September 2025, which mapped 3.4 billion galaxies and tracked over 4 trillion particles. Together, these efforts represent a growing international effort to use supercomputing to explore the universe’s hidden architecture.