The map, known as the 2MASS Redshift Survey (2MRS), representing 95 percent of the night sky and is said to be the map of the universe most comprehensive ever created. Govert Schilling in the journal Science explains that "the color codes for distance, the purple spots are nearby galaxies and the red dots are distant." The map need more than a decade to complete, even during that time one of its principal authors died, astronomer John Huchra, last October, before the work saw the light.
According to the authors explain, the map could help clear up a persistent mystery about why the Milky Way is moving as it does. Our galaxy is traveling around 370 kilometers per second, something difficult to explain if one looks at the seriousness of our closest neighbors. However, the map shows some "local massive structures" that had never been detected thanks to the detail that could affect the current position in space of the Milky Way.
There are bigger images and even video tours at the 2MASS Redshift Survey homepage.
Take a tour through the 2MRS data: Quicktime movie
See the redshift layers being added: Quicktime movie
