Scientists have made the largest 3D map of the universe, measuring how fast it has expanded over billions of years by using the most precise measurements to date.

An international team, including researchers from Sussex university, used an instrument known as the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (Desi) to create the map.

Their aim was to measure the effects of dark energy, a mysterious force that is believed to be making the universe expand faster and faster.

The scientists said they were able to measure the expansion history of the universe spanning 11 billion years with a precision better than one per cent.

The map, comprising more than six million galaxies, is the largest 3D map of the cosmos constructed.

Dr Eva-Maria Mueller, Ernest Rutherford Fellow at the University of Sussex, who led part of the cosmological interpretation of the Desi data, said she could not initially believe the “fascinating” results.

Dr Mueller said: “It was a moment I’d been eagerly anticipating since the start of my PhD.

“The findings were not just interesting – they were captivating, sparking fresh insights into the fundamental nature of our universe.

“It’s moments like these that remind me why I’m passionate about cosmology.”

The Desi instrument uses 5,000 tiny robots within a mountaintop telescope near Tucson, Arizona.

Scientists were able to map the cosmos as it was billions of years ago and traced its growth to what it is today, using light from distant objects in space which are only now reaching Desi.

Professor Carlos Frenk, of Durham University’s department of physics and a member of the Desi team, described the findings as “hugely exciting”.

He said: “Never before has mankind measured the basic properties of our universe with such precision.”

At present, Lambda CDM, a cosmological model that describes the structure and evolution of the universe, is seen by scientists as the leading framework determining how the universe is evolving.

It includes both a weakly interacting type of matter, known as cold dark matter (CDM), and dark energy – also referred to as Lambda.

According to the model, both matter and dark matter slow down the universe’s expansion, while dark energy speeds it up.