The term peculiar velocity refers to the components of a receding
galaxy's velocity that cannot be explained by
Hubble's law.According to Hubble, and as verified by many astronomers, a galaxy is receding from us at a speed proportional to its distance. The relationship between speed and distance would be exact in the absence of other effects.Galaxies are not distributed evenly throughout observable space, but typically found in groups or
clusters, ranging in size from fewer than a dozen to several thousands. All these nearby galaxies have a gravitational effect, to the extent that the original galaxy can have a velocity of over 1,000
km/
s in an apparently random direction. This velocity will therefore add, or subtract, from the radial velocity that one would expect from Hubble's law.
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