Structure of the intergalactic medium

A model of the intercluster medium based on the non-linear theory of galaxy formation is proposed. Along with clusters of galaxies and rarefied comparatively cold $$(T\,\sim\,{10}^{4}\,\text{K})$$ gas there should be hot clouds $$(T\,\sim\,{10}^{6}\,\text{K})$$ with mass of the order of $$M\,\sim\,{10}^{14}\,{M}_{\odot}$$, which contain a considerable fraction of the matter. Observational evidence for the presence of such clouds is probably hydrogen absorption lines in the spectra of some distant quasars without absorption lines of heavy elements.