Star Wars is finally exploring the Unknown Regions - and Timothy Zahn's novel Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good suggests this vast area of space could actually have been created by the Sith. Situated on the outskirts of the galaxy, the Unknown Regions have been described as an "unexplored infinity... closed off by a labyrinth of solar storms, rogue magnetospheres, black holes, gravity wells, and things far stranger." The Unknown Regions were introduced in the old Expanded Universe, but while Disney relaunched the canon after it acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, it kept the same galaxy map. It didn't take long for the Disney canon to begin exploring them.
The Unknown Regions were brought to life on the big screen in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which introduced the Sith redoubt Exegol, which had been concealed in the maelstrom of the Unknown Regions for millennia. The planet is situated in what is called a "Box System," with only one way in or out, and it can only be reached by Force-sensitives who used Force relics called Wayfinders to navigate the chaos. Rae Carson's novelization of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker confirmed both the Sith and the Jedi established other outposts in the Unknown Regions, with temples and Force vergences lost in the mists of time and the cosmic anarchy of this vast area of space.
The Unknown Regions were created by best-selling author Timothy Zahn in his original "Thrawn Trilogy," which kicked off the Expanded Universe back in 1991. He's now returned to Lucasfilm with another canon trilogy exploring the history of his character Thrawn, a being who originated from the Unknown Regions but was ultimately banished and joined Palpatine's Empire. This trilogy, Thrawn Ascendancy, is hinting that the Unknown Regions were not an accident - but rather that they were actually created.
The Creation of the Unknown Regions
Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising was the first Star Wars book set in the Unknown Regions, known as "the Chaos" to the species who live there, and it revealed this area of space had once been normal - and, indeed, that the inhabitants of the Chaos had previously been able to mix with the galaxy's other inhabitants.
"The Chaos hadn't always been that way, or so the legends went. Once, at the dawn of space travel, it had been no more difficult to move between any of the stars than it was now to travel in the Ascendancy. But then, millennia ago, a series of chained supernova explosions throughout the region had sent huge masses tumbling at high speeds between the stars, some of them demolishing asteroids or whole worlds, others sparking more supernovas with their near-lightspeed impacts. The movement of all these masses, coupled with regions of heavy electromagnetic flux, resulted in the constantly changing hyperlanes that made any voyage longer than a couple of star systems difficult and dangerous."
The Unknown Regions are, therefore, best understood as a vast area of space that has actually been cut off from the rest of the galaxy. But the phenomenon that created them - this "series of chained supernova explosions" - sounds rather strange. It's a disaster on a scale that has never been seen before or since in the Star Wars galaxy - and it may not have been natural at all.
The Sith Could Have Created The Unknown Regions
In the old Expanded Universe, the area known as the Unknown Regions were once the center of a vast Sith Empire. The Disney Era has alluded to several events tied to this Sith Empire, suggesting the same is probably true in the canon as well. Given that is the case, it is entirely possible the chained supernova explosions were no accident at all, but rather were the result of the use of a Sith superweapon. As Master Yoda noted in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, "Long ago in forgotten times, when the Sith and Jedi fought for control of the galaxy, weapons there were, of unimaginable power." The Death Star and Starkiller Base were actually rediscovered superweapons, with the Empire and First Order successfully recreating the devastating power the Sith had mastered millennia ago but whose secrets had been lost. It is possible, therefore, that a Sith superweapon was responsible for creating the Chaos.
But why would the Sith trigger these supernovas? There are really three possibilities. The first is that Sith in-fighting led to one Sith Lord creating a superweapon and using it to destroy their rivals; Sith are power-hungry by nature, and the Rule of Two is usually cast as an attempt to contain and control the struggle between such rivals. Another possibility is that the Sith's enemies were advancing upon them, and they triggered this chain of supernovas in a horrific attempt to destroy an enemy fleet. But the most intriguing possibility of all is that the Sith deliberately created the Unknown Regions in order to fashion a place to hide. It is surely no coincidence that only Force-sensitives, using Wayfinders and Force-powers such as skywalking, are the only ones who can successfully navigate the Unknown Regions. The Chaos could have been deliberately formed in order to allow the Sith to slink into the shadows, so they could bide their time before returning to the galaxy in order to exact their revenge upon the Jedi. It's exactly the kind of horrific masterstroke you'd expect from them.
Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good ends with a tantalizing hint that this could be the case. The final scene of the book sees one member of the Chiss ascend to a high rank in House Mitth of the Chiss Ascendancy, and he is offered knowledge restricted only to the upper echelons of Chiss society. "I will tell you of the ancient history of the Mitth," he was told. "The true history, so long suppressed. And I will tell you of a terrible alien weapon known as Starflash." The Chiss would consider the Sith to be aliens, so this could well be describing the ancient Sith superweapon that created the Unknown Regions; "Starflash" would be a fitting name for a weapon that could cause stars to spontaneously explode.
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This is still only a theory, but if it is true then the Sith have been responsible for causing more havoc in the galaxy than anyone had thought. As impressive as the Death Star and Starkiller Base may have been, they are as nothing to the weapons those ancient Sith wielded, which cut off an enormous portion of space from the rest of the galaxy. No doubt the last book in Zahn's trilogy, Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, will provide some answers - and perhaps reveal one of the greatest secrets of the Star Wars galaxy.