The Milky Way Galaxy

Figure 1. The Milky Way galaxy is 100,000 light years in diameter. To put this distance in perspective, if you turned on a flashlight at one end of the galaxy, it would take 100,000 years for the someone on the opposite side of the galaxy to see the light from the flash light.

• The Milky Way is one of 100- 200 BILLION other galaxies in the Universe. It is said that if each galaxy was the size of a pea, that's a pea, as in pea in a pod, they would all fill a sports arena.

• Each galaxy has 10s of 100s of BILLIONS of stars.

• Space is more vast with more stars than there are all grains of sands on the planet Earth!!

Now let's close in on our destination.

 

Figure 2. Note the distance between our Sun and Polaris (North Star) and the Orion Nebula (Orion's Belt) one of the most recognizable constellations in our night sky. They don't seem very far away, do they?

Figure 3. Alpha Centauri is our closest star (4 light years away.)

 

Our Solar System

Full Scale Model

Figure 4. This is a full scale model of our solar system. Note the size of each planet in relation to each other.

 

 

The Size of the Planets

Figure 5. Here is a closer look at the size of the planets. Again, note the size of each planet in relation to each other. Earth is a tiny planet.

 

 

The Solar System Inner Planets
Full Scale Model

Figure 6. Now try to comprehend the size of the Earth in relation to the Sun.

 

 

The Earth

Our journey ends here.

We started at The Beginning, journeyed through billions of years and billions of galaxies to eventually arrive at the Milky Way, then traveled out to one of its outer arms (the Orion Arm) and zeroed in on the location of our Sun, where we were greeted by a Solar System of eight planets (Pluto has recently been voted not a planet by the International Astronomers Association.) Within this solar system we find Earth, planet #3, 93,000,000 miles from our Sun.

Once we understand and comprehend — process in our mind — where we began and how far we've traveled and seen along the way to eventually reach the Earth, it's hard to believe Earth holds a significant place in the Universe.

 

Now how about that 99 cent margarita?

 

SOURCE:
National Geographic
Figure 2-3, atlasoftheuniverse.com by Richard Powell
Figure 4, Wikipedia with my Photoshop modifications
Figure 5, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
Figure 6, Wikipedia
Earth, Wikipedia