The True Size of the Milky Way Will Melt Your Mind
Close your eyes and let the true size of the Milky Way settle into your mind. A quiet journey into the scale of our home galaxy. Recent discoveries reveal that the Milky Way extends up to 1.9 million light-years across, far beyond the 100,000 light-years often taught in schools. The dark matter halo around the galaxy is at least 1.9 million light-years in diameter, containing most of its mass. The Magellanic Clouds, our largest companion galaxies, lie well within this vast halo, meaning we are already beginning to see the early stages of interaction with them. Let the quiet enormity of our…
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