How Can We Visualize the Milky Way From Within?

  • Thread starter Thread starter simpleton
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    milky way
AI Thread Summary
Observing the Milky Way in its entirety is impossible due to our position within the galaxy. Those fortunate enough to live in dark-sky areas can enjoy parts of the galaxy, particularly the bright band toward Sagittarius in summer. Many children in the U.S. have never seen the Milky Way, highlighting a significant gap in astronomical experiences. To visualize the Milky Way, one can refer to images of similar barred spiral galaxies, which provide a conceptual understanding. The constraints of Earth's location within the galaxy and individual geographic positions limit our views of celestial features.
simpleton
Messages
56
Reaction score
0
How do you see the whole of milky way if we are in it?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Obviously you'll not see it all. If you're lucky enough to live someplace where it's visible, be happy and enjoy. I understand, from the local observatory guy, that about 80% of children in the US have never seen it.
 
simpleton said:
How do you see the whole of milky way if we are in it?

Here's a similar thread from September. It may answer some of your questions (and give you a laugh or two).

https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=338097

.
 
The best way to "see" our home galaxy is to dig up images of barred spiral galaxies and use your imagination. We are reasonably sure that the MW is a barred spiral, and they are fairly common, so images are not hard to find. I live in central Maine. In the summer I get to see the "fat" bright part of the MW, toward Saggitarius, and in the winter I get to look at the next arm out and see Orion, etc. Our view of the MW is necessarily constrained by the Earth's location in it, and by our location on the Earth. I have never seen the Southern Cross, nor the Magellanic Clouds. :frown:
 
Thread 'Gauss' law seems to imply instantaneous electric field'
Imagine a charged sphere at the origin connected through an open switch to a vertical grounded wire. We wish to find an expression for the horizontal component of the electric field at a distance ##\mathbf{r}## from the sphere as it discharges. By using the Lorenz gauge condition: $$\nabla \cdot \mathbf{A} + \frac{1}{c^2}\frac{\partial \phi}{\partial t}=0\tag{1}$$ we find the following retarded solutions to the Maxwell equations If we assume that...
Maxwell’s equations imply the following wave equation for the electric field $$\nabla^2\mathbf{E}-\frac{1}{c^2}\frac{\partial^2\mathbf{E}}{\partial t^2} = \frac{1}{\varepsilon_0}\nabla\rho+\mu_0\frac{\partial\mathbf J}{\partial t}.\tag{1}$$ I wonder if eqn.##(1)## can be split into the following transverse part $$\nabla^2\mathbf{E}_T-\frac{1}{c^2}\frac{\partial^2\mathbf{E}_T}{\partial t^2} = \mu_0\frac{\partial\mathbf{J}_T}{\partial t}\tag{2}$$ and longitudinal part...
Back
Top