Picture of Our Galaxy: How We Captured It

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    Galaxy Picture
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around how images of the Milky Way galaxy have been captured, particularly questioning the nature of these images and whether they are actual photographs or artistic representations. Participants explore the implications of capturing images from outside the galaxy and the challenges associated with such endeavors.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express confusion about the existence of images of the Milky Way from an external perspective, questioning whether such images are available.
  • Others clarify that many images attributed to the Milky Way are actually artistic conceptions based on scientific data rather than photographs taken from outside the galaxy.
  • One participant notes that capturing a photograph of the Milky Way from outside would require being approximately 100,000 light-years away, which is currently impossible with existing technology.
  • There is a suggestion that simulating an image of the Milky Way using data collected from within the galaxy could be an interesting project, although it may not be scientifically rigorous.
  • Some participants discuss the limitations of imaging due to dust and gas obscuring views of the galaxy, suggesting that only a small portion could be accurately simulated.
  • Concerns are raised about the clarity of the original post and the assumptions made by participants regarding the nature of the images being discussed.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the nature of the images discussed, with some believing they are artistic representations while others seek clarification on whether actual photographs exist. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the specifics of the images in question.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight the challenges of capturing images of the Milky Way from outside the galaxy and the reliance on artistic interpretations based on internal mapping of the galaxy's structure. The discussion also reflects varying interpretations of the original post and the need for clearer communication.

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  • #32
From internal surveys, we now believe that the MW is a barred spiral with a prominent bar and a modest/average central bulge. We know that other barred spirals are not always symmetrical WRT to the number of arms or their arrangements. In addition, spirals are often interacting with neighbors, and we can't be sure that we don't have such a companion (like M51 does) on the other side of the galaxy, especially since signs of interaction such as enhanced star formation have high-frequency spectra that are easily attenuated by intervening gas and dust.
 
  • #33
turbo-1 said:
... especially since signs of interaction such as enhanced star formation have high-frequency spectra that are easily attenuated by intervening gas and dust.
And especially since evidence suggests that MW has recently torn apart and absorbed another galaxy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/10/science/space/10galaxy.html
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media/happenings/20070530/
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #34
russ_watters said:
I was actually going to use that! Seriously.

This site is a science education site and if we just answer the question, all you've gained is a single factoid that you may or may not remember in a month. It hasn't really helped much. But if instead you go back and pay a little bit more attention to what you were looking at, form a more coherent question, etc., and answer it for yourself, you'll learn something far more valuable: you'll learn how to learn.
I went to a neighbor's place today to borrow his old grader (suitable for the 3-point hitch on my Kubota). When I came back up out of the woods, my other neighbor (who often uses the other other guy's very large tractor-backhoe, etc) said "Why didn't you stop in so I could help you?" My reply was that I wanted to learn how to do it right. He would have made the hook-up easy, and I might not have understood WHY. Now I know that if you're going to back a tractor up to an implement, you should line up with the lowest hitch-pin first, raise the 3-pt to line up the upper active pin, then adjust so that you can hitch the passive upper link. It took me about 30 minutes to find out for myself what I could have wasted years to understand with only intermittent usage of that implement with skilled operators telling what to do. Sometimes you really have to be in the trenches.
 
  • #36
turbo-1 said:
We have barely gotten probes out of our solar system. I sure would like to meet the folks that have imaged the MW from outside the galaxy. They'd be real old, though and might be cranky - best not to tick them off.

mby they had cosmic strings..
 

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