The discussion centers on the misconception that we have captured images of the Milky Way galaxy from an external perspective. Participants clarify that all existing images are artist conceptions based on data collected from within the galaxy, as no spacecraft have traveled far enough to photograph the Milky Way from outside. The Milky Way spans approximately 100,000 light-years, making it impossible to capture such an image with current technology. Astronomers utilize mapping techniques and data from instruments like the Spitzer Space Telescope to infer the galaxy's structure, which informs artistic representations.
PREREQUISITESAstronomers, astrophysicists, science educators, and anyone interested in understanding the representation of galaxies and the limitations of current astronomical imaging techniques.
Wow, I've never seen it represented that way. Very cool.Hepth said:You can see the milky way in this picture (huge) its a 360 panorama:
http://www.nps.gov/labe/parknews/images/Nightsky_from_Beds_2_KFalls_moonrising_milkyway.jpg
And especially since evidence suggests that MW has recently torn apart and absorbed another galaxy.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.
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.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.
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.