The Universe

 

The Universe

á      The universe consists of all things known to exist.

á      The science of astronomy views the universe as an orderly system called the cosmos.

 

Galaxy

á      The universe consists of billions of galaxies.

á      Each galaxy contains billions of stars and can have different shapes - spiral, elliptical,  or irregular.

 

Our Galaxy - The Milky Way

á      All light we see in the sky is within our galaxy, the Milky Way, with one exception.

 

Measuring Distance - Units

á    Because the universe is such a big place there are special units used to measure it.

á    L.D. (lunar distance) - from Earth to our Moon (240,000 miles)

á    A.U. (astronomical unit) - from Earth to the Sun (93 million miles)

á    L.Y. (lignt year) the distance light travels in a year (6 trillion miles)

 

Constellations

á      Ancient people began by organizing the stars within our galaxy into constellations.

á      A constellation is an area of the sky with a pattern named for a particular object, animal, or person.

á      There are 88 constellations that make up the whole sky.

á      You may be familiar with the ÒBig DipperÓ, ÒOrionÓ, or the signs of the zodiac (ie. Aquarius, Leo, etc).

 

Andromeda Galaxy

á      We can see one galaxy with the unaided eye, called Andromeda.

á      The Andromeda Galaxy is located next to the constellation, Andromeda.

á      Andromeda Galaxy

 

Solar Systems

á      Within a galaxy exists many solar systems

á      Solars systems have objects that revolve around a star

 

Overview

á      Universe

á      (everything)

á      Galaxies

á      (spiral, elliptical, irregular shapes)

á      Solar systems

á      (stars, planets, and moons)