Galaxies move in the universe. How the solar system moves. Characteristics of the Milky Way Galaxy

There is no such thing in life as eternal peace of mind. Life itself is movement, and cannot exist without desires, fear, and feelings.
Thomas Hobbs

I found it on YouTube video with the theory of the spiral movement of the solar system through our galaxy. I didn't find it convincing, but I'd like to hear it from you. Is it scientifically correct?

Some of the statements in this video are true. For example:

• the planets revolve around the Sun in approximately the same plane
• The solar system moves through the galaxy with an angle of 60° between the galactic plane and the plane of rotation of the planets
• The Sun, as it orbits the Milky Way, moves up and down and in and out relative to the rest of the galaxy.

All this is true, but the video shows all these facts incorrectly.

It is known that the planets move around the Sun in ellipses, according to the laws of Kepler, Newton and Einstein. But the picture on the left is wrong in terms of scale. It is irregular in terms of shapes, sizes and eccentricities. And although the orbits in the diagram on the right look less like ellipses, the orbits of the planets look something like this in terms of scale.

Let's take another example - the orbit of the Moon.

It is known that the Moon revolves around the Earth with a period of just under a month, and the Earth revolves around the Sun with a period of 12 months. Which of the presented pictures better demonstrates the movement of the Moon around the Sun? If we compare the distances from the Sun to the Earth and from the Earth to the Moon, as well as the speed of rotation of the Moon around the Earth, and the Earth/Moon system around the Sun, it turns out that the best way the situation is demonstrated by option D. They can be exaggerated to achieve some effects, but quantitatively options A, B and C are incorrect.

Now let's move on to the movement of the solar system through the galaxy.

How many inaccuracies does it contain? Firstly, all planets are in the same plane at any given time. There is no lag that planets more distant from the Sun would demonstrate in relation to less distant ones.

Secondly, let's remember real speeds planets. Mercury moves faster than all others in our system, revolving around the Sun at a speed of 47 km/s. This is 60% faster than Earth's orbital speed, about 4 times faster than Jupiter, and 9 times faster than Neptune, which orbits at 5.4 km/s. And the Sun flies through the galaxy at a speed of 220 km/s.

In the time it takes Mercury to complete one revolution, the entire solar system travels 1.7 billion kilometers in its intragalactic elliptical orbit. At the same time, the radius of Mercury's orbit is only 58 million kilometers, or only 3.4% of the distance to which the entire solar system moves.

If we plotted the movement of the Solar System across the galaxy on a scale and looked at how the planets move, we would see the following:

Imagine that the entire system - the Sun, the moon, all the planets, asteroids, comets - are moving at high speed at an angle of about 60° relative to the plane of the Solar System. Something like this:

If we put all this together, we get a more accurate picture:

What about precession? And also about the oscillations down-up and in-out? This is all true, but the video shows it in an overly exaggerated and misinterpreted way.

Indeed, the precession of the solar system occurs with a period of 26,000 years. But there is no spiral motion, neither in the Sun nor in the planets. Precession is carried out not by the orbits of the planets, but by the axis of rotation of the Earth.

The North Star is not constantly located directly above the North Pole. Most of the time we don't have a pole star. 3000 years ago Kohab was closer to the pole than the North Star. In 5500 years polar star will become Alderamin. And in 12,000 years, Vega, the second brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere, will be just 2 degrees away from the pole. But this is precisely what changes with a frequency of once every 26,000 years, and not the movement of the Sun or planets.

What about solar wind?

This is radiation coming from the Sun (and all the stars), and not what we crash into as we move through the galaxy. Hot stars emit fast-moving charged particles. The boundary of the solar system passes where the solar wind no longer has the ability to push away the interstellar medium. There is the boundary of the heliosphere.

Now about the movements up and down and in and out in relation to the galaxy.

Since the Sun and Solar System are subject to gravity, it is gravity that dominates their movement. Now the Sun is located at a distance of 25-27 thousand light years from the center of the galaxy, and moves around it in an ellipse. At the same time, all other stars, gas, dust, also move through the galaxy in ellipses. And the ellipse of the Sun is different from all the others.

With a period of 220 million years, the Sun makes a complete revolution around the galaxy, passing slightly above and below the center of the galactic plane. But since all the other matter in the galaxy moves in the same way, the orientation of the galactic plane changes over time. We may be moving in an ellipse, but the galaxy is a spinning plate, so we move up and down it every 63 million years, although our inward and outward motion occurs every 220 million years.

But the planets do not spin, their motion is distorted beyond recognition, the video incorrectly talks about precession and solar wind, and the text is full of errors. The simulation is very nicely done, but it would be much more beautiful if it were correct.

A group of astronomers from Maryland, Hawaii, Israel and France have created the most detailed map ever found in our area, showing the motion of nearly 1,400 galaxies across 100 million light-years of the Milky Way.

The team reconstructed the movements of galaxies from 13 billion years in the past to the present day. The main gravitational attractor in the imaged region is the Virgo cluster, 600 trillion times the mass of the Sun and 50 million light-years away.

More details:

More than a thousand galaxies have already fallen into the Virgo cluster, while in the future all galaxies that are currently within 40 million light years of the cluster will be displayed. Our galaxy Milky Way is outside this capture zone. However, the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies, each 2 trillion times the mass of the Sun, are destined to collide and merge within 5 billion years.

“For the first time, we are not only visualizing the detailed structure of our local supercluster of galaxies, but also seeing how the structure evolves over the history of the universe. An analogy is studying the current geography of the Earth from the movement of plate tectonics,” said co-author Brent Tully of the Institute of Astronomy, Hawaii.

These dramatic merger events are just part of a larger show. There are two main flow patterns in this volume of the Universe. All galaxies in one hemisphere of the region, including our own Milky Way, are flowing towards one flat sheet. In addition, essentially each galaxy throughout its entire volume flows, like a leaf in a river, towards gravitational attractors at much greater distances.

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This article examines the speed of movement of the Sun and the Galaxy relative to different systems countdown:

The speed of the Sun's movement in the Galaxy relative to nearby stars, visible stars and the center of the Milky Way;

The speed of motion of the Galaxy relative to the local group of galaxies, distant star clusters and cosmic microwave background radiation.

Brief description of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Description of the Galaxy.

Before we begin to study the speed of movement of the Sun and the Galaxy in the Universe, let’s take a closer look at our Galaxy.

We live, as it were, in a gigantic “star city”. Or rather, our Sun “lives” in it. The population of this “city” is a variety of stars, and more than two hundred billion of them “live” in it. A myriad of suns are born in it, experience their youth, middle age and old age - they go through a long and difficult life path, lasting billions of years.

The size of this “star city” - the Galaxy - is enormous. The distances between neighboring stars are on average thousands of billions of kilometers (6*1013 km). And there are over 200 billion such neighbors.

If we were to rush from one end of the Galaxy to the other at the speed of light (300,000 km/sec), it would take about 100 thousand years.

Our entire star system rotates slowly, like a giant wheel made up of billions of suns.

Orbit of the Sun

In the center of the Galaxy, apparently, there is a supermassive black hole(Sagittarius A*) (about 4.3 million solar masses) around which, presumably, revolves a black hole of average mass from 1000 to 10,000 solar masses and an orbital period of about 100 years and several thousand relatively small ones. Their combined gravitational effect on neighboring stars causes the latter to move along unusual trajectories. There is an assumption that most galaxies have supermassive black holes in their core.

The central regions of the Galaxy are characterized by a strong concentration of stars: each cubic parsec near the center contains many thousands of them. The distances between stars are tens and hundreds of times smaller than in the vicinity of the Sun.

The core of the Galaxy attracts all other stars with enormous force. But a huge number of stars are scattered throughout the “star city”. And they also attract each other different directions, and this affects the movement of each star in complex ways. Therefore, the Sun and billions of other stars generally move in circular paths, or ellipses, around the center of the Galaxy. But this is only “mostly” - if we looked closely, we would see that they move along more complex curves, meandering paths among the surrounding stars.

Characteristics of the Milky Way Galaxy:

The location of the Sun in the Galaxy.

Where is the Sun in the Galaxy and is it moving (and with it the Earth, and you and me)? Are we in the “city center” or at least somewhere close to it? Research has shown that the sun and solar system located at an enormous distance from the center of the Galaxy, closer to the “urban outskirts” (26,000 ± 1,400 light years).

The Sun is located in the plane of our Galaxy and is removed from its center by 8 kpc and from the plane of the Galaxy by approximately 25 pc (1 pc (parsec) = 3.2616 light years). In the region of the Galaxy where the Sun is located, the stellar density is 0.12 stars per pc3.

Model of our Galaxy

The speed of the Sun's movement in the Galaxy.

The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy is usually considered relative to different reference systems:

Relative to nearby stars.

Regarding everyone bright stars visible to the naked eye.

Regarding interstellar gas.

Relative to the center of the Galaxy.

1. The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to the nearest stars.

Just as the speed of a flying airplane is considered in relation to the Earth, without taking into account the flight of the Earth itself, so the speed of the Sun can be determined relative to the stars closest to it. Such as the stars of the Sirius system, Alpha Centauri, etc.

This speed of the Sun's movement in the Galaxy is relatively small: only 20 km/sec or 4 AU. (1 astronomical unit is equal to the average distance from the Earth to the Sun - 149.6 million km.)

The Sun, relative to the nearest stars, moves towards a point (apex) lying on the border of the constellations Hercules and Lyra, at approximately an angle of 25° to the plane of the Galaxy. Equatorial coordinates of the apex = 270°, = 30°.

2. The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to visible stars.

If we consider the movement of the Sun in the Milky Way Galaxy relative to all the stars visible without a telescope, then its speed is even less.

The speed of the Sun's movement in the Galaxy relative to visible stars is 15 km/sec or 3 AU.

Apex of the Sun's movement in this case also lies in the constellation Hercules and has the following equatorial coordinates: = 265°, = 21°.

The speed of the Sun relative to nearby stars and interstellar gas

3. The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to the interstellar gas.

The next object in the Galaxy, relative to which we will consider the speed of the Sun, is interstellar gas.

The universe is not nearly as deserted as it was thought for a long time. Although in small quantities, interstellar gas is present everywhere, filling all corners of the universe. Interstellar gas, despite the apparent emptiness of the unfilled space of the Universe, accounts for almost 99% of the total mass of all cosmic objects. Dense and cold forms of interstellar gas containing hydrogen, helium and minimal volumes heavy elements(iron, aluminum, nickel, titanium, calcium) are in a molecular state, combining into vast cloud fields. Typically, elements in interstellar gas are distributed as follows: hydrogen - 89%, helium - 9%, carbon, oxygen, nitrogen - about 0.2-0.3%.

Gas and dust cloud IRAS 20324+4057 of interstellar gas and dust is 1 light year long, similar to a tadpole, in which a growing star is hidden

Clouds of interstellar gas can not only rotate orderly around galactic centers, but also have unstable acceleration. Over the course of several tens of millions of years, they catch up with each other and collide, forming complexes of dust and gas.

In our Galaxy, the bulk of interstellar gas is concentrated in spiral arms, one of the corridors of which is located near the Solar System.

The speed of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to the interstellar gas: 22-25 km/sec.

Interstellar gas in the immediate vicinity of the Sun has a significant intrinsic speed (20-25 km/s) relative to the nearest stars. Under its influence, the apex of the Sun's movement shifts towards the constellation Ophiuchus (= 258°, = -17°). The difference in the direction of movement is about 45°.

4. The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to the center of the Galaxy.

In the three points discussed above we're talking about about the so-called peculiar, relative speed of the Sun. In other words, peculiar speed is speed relative to the cosmic frame of reference.

But the Sun, the stars closest to it, and the local interstellar cloud all together participate in a larger movement - movement around the center of the Galaxy.

And here we are talking about completely different speeds.

The speed of the Sun around the center of the Galaxy is enormous by earthly standards - 200-220 km/sec (about 850,000 km/h) or more than 40 AU. / year.

It is impossible to determine the exact speed of the Sun around the center of the Galaxy, because the center of the Galaxy is hidden from us behind dense clouds of interstellar dust. However, more and more new discoveries in this area are reducing the estimated speed of our sun. Just recently they were talking about 230-240 km/sec.

The solar system in the Galaxy is moving towards the constellation Cygnus.

The movement of the Sun in the Galaxy occurs perpendicular to the direction towards the center of the Galaxy. Hence the galactic coordinates of the apex: l = 90°, b = 0° or in more familiar equatorial coordinates - = 318°, = 48°. Because this is a movement of reversal, the apex moves and completes a full circle in a "galactic year", approximately 250 million years; its angular velocity is ~5"/1000 years, i.e. the coordinates of the apex shift by one and a half degrees per million years.

Our Earth is about 30 such “galactic years” old.

Speed ​​of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy relative to the center of the Galaxy

By the way, an interesting fact about the speed of the Sun in the Galaxy:

The speed of the Sun's rotation around the center of the Galaxy almost coincides with the speed of the compaction wave forming the spiral arm. This situation is atypical for the Galaxy as a whole: the spiral arms rotate at a constant angular velocity, like spokes in a wheel, and the movement of stars occurs according to a different pattern, so almost the entire stellar population of the disk either falls inside the spiral arms or falls out of them. The only place where the velocities of stars and spiral arms coincide is the so-called corotation circle, and it is on it that the Sun is located.

For the Earth, this circumstance is extremely important, since violent processes occur in the spiral arms, generating powerful radiation that is destructive for all living things. And no atmosphere could protect from it. But our planet exists in a relatively calm place in the Galaxy and has not been affected by these cosmic cataclysms for hundreds of millions (or even billions) of years. Perhaps this is why life was able to originate and survive on Earth.

The speed of movement of the Galaxy in the Universe.

The speed of movement of the Galaxy in the Universe is usually considered relative to different reference systems:

Relative to the Local Group of galaxies (approach speed with the Andromeda Galaxy).

Relative to distant galaxies and clusters of galaxies (the speed of movement of the Galaxy as part of the local group of galaxies towards the constellation Virgo).

Regarding the cosmic microwave background radiation (the speed of movement of all galaxies in the part of the Universe closest to us towards the Great Attractor - a cluster of huge supergalaxies).

Let's take a closer look at each of the points.

1. The speed of movement of the Milky Way Galaxy towards Andromeda.

Our Milky Way Galaxy also does not stand still, but is gravitationally attracted and approaches the Andromeda Galaxy at a speed of 100-150 km/s. The main component of the speed of approach of galaxies belongs to the Milky Way.

The lateral component of the motion is not precisely known, and concerns about a collision are premature. An additional contribution to this movement is made by the massive galaxy M33, located in approximately the same direction as the Andromeda galaxy. In general, the speed of motion of our Galaxy relative to the barycenter of the Local Group of galaxies is about 100 km/sec approximately in the Andromeda/Lizard direction (l = 100, b = -4, = 333, = 52), but these data are still very approximate. This is a very modest relative speed: the Galaxy shifts to its own diameter in two to three hundred million years, or, very approximately, in a galactic year.

2. The speed of movement of the Milky Way Galaxy towards the Virgo cluster.

In turn, the group of galaxies, which includes our Milky Way, as a single whole, is moving towards the large Virgo cluster at a speed of 400 km/s. This movement is also caused by gravitational forces and occurs relative to distant galaxy clusters.

Velocity of the Milky Way Galaxy towards the Virgo Cluster

3. The speed of movement of the Galaxy in the Universe. To the Great Attractor!

CMB radiation.

According to theory Big Bang, the early Universe was a hot plasma consisting of electrons, baryons and photons constantly emitted, absorbed and re-emitted.

As the Universe expanded, the plasma cooled and at a certain stage, the slowed-down electrons were able to combine with slowed-down protons (hydrogen nuclei) and alpha particles (helium nuclei), forming atoms (this process is called recombination).

This happened at a plasma temperature of about 3000 K and an approximate age of the Universe of 400,000 years. Free space there were more between particles, there were fewer charged particles, photons stopped scattering so often and could now move freely in space, practically without interacting with matter.

Those photons that were at that time emitted by the plasma towards the future location of the Earth still reach our planet through the space of the universe that continues to expand. These photons make up the cosmic microwave background radiation, which is thermal radiation uniformly filling the Universe.

The existence of cosmic microwave background radiation was predicted theoretically by G. Gamow within the framework of the Big Bang theory. Its existence was experimentally confirmed in 1965.

The speed of movement of the Galaxy relative to the cosmic microwave background radiation.

Later, the study of the speed of movement of galaxies relative to the cosmic microwave background radiation began. This movement is determined by measuring the unevenness of the temperature of the cosmic microwave background radiation in different directions.

The radiation temperature has a maximum in the direction of movement and a minimum in the opposite direction. The degree of deviation of the temperature distribution from isotropic (2.7 K) depends on the velocity. From the analysis of observational data it follows that the Sun moves relative to the CMB at a speed of 400 km/s in the direction =11.6, =-12.

Such measurements also showed another important thing: all the galaxies in the part of the Universe closest to us, including not only ours Local group, but also the Virgo cluster and other clusters are moving relative to the background cosmic microwave background radiation at unexpectedly high speeds.

For the Local Group of galaxies it is 600-650 km/sec with its apex in the constellation Hydra (=166, =-27). It looks like somewhere in the depths of the Universe there is a huge cluster of many superclusters, attracting matter from our part of the Universe. This cluster was named The Great Attractor- from English word"attract" - to attract.

Since the galaxies that make up the Great Attractor are hidden by interstellar dust that is part of the Milky Way, mapping of the Attractor was only possible in last years using radio telescopes.

The Great Attractor is located at the intersection of several superclusters of galaxies. The average density of matter in this region is not much higher medium density Universe. But at the expense gigantic size its mass turns out to be so great and the force of attraction so enormous that not only our star system, but also other galaxies and their clusters nearby move in the direction of the Great Attractor, forming a huge stream of galaxies.

The speed of movement of the Galaxy in the Universe. To the Great Attractor!

So, let's summarize.

The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy and Galaxies in the Universe. Pivot table.

Hierarchy of movements in which our planet takes part:

The rotation of the Earth around the Sun;

Rotation with the Sun around the center of our Galaxy;

Movement relative to the center of the Local Group of galaxies along with the entire Galaxy under the influence of the gravitational attraction of the constellation Andromeda (galaxy M31);

Movement towards a cluster of galaxies in the constellation Virgo;

Movement towards the Great Attractor.

The speed of movement of the Sun in the Galaxy and the speed of movement of the Milky Way Galaxy in the Universe. Pivot table.

It is difficult to imagine, and even more difficult to calculate, how far we travel every second. These distances are enormous, and the errors in such calculations are still quite large. This is the data science has today.

A galaxy is a large formation of stars, gas, and dust that is held together by gravity. These largest compounds in the Universe can vary in shape and size. Most space objects are part of a particular galaxy. These are stars, planets, satellites, nebulae, black holes and asteroids. Some of the galaxies have big amount invisible dark energy. Due to the fact that galaxies are separated by empty space, they are figuratively called oases in the cosmic desert.

Our galaxy

The closest star to us, the Sun, is one of the billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy. Looking at the starry night sky, it’s hard not to notice wide strip, strewn with stars. The ancient Greeks called the cluster of these stars the Galaxy.

If we had the opportunity to look at this star system from the outside, we would notice an oblate ball in which there are over 150 billion stars. Our galaxy has dimensions that are hard to imagine. A ray of light travels from one side to the other for hundreds of thousands of Earth years! The center of our Galaxy is occupied by a core, from which huge spiral branches filled with stars extend. The distance from the Sun to the core of the Galaxy is 30 thousand light years. The solar system is located on the outskirts of the Milky Way.

Stars in the Galaxy despite the huge cluster cosmic bodies are rare. For example, the distance between the nearest stars is tens of millions of times greater than their diameters. It cannot be said that stars are scattered randomly in the Universe. Their location depends on the gravitational forces that hold the celestial body in a certain plane. Star systems with their own gravitational fields and are called galaxies. In addition to stars, the galaxy includes gas and interstellar dust.

Composition of galaxies.

The Universe is also made up of many other galaxies. The closest ones to us are distant at a distance of 150 thousand light years. They can be seen in the sky of the southern hemisphere in the form of small foggy spots. They were first described by Pigafett, a member of the Magellanic expedition around the world. They entered science under the name of the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.

The closest galaxy to us is the Andromeda Nebula. She has a very big sizes, therefore visible from Earth with ordinary binoculars, and in clear weather - even with the naked eye.

The very structure of the galaxy resembles a giant spiral convex in space. On one of the spiral arms, ¾ of the distance from the center, is the Solar System. Everything in the galaxy revolves around the central core and is subject to the force of its gravity. In 1962, astronomer Edwin Hubble classified galaxies depending on their shape. The scientist divided all galaxies into elliptical, spiral, irregular and barred galaxies.

In the part of the Universe accessible to astronomical research, there are billions of galaxies. Collectively, astronomers call them the Metagalaxy.

Galaxies of the Universe

Galaxies are represented by large groups of stars, gas, and dust held together by gravity. They can vary significantly in shape and size. Most space objects belong to some galaxy. These are black holes, asteroids, stars with satellites and planets, nebulae, neutron satellites.

Most galaxies in the Universe contain enormous amounts of invisible dark energy. Since the space between different galaxies is considered empty, they are often called oases in the void of space. For example, a star called the Sun is one of the billions of stars in the Milky Way galaxy located in our Universe. The Solar System is located ¾ of the distance from the center of this spiral. In this galaxy, everything constantly moves around the central core, which obeys its gravity. However, the core also moves with the galaxy. At the same time, all galaxies move at super speeds.
Astronomer Edwin Hubble in 1962 carried out a logical classification of the galaxies of the Universe, taking into account their shape. Now galaxies are divided into 4 main groups: elliptical, spiral, barred and irregular galaxies.
What is the largest galaxy in our Universe?
The largest galaxy in the Universe is a supergiant lenticular galaxy located in the Abell 2029 cluster.

Spiral galaxies

They are galaxies whose shape resembles a flat spiral disk with a bright center (core). The Milky Way is a typical spiral galaxy. Spiral galaxies are usually called with the letter S; they are divided into 4 subgroups: Sa, So, Sc and Sb. Galaxies belonging to the So group are distinguished by bright nuclei that do not have spiral arms. As for the Sa galaxies, they are distinguished by dense spiral arms tightly wound around the central core. The arms of Sc and Sb galaxies rarely surround the core.

Spiral galaxies of the Messier catalog

Barred galaxies

Bar galaxies are similar to spiral galaxies, but have one difference. In such galaxies, spirals begin not from the core, but from the bridges. About 1/3 of all galaxies fall into this category. They are usually designated by the letters SB. In turn, they are divided into 3 subgroups Sbc, SBb, SBa. The difference between these three groups is determined by the shape and length of the jumpers, where, in fact, the arms of the spirals begin.

Spiral galaxies with the Messier catalog bar

Elliptical galaxies

The shape of galaxies can vary from perfectly round to elongated oval. Their distinctive feature is the absence of a central bright core. They are designated by the letter E and are divided into 6 subgroups (according to shape). Such forms are designated from E0 to E7. The first ones have almost round shape, while E7 are characterized by an extremely elongated shape.

Elliptical galaxies of the Messier catalog

Irregular galaxies

They do not have any distinct structure or shape. Irregular galaxies are usually divided into 2 classes: IO and Im. The most common is the Im class of galaxies (it has only a slight hint of structure). In some cases, helical residues are visible. IO belongs to the class of galaxies that are chaotic in shape. Small and Large Magellanic Clouds – shining example I'm class.

Irregular galaxies of the Messier catalog

Table of characteristics of the main types of galaxies

Large portrait of galaxies

Not long ago, astronomers began working on a joint project to identify the location of galaxies throughout the Universe. Their goal is to obtain a more detailed picture of the overall structure and shape of the Universe on large scales. Unfortunately, the scale of the universe is difficult for many people to comprehend. Take our galaxy, which consists of more than a hundred billion stars. There are billions more galaxies in the Universe. Distant galaxies have been discovered, but we see their light as it was almost 9 billion years ago (we are separated by such a great distance).

Astronomers learned that most galaxies belong to a certain group (it became known as a “cluster”). The Milky Way is part of a cluster, which, in turn, consists of forty famous galaxies. Typically, most of these clusters are part of an even larger grouping called superclusters.

Our cluster is part of a supercluster, which is commonly called the Virgo cluster. Such a massive cluster consists of more than 2 thousand galaxies. At the time when astronomers created a map of the location of these galaxies, superclusters began to take a concrete form. Large superclusters have gathered around what appear to be giant bubbles or voids. What kind of structure this is, no one yet knows. We don't understand what might be inside these voids. According to the assumption, they may be filled with a certain type of dark matter unknown to scientists or have empty space inside. It will be a long time before we know the nature of such voids.

Galactic Computing

Edwin Hubble is the founder of galactic exploration. He is the first to determine how to calculate the exact distance to a galaxy. In his research, he relied on the method of pulsating stars, which are better known as Cepheids. The scientist was able to notice a connection between the period needed to complete one pulsation of brightness and the energy that the star releases. The results of his research became a major breakthrough in the field of galactic research. In addition, he discovered that there is a correlation between the red spectrum emitted by a galaxy and its distance (the Hubble constant).

Nowadays, astronomers can measure the distance and speed of a galaxy by measuring the amount of redshift in the spectrum. It is known that all galaxies in the Universe are moving away from each other. The farther a galaxy is from Earth, the greater its speed of movement.

To visualize this theory, just imagine yourself driving a car moving at a speed of 50 km per hour. The car in front of you is driving 50 km per hour faster, which means that its speed is 100 km per hour. There is another car in front of him, which is moving faster by another 50 km per hour. Even though the speed of all 3 cars will be different by 50 km per hour, the first car is actually moving away from you 100 km per hour faster. Since the red spectrum speaks about the speed of the galaxy moving away from us, the following is obtained: the greater the red shift, the faster the galaxy moves and the greater its distance from us.

We now have new tools to help scientists search for new galaxies. Thanks to space telescope Hubble scientists were able to see what they could only dream of before. The high power of this telescope ensures good visibility even small parts in nearby galaxies and allows us to study more distant ones that have not yet been known to anyone. Currently, new space observation instruments are under development, and in the near future they will help to gain a deeper understanding of the structure of the Universe.

Types of galaxies

• Spiral galaxies. The shape resembles a flat spiral disk with a pronounced center, the so-called core. Our Milky Way galaxy falls into this category. In this section of the portal site you will find many different articles describing space objects of our Galaxy.
• Barred galaxies. They resemble spiral ones, only they differ from them in one significant difference. The spirals do not extend from the core, but from the so-called jumpers. One third of all galaxies in the Universe can be attributed to this category.
• Elliptical galaxies have different shapes: from perfectly round to oval elongated. Compared to spiral ones, they lack a central, pronounced core.
• Irregular galaxies do not have a characteristic shape or structure. They cannot be classified into any of the types listed above. There are much fewer irregular galaxies in the vastness of the Universe.

Astronomers have recently launched a joint project to identify the location of all the galaxies in the Universe. Scientists hope to get a clearer picture of its structure in on a large scale. The size of the universe is difficult to estimate human thinking and understanding. Our galaxy alone is a collection of hundreds of billions of stars. And there are billions of such galaxies. We can see light from discovered distant galaxies, but not even imply that we are looking into the past, because the light beam reaches us over tens of billions of years, such a great distance separates us.

Astronomers also associate most galaxies with certain groups called clusters. Our Milky Way belongs to a cluster that consists of 40 explored galaxies. Such clusters are combined into large groups called superclusters. The cluster with our galaxy is part of the Virgo supercluster. This giant cluster contains more than 2 thousand galaxies. After scientists began to draw a map of the location of these galaxies, superclusters received certain forms. Most galactic superclusters were surrounded by giant voids. Nobody knows what could be inside these voids: outer space like interplanetary space or new form matter. It will take a long time to solve this mystery.

Interaction of galaxies

No less interesting for scientists is the question of the interaction of galaxies as components of cosmic systems. It's no secret that space objects are in constant movement. Galaxies are no exception to this rule. Some types of galaxies could cause a collision or merger of two cosmic systems. If you understand how these space objects appear, large-scale changes as a result of their interaction become more understandable. During the collision of two space systems, a gigantic amount of energy splashes out. The meeting of two galaxies in the vastness of the Universe is an even more probable event than the collision of two stars. Collisions of galaxies do not always end with an explosion. A small space system can freely pass by its larger counterpart, changing its structure only slightly.

Thus, the formation of formations similar appearance on long corridors. They contain stars and gaseous zones, and new stars are often formed. There are times when galaxies do not collide, but only lightly touch each other. However, even such an interaction triggers a chain of irreversible processes that lead to huge changes in the structure of both galaxies.

What future awaits our galaxy?

As scientists suggest, it is possible that in the distant future the Milky Way will be able to absorb a tiny cosmic-sized satellite system, which is located at a distance of 50 light years from us. Research shows that this satellite has a long life potential, but if it collides with its giant neighbor, it will most likely end its separate existence. Astronomers also predict a collision between the Milky Way and the Andromeda Nebula. Galaxies move towards each other at the speed of light. The wait for a probable collision is approximately three billion Earth years. However, whether it will actually happen now is difficult to speculate due to the lack of data on the movement of both space systems.

Description of galaxies onKvant. Space

The portal site will take you to the world of interesting and fascinating space. You will learn the nature of the structure of the Universe, become familiar with the structure of famous large galaxies and their components. By reading articles about our galaxy, we become more clear about some of the phenomena that can be observed in the night sky.

All galaxies are at a great distance from Earth. Only three galaxies can be seen with the naked eye: the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds and the Andromeda Nebula. It is impossible to count all the galaxies. Scientists estimate that their number is about 100 billion. The spatial distribution of galaxies is uneven - one region may contain a huge number of them, while the second will not contain even a single small galaxy. Astronomers were unable to separate images of galaxies from individual stars until the early 90s. At this time, there were about 30 galaxies with individual stars. All of them were assigned to the Local Group. In 1990, a majestic event took place in the development of astronomy as a science - the Hubble Telescope was launched into Earth orbit. It was this technique, as well as new ground-based 10-meter telescopes, that made it possible to see a significantly larger number of resolved galaxies.

Today, the “astronomical minds” of the world are racking their brains about the role of dark matter in the construction of galaxies, which manifests itself only in gravitational interaction. For example, in some large galaxies it makes up about 90% of the total mass, while dwarf galaxies may not contain it at all.

Evolution of galaxies

Scientists believe that the emergence of galaxies is a natural stage in the evolution of the Universe, which took place under the influence of gravitational forces. Approximately 14 billion years ago, the formation of protoclusters in the primary substance began. Further, under the influence of various dynamic processes, the separation of galactic groups took place. The abundance of galaxy shapes is explained by the diversity of initial conditions in their formation.

The contraction of the galaxy takes about 3 billion years. Behind this period Over time, the gas cloud turns into a star system. Star formation occurs under the influence of gravitational compression of gas clouds. After reaching a certain temperature and density in the center of the cloud, sufficient for the start of thermonuclear reactions, a new star is formed. Massive stars are formed from thermonuclear chemical elements, exceeding helium in mass. These elements create the primary helium-hydrogen environment. During enormous supernova explosions, elements heavier than iron are formed. It follows from this that the galaxy consists of two generations of stars. The first generation is the oldest stars, consisting of helium, hydrogen and very small amounts of heavy elements. Second-generation stars have a more noticeable admixture of heavy elements because they form from primordial gas enriched in heavy elements.

In modern astronomy, galaxies as cosmic structures are assigned separate place. The types of galaxies, the features of their interaction, similarities and differences are studied in detail, and a forecast of their future is made. This area still contains a lot of unknowns that require additional study. Modern science solved many questions regarding the types of construction of galaxies, but there were also many blank spots associated with the formation of these cosmic systems. Current pace of modernization research technology, the development of new methodologies for studying cosmic bodies gives hope for a significant breakthrough in the future. One way or another, galaxies will always be at the center of scientific research. And this is based not only on human curiosity. Having received data on the patterns of development of cosmic systems, we will be able to predict the future of our galaxy called the Milky Way.

The most interesting news, scientific, and original articles about the study of galaxies will be provided to you by the website portal. Here you can find exciting videos, high-quality images from satellites and telescopes that will not leave you indifferent. Dive into the world of unknown space with us!

You sit, stand or lie reading this article and do not feel that the Earth is spinning on its axis at a breakneck speed - approximately 1,700 km/h at the equator. However, the rotation speed does not seem that fast when converted to km/s. The result is 0.5 km/s - a barely noticeable blip on the radar, compared to other speeds around us.

Just like other planets in the solar system, the Earth revolves around the Sun. And in order to stay in its orbit, it moves at a speed of 30 km/s. Venus and Mercury, which are closer to the Sun, move faster, Mars, whose orbit passes behind the Earth’s orbit, moves much slower.

But even the Sun does not stand in one place. Our Milky Way galaxy is huge, massive and also mobile! All stars, planets, gas clouds, dust particles, black holes, dark matter- all this moves relative general center wt.

According to scientists, the Sun is located at a distance of 25,000 light years from the center of our galaxy and moves in an elliptical orbit, making a full revolution every 220–250 million years. It turns out that the speed of the Sun is about 200–220 km/s, which is hundreds of times higher than the speed of the Earth around its axis and tens of times higher than the speed of its movement around the Sun. This is what the movement of our solar system looks like.

Is the galaxy stationary? Not again. Giant space objects have a large mass, and therefore create strong gravitational fields. Give the Universe some time (and we've had it for about 13.8 billion years), and everything will start moving in the direction of greatest gravity. That is why the Universe is not homogeneous, but consists of galaxies and groups of galaxies.

What does this mean for us?

This means that the Milky Way is pulled towards it by other galaxies and groups of galaxies located nearby. This means that massive objects dominate the process. And this means that not only our galaxy, but also everyone around us is influenced by these “tractors”. We are getting closer and closer to understanding what is happening to us in outer space, but we are still missing facts, for example:

• what were the initial conditions under which the Universe began;
• how the different masses in the galaxy move and change over time;
• how the Milky Way and surrounding galaxies and clusters were formed;
• and how it is happening now.

However, there is a trick that will help us figure it out.

The Universe is filled with cosmic microwave background radiation with a temperature of 2.725 K, which has been preserved since the Big Bang. Here and there there are tiny deviations - about 100 μK, but the overall temperature background is constant.

This is because the universe was formed by the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago and is still expanding and cooling.

380,000 years after the Big Bang, the Universe cooled to such a temperature that the formation of hydrogen atoms became possible. Before this, photons constantly interacted with other plasma particles: they collided with them and exchanged energy. As the Universe cooled, there were fewer charged particles and more space between them. Photons were able to move freely in space. CMB radiation is photons that were emitted by the plasma towards the future location of the Earth, but escaped scattering because recombination had already begun. They reach the Earth through the space of the Universe, which continues to expand.

You can “see” this radiation yourself. The noise that occurs on a blank TV channel if you use simple antenna, similar to hare's ears, are 1% caused by cosmic microwave background radiation.

Still, the temperature of the relict background is not the same in all directions. According to the results of research by the Planck mission, the temperature differs slightly in the opposite hemispheres of the celestial sphere: it is slightly higher in parts of the sky south of the ecliptic - about 2.728 K, and lower in the other half - about 2.722 K.

This difference is almost 100 times larger than other observed temperature variations in the CMB, and is misleading. Why is this happening? The answer is obvious - this difference is not due to fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background radiation, it appears because there is movement!

When you approach a light source or it approaches you, the spectral lines in the source's spectrum shift towards short waves (violet shift), when you move away from it or it moves away from you, the spectral lines shift towards long waves (red shift).

CMB radiation cannot be more or less energetic, which means we are moving through space. The Doppler effect helps determine that our Solar System is moving relative to the CMB at a speed of 368 ± 2 km/s, and the local group of galaxies, including the Milky Way, the Andromeda Galaxy and the Triangulum Galaxy, is moving at a speed of 627 ± 22 km/s relative to the CMB. These are the so-called peculiar velocities of galaxies, which amount to several hundred km/s. In addition to them, there are also cosmological velocities due to the expansion of the Universe and calculated according to Hubble’s law.

Thanks to residual radiation from the Big Bang, we can observe that everything in the Universe is constantly moving and changing. And our galaxy is only part of this process.