10.31.2010

picture this II

A while back I blogged/ran a thought experiment/slightly panicked about the size of the known universe, and I have to say, even after that great video, I still haven't gained a complete mental picture of the size of the universe (I'm working on it, though... I'm at about 85%).

Another tool I can now use, and I'm happy to share with you, is a size comparison of different celestial objects, from moons to planets to stars. It was a bit startling to me to realize that, even though our sun is ridiculously huge compared to our planet, it is absolutely minuscule compared to some of the other things out there.

Prepare to have your mind blown again, hopefully with slightly less panic this time. It's yet another piece of evidence to suggest that astronomers must examine the fascinating cosmos all night, only to come home slightly depressed about the triviality of electric bills and changing the oil on their 15 year-old Corollas.



(Little-known fact: all celestial bodies actually have small labels just below them. This is how astronomers are able to keep track of so many.)

Paddy

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