Myth vs Reality: Viewing Galaxies

Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach.

All images, illustrations, and videos courtesy of NASA, ESA, and STScI except:

 

·       Milky Way panoramas courtesy of ESO/Y. Beletsky and ESO/Bruno Gilli

·       Photos of Edwin Hubble courtesy of Huntington Library

·       Andromeda Galaxy image courtesy of Bill Schoening, Vanessa Harvey/REU program/NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       Photo of Henrietta Leavitt courtesy of American Institute of Physics, Emilio Segrè Visual Archives

·       M33, M94, NGC 55, M49, and M84 images courtesy of NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       NGC 6822 image courtesy of Local Group Galaxies Survey Team/NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       NGC 1232 image courtesy of ESO/P. Grosbøl

·       NGC 4449 image courtesy of Digital Sky Survey/AURA

·       NGC 1300 image courtesy of Hillary Mathis/NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       Small Magellanic Cloud image courtesy of F. Winkler/Middlebury College, the MCELS Team, and NOAO/AURA/NSF

·       NGC 55 color image courtesy of T. A. Rector/NOAO/AURA/NSF

 

Written by Vanessa Thomas

Designed by John Godfrey 

Music courtesy of Association Production Music

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A picture of a Minotaur is on the top left, a galaxy on the top right.

 

Text, MYTH versus REALITY. Myth, Only large space telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope can see galaxies outside the Milky Way., Reality, A small backyard telescope can reveal dozens of galaxies in the night sky. Larger telescopes reveal many more. However, you don't even need a telescope to see other galaxies. Binoculars can pick out scores of them in a dark sky. You can even spot three galaxies with nothing but your eyes if you live in the right place: the Andromeda Galaxy and the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.