The Great Andromeda Galaxy

The Great Andromeda GalaxyVanquisher of the Milky Way

Facts about the Andromeda GalaxyThe Andromeda Galaxy is over 220,000 light-years in diameter and is approximately 2.5 million light-years away from our sunA light-year is approximately 10 trillion kilometers or about 6 trillion miles.{1,000,000,000,000 miles!}Thats a lot of zeros.

CompositionThe Andromeda Galaxy , like most galaxies, is composed of stars. The Andromeda is estimated to have about 1 trillion stars, while the Milky Way is estimated to 200-400 billion. The Formation of the Andromeda GalaxyAccording to a recent study, astronomers say that the Andromeda Galaxy was born from a collision. Two galaxies collided about 9 billion years ago and they completely fused into one galaxy 5.5 billion years ago.

Local GroupThe Andromeda Galaxy is part of the Local Group, which is a group of galaxies that include our own, the Milky Way, and the Andromeda, plus 50 other dwarf galaxies. Like all other galaxies, the galaxies in the Local Group consist of star dust and stars. The Andromeda stands out from this group because it is the largest and also has more stars than any other galaxy in this group. The Local Group spans an area of about 10 million light-years. This group is also part of something bigger, the Virgo Supercluster, or the Local Supercluster, which covers a distance of about 110 million light-years.5Andromedas Importance to SpaceFour billion years from now, the Andromeda Galaxy will merge with our own, and even though it might end up destroying the Solar System, it would be important because the process would create many new stars. This would help make sure that future generations would have a starry sky to look up to, if they survive.Fun FactsThe Andromeda Galaxy got its name because it appears in the sky in the constellation Andromeda, which is named for the mythological princess Andromeda. Even though the Andromeda Galaxy is many times bigger than the Milky Way, it still has less mass than it because of the mysterious substance called Dark Matter.The Andromeda Galaxy is also known by other names, like Messier 31, M31, and NGC2247Fun Facts (cont.)The Andromeda Galaxy was first discovered in the year 964 when the Persian Astronomer Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi wrote his book Book of Fixed Stars. He described the galaxy as a small cloud. The Andromeda Galaxy is noted for being a very bright object in the night sky. You can see it with your eyes on a moonless night, even though it is 2.5 million light-years away!ConclusionThese are just a few of the reasons why the Andromeda Galaxy is AWESOME!!! Whether it be for the fact that it is the largest galaxy in 10 million light-years, or for the fact that it is going to eat us in 4 billion years, the fact will always remain the best galaxy in the Universe. Ps. Hope you liked the music!sir robin of locksley 60null60498.434eng - iTunNORM 00000CAA 00000EE1 000071CC 0000729E 00008A0F 000061DB 000081E6 00008334 0000606D 00004BB6