GALAXIES

GALAXIES

Galaxies are huge collections of stars.

Gravity holds stars and galaxies together
(most of the matter in galaxies is invisible)
Matter that emits no light at any wavelength is dark matter
SPIRAL GALAXIES

Spiral arms of stars, gas, and dust extended from central disk
Spiral galaxies have a central bulge
A spherical halo surrounds the disk
ELLIPTICAL GALAXIES

Elliptical galaxies have a spherical or elliptical shape and no

internal structure
They contain more older stars than spiral galaxies, and may
have formed as spiral galaxies merged
IRREGULAR GALAXIES

Irregular galaxies are oddly shaped and contain many young

stars
THE MILKY WAY

The solar system is in the Milky Way, a spiral galaxy that

contains gas, dust, and almost 200 billion stars
The Milky Way is a member of the Local Group, a cluster of
about 30 galaxies.
ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM

Wavelength is from one point on a wave to the same point on

the next wave
Longer wavelength- lower frequency- lower energy
Shorter wavelength- higher frequency- higher energy
DOPPLER SHIFT

The shift to a different wavelength is called the doppler shift

If moving toward the observer wavelength shortens, if
moving away, the wavelength lengthens
DOPPLER SHIFT

When light travels away from you, its wavelength stretches

out, shifting to the red end of the electromagnetic spectrum
This is called Red Shift
EXPANDING UNIVERSE

Galaxies are red shifted

Scientists observe how space stretches by measuring the
speed at which galaxies move away from the Earth.
Scientists agree that the universe is 13-14 billion years old
According to the Big Bang theory, the universe began from
one point billions of years ago and has been expanding ever
since