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Astronomy Solar System

How far are the nearest stars? [a 200 billionth scale model to demonstrate]

Milky Way
Milky Way is our home galaxy in the universe. It is a barred spiral galaxy with a diameter between 150,000 and 200,000 light-years (ly). It is estimated to contain 100–400 billion stars. Earth is a part of the Milky Way Galaxy which, in turn, is a part of a cluster of galaxies known as the Local Group. Further, the Local Group is a small part of the Virgo Supercluster which is a cluster of cluster of galaxies, comprising of thousands of other galaxies. Like the Virgo Supercluster, there are countless other superclusters as well. Until the early 1920s, most astronomers thought that the Milky Way contained all the stars in the Universe. Then, observations by the American astronomer Edwin Hubble (November 20, 1889 - September 28, 1953) showed that the Milky Way is just one of many galaxies.

Another “putting things into perspective” video which I liked, shows how big space is, and actually how far the nearest stars are from us.

In the video published by the Cody’sLab channel below, we’ll see how far would the nearest star from us, if the Sun was the size of a pea (7 millimeters). He made a 200 billionth scale model to demonstrate (5×10-12).

How far are the nearest stars?

Spoiler: if the Sun was the size of a pea, the closest star to us (other than the Sun, of course), Proxima Centauri, which is about 4.243 light-years from Earth would be approximately a whopping 202 kilometers (125 miles) away!.

Milky Way and trees at night

Related: Why the night sky is dark?

On this scale, the distances of some objects from the Sun would be:

  • Earth: 70 cm (2.3 feet), 1 AU (Astronomical Unit, the distance between Earth and the Sun, which is actually 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers)
  • Jupiter: 4 meters (12.8 feet)
  • Pluto: 30 meters (97 feet)
  • Voyager 1: 96.6 meters (317 feet)
  • Proxima Centauri: 202 kilometers (125 miles) – real distance: 4.243 light-years
  • Alpha Centauri (nearest visible star to the naked eye): 210.87 kilometers (131 miles)- real distance: 4.367 light-years. Alpha Centauri is also the nearest sun-like star.
Nearest stars - Proxima Centauri as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope
Proxima Centauri as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. Proxima Centauri is the nearest known star to the Sun – it is about 4.244 light-years (1.301 pc) away. It is a small, low-mass star (a red dwarf), and cannot be seen from Earth with the naked eye. Proxima Centauri forms a third member of the Alpha Centauri system, being identified as component Alpha Centauri C, and is 2.18° to the southwest of the Alpha Centauri AB pair. Its mass is about an eighth of the Sun’s mass (M☉), and its average density is about 33 times that of the Sun. In 2016, the European Southern Observatory announced the discovery of Proxima Centauri b, a planet orbiting the star at a distance of roughly 0.05 AU (7.5 million km) with an orbital period of approximately 11.2 Earth days. Its estimated mass is at least 1.3 times that of the Earth. The equilibrium temperature of Proxima b is estimated to be within the range of where water could exist as liquid on its surface, thus placing it within the habitable zone of Proxima Centauri.
Milky Way

Related: How many stars one can see with the naked eye?

Sources

M. Özgür Nevres
Latest posts by M. Özgür Nevres (see all)
Özgür Nevres

By M. Özgür Nevres

I am a software developer and a science enthusiast. I was graduated from the Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Computer Engineering. In the past, I worked at the Istanbul Technical University Science Center as a science instructor. I write about the planet Earth and science on this website, ourplnt.com. I am also an animal lover! I take care of stray cats & dogs. This website's all income goes directly to our furry friends. Please consider supporting me on Patreon, so I can help more animals!

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