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Plan 5 treats the original eight worlds as historical origins, not mandatory top-level navigation.

galaxy · galactic

Milky Way

Our home galaxy is simultaneously an observable sky structure and a reconstructed global form.

Scale

about 100,000 light-years across

Structure

barred spiral galaxy containing the Solar System

Formation / process

assembled and evolved through cosmic history; stars continue forming within it

Observation

we map it from inside using many wavelengths and distance methods

Representation

face-on Milky Way views are reconstructions, not photographs taken from outside

Evidence state

Verified / sourced

Core factual statements below are linked to reviewed NASA sources. Descriptive framing is ICU editorial synthesis.

Sourced facts

What this release is claiming.

  • NASA gives the Milky Way an approximate diameter of 100,000 light-years.
  • The Solar System lies within the Milky Way rather than outside it.