You can spin around through the galaxy and admire the view

Sep 23, 2014 15:17 GMT  ·  By

Google is always up for putting together some cool experiments for Chrome. This time around, the Internet giant has provided astronomy lovers with a way to explore about 100,000 stars in our “close” proximity.

“You’re viewing the actual density and location of 100,000 stars in this view,” Google said as a way to introduce this really cool project.

You can then go explore a vivid 3D map of the local Universe by scrolling and moving the view around. The maximum scroll out will let you view the entire Milky Way Galaxy, while the smallest view you are allowed to see is our very own Star.

You won’t be able to see the planets spinning around it, however, but you will notice dotted orbits around the Sun indicating where each planet should be. By scrolling out a bit more, you’ll see the closest stars to Earth, including Alpha Centauri, which is 4.3 light years away from Earth.

Take a quick tour

There’s also some eerie music running in the background, which was created by Sam Hulick to take you through the trip. Google provides a tour that can be accessed from the top left corner which exemplifies just how far a man-made object has reached (17 light hours away) and just how far a light year really is.

You’ll also come to realize just how little we know about the Universe around us. Google marks the stars that scientists have studied and named, and then shows you just how many continue to be a mystery to us.

The page is a new Chrome Experiment that shows off what can be done in HTML5. The company has made several other projects before it, such as the one dedicated to the Hobbit some months back. Last month, Google launched another one taking visitors out to a space trip to the ISEE-3, the International Sun/Earth Explorer which was launched back in 1978 to study the Sun.

The collection of stars you can see in this particular Google Experiment is just a small portion of what our Galaxy has to offer, but it’s stunning nonetheless. Knowing that the sun is about 109 times larger than Earth and getting the perspective of zooming out and seeing just how small the Sun is compared to other stars will make you feel incredibly small. If this project doesn’t help you get a sense of how big the Universe really is, then nothing will.

Photo Gallery (13 Images)

Google makes the Sun the starting point for your journey
You can zoom out slowly and admire the viewNotice the orbits the planets have around the Sun
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