One of the Milky Way’s Arms Might Encircle the Entire Galaxy

universetoday.com ^ | on January 13, 2015 | Matt Williams

[left that other site]

Pingarooni!

[dragnet2]

There is likely some influence within our galactic neighborhood...Interesting fact Andromeda M31 Galaxy, is it’s approaching our galaxy and is expected to collide with it several billion years from now.

If we don’t annihilate each other first, our night sky prior to collision should be filled from horizon to horizon with the spectacular great Andromeda Galaxy.

[dragnet2]

BTW, in about 5 billion years, the sun will eventually expand into a red giant anyway, cooking all the inner planets in out solar system, leaving the earth a piece of charcoal, with the tiny piece of charcoal eventually being vaporized...

So either way, in a few billion years, earth is done...Or before that if some cataclysmic cosmic event occurs.

[Colonel_Flagg]

And when we smash into the Andromeda Galaxy, none of it will make a difference.

I plan to watch that from someplace. :)

[LonePalm]

By convention, planets rotate and orbit in star-systems counter-clockwise. They begin to rotate as systems organize themselves out of the cosmic dust.

Since one of the few true constants in the universe is the total amount of angular momentum, if one thing rotates one way, something else has to rotate in reverse. Galaxies tend to rotate clockwise as a result.

I hope this helps.

"Ceterum censeo 0bama esse delendam."

Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

[Rodamala]

Lone... it is frame of reference based. Clockwise motion is relative to what side of the “clock” you are looking at.

[LonePalm]

As I said, by convention, stars and most planets orbit and rotate counter-clockwise and the galaxy rotates clockwise.

Reverse them if you wish. The mechanics stay the same.

"Ceterum censeo 0bama esse delendam."

Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

[dragnet2]

Galaxies tend to rotate clockwise

Based on what?

[dragnet2]

lol...You got it...

[Vaquero]

And when we smash into the Andromeda Galaxy, none of it will make a difference.

I plan to watch that from someplace.:)

Me too. I don't know which event I want to see more....the Andromeda collision in 4 billion years or the sun running out of hydrogen in 4.5 billion years and it expanding to the earths orbit. Front row seats in either case!

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks BenLurkin. Extra to APoD.

[hattend]

Good Stargate Atlantis tie in.

Well done.

[colorado tanker]

Sorry. Just can’t get my arms around this theory.

[SunkenCiv]

Screws up Asimov’s “Second Foundation”.

[Larry Lucido]

So the arm serves as a sort of cape, to keep the intergalactic cold out. :-)

[Larry Lucido]

a larger central bar

I've been there. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.

[Gamecock]

That’s right Lois.