According to a new study, the Milky Way is at least 50% bigger than previously estimated. Research conducted by an international team at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the US has established the presence of a bulging ring of stars beyond the known plane of the Milky Way. Their findings show that the features previously identified as rings are actually part of the galactic disk, extending across the known width of the Milky Way from 100,000 light years to 150,000 light years. (The Times of India, March 13, 2015)

Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is a unique astronomical phenomenon of which our solar system is only a tiny part. If a person could be far away in space and have a telescope with which he could view the entire Milky Way, he would be able to see a mind-boggling spectacle. He would see that, in the vastness of space, there is a magnificent starry galaxy. On one spiral arm of this galaxy, our solar system is situated. The planet earth is part of this solar system which, along with other planets, is continually revolving around the sun.

The viewer would simply have to exclaim in wonderment: ‘The Creator is truly great! He made such a vast universe, of which our galaxy is only a tiny part!’

Source: Leading a Spiritual Life