Comments on: 3-D Maps of Nearby Space

3-D Maps of Nearby Space

kirkaracha — Fri, 30 May 2003 12:36:11 -0800

"The first detailed map of space within about 1,000 light years of Earth places the solar system in the middle of a large hole that pierces the plane of the galaxy...The new map, produced by University of California, Berkeley, and French astronomers, alters the reigning view of the solar neighborhood." (one view|another view|links to bigger images)

By: eyebeam

eyebeam — Fri, 30 May 2003 13:19:41 -0800

Thanks for these great links. Related, and also very cool, is Richard Powell's An Atlas of the Universe. He uses the latest astronomical catalogs to create 3D maps of the universe around us at various scales. All fascinating stuff for us astronomy buffs.

By: Faze

Faze — Fri, 30 May 2003 13:44:13 -0800

Eyebeam, thanks for the Atlas of the Universe link. So tell me this, how much of all this do we see in the famous hubble deep field view? It would be interesting to see a map of what we're looking at.

By: kokogiak

kokogiak — Fri, 30 May 2003 13:51:00 -0800

Faze, If I recall correctly, the Hubble Deep field is pointing to an area slightly above the handle of the Big Dipper, and to picture how much area it covers, hold a US dime at arm's length - the Hubble Deep Field is as big as FDR's eye on that coin.

By: srboisvert

srboisvert — Fri, 30 May 2003 13:59:42 -0800

Shouldn't these really be called 2D cross-sections of a 3D representation? I was looking forward to an actual 3D representation.

By: Joey Michaels

Joey Michaels — Fri, 30 May 2003 17:03:42 -0800

[this is very cool]