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Tamil Nadu Board of Secondary EducationSSLC (English Medium) Class 6

Galaxy and Its Types

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Topics

  • Galaxy
  • Types of Galaxy

Galaxy:

A galaxy is a very large group of stars, gas, dust, and dark matter that are all pulled together by gravity. Each galaxy has millions to trillions of stars, making it look like a huge island in space. They are dispersed globally and exhibit a wide range of shapes and sizes. There are billions of galaxies in the world, and our solar system is part of the Milky Way Galaxy. Galaxies are not only important for containing stars and planets but also for studying the mysteries of the universe, such as black holes, dark matter, and the cosmic evolution of stars and galaxies themselves.

Types of Galaxy:

Type of Galaxy Shape Features Example
Spiral  It looks like a whirlpool or a pinwheel with long arms spiralling out from the centre. The bright central core, arms made of stars, dust, and gas. NGC 1232
Elliptical  Shaped like an ellipse or oval, ranging from almost circular to very stretched out. Mostly older stars, little gas and dust, minimal new star formation. M87
Barred Spiral  Similar to spiral galaxies but with a central bar of stars, gas, and dust, spiral arms start at the ends of the bar. Bright central bar, spiral arms emanating from the ends of the bar.

Milky Way

Irregular  No definite shape, often chaotic in appearance. Composed of young stars and lots of gas and dust, often in irregular patches. Large Magellanic Cloud

Various galaxies

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