Local Group

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/local-group

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How heavy is Local Group?2 x 10^12 solar masses
2. What is the cosmic structure classification?Galaxy Group
3. What is the dominant galaxies?Milky Way and Andromeda
4. Why do the Milky Way and Andromeda look like a dumbbell?The Local Group looks like a dumbbell because it has two big clusters of galaxies—one around the Milky Way and one around Andromeda—separated by a space between them.
5. How fast are the Milky Way and Andromeda moving toward each other?They are moving toward each other at about 123 kilometers per second, which means they will eventually collide and merge in the future.

Galaxy Group: A collection of galaxies, typically containing up to 50 members, gravitationally bound together.
Satellite Galaxy: A smaller galaxy gravitationally bound to and orbiting a larger host galaxy.
Light-year: The distance light travels in one year, approximately 9.46 trillion kilometers, used to measure astronomical distances.
Supercluster: A massive structure of galaxy groups and clusters, representing one of the largest known structures in the universe.