The galaxy that contains our Sun is known as what?

• A. Andromeda
• B. Milky Way
• C. Sombrero
• D. Whirlpool

Answer: (B)

The Sun and all the planets are part of a galaxy, which is a giant collection of stars, gas, and dust held together by gravity. This particular galaxy is the Milky Way, a barred spiral shape with a bright center and spiral arms that extend outward. Our solar system sits in one of those spiral arms, quite far from the center, so we’re inside the Milky Way rather than in a different galaxy.

The other names are different galaxies: Andromeda is a nearby spiral galaxy, Sombrero is another galaxy with a distinctive dusty, bright core, and Whirlpool is a well-known interacting spiral galaxy. Because our solar system lives within this vast disk of stars, the correct name for the galaxy is the Milky Way.