andromeda galaxy

English - English

Definition of andromeda galaxy in English English dictionary: the spiral galaxy M31 in the Local Group; visually, the main galaxy in the Andromeda Constellation; or M31 Great spiral galaxy in the constellation Andromeda. It is the nearest spiral galaxy outside the Milky Way Galaxy and one of the few visible to the unaided eye, appearing as a milky blur. About 2 million light-years from Earth, it has a diameter of about 200,000 light-years, which makes it the largest galaxy in the Local Group. For centuries astronomers considered it part of the Milky Way; only in the 1920s did Edwin Hubble determine conclusively that it was a separate galaxy; A major spiral galaxy, 2 2 million light-years from the Earth, which is gravitationally bound to the Milky Way galaxy; (a) Similar to our own Milky Way, but twice the mass of our galaxy This is one of the Local Group of galaxies and the most distant object visible to the naked eye (b) The Milky Way's big brother; a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Andromeda that is visible to the naked eye

andromeda galaxy