Gaia: mapping the Milky Way from space at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2014
4,056 views · Published 29 April 2014 · 5:05 · Indexed 6 November 2026
Channel: The Royal Society · 2014 · Science & Technology
Gaia: mapping the Milky Way from space exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2014. Gerry Gilmore, Professor of Experimental Philosophy, University of Cambridge. With narrator Sean Pertwee. At the end of 2013 a satellite was sent into orbit 1.5 million km from Earth, far beyond the moon's orbit. This satellite, Gaia, is tracking one billion stars as they move across the sky, and determining each star's distance, velocity, age and chemical composition. From these data we will map the distribution of the still mysterious dark matter that holds our Milky Way Galaxy together, and gain vital clues as to how our Galaxy was assembled. The Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2014 was held 1-6 July 2014 at the Royal Society in London. Find out more: http://sse.royalsociety.org/2014/
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