
Galaxy - Wikipedia
A galaxy is a system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, and dark matter bound together by gravity. [1][2] The word is derived from the Greek galaxias (γαλαξίας), literally …
Galaxy | Definition, Formation, Types, Properties, & Facts | Britannica
Oct 21, 2025 · Galaxy, any of the systems of stars and interstellar matter that make up the universe. Many such assemblages are so enormous that they contain hundreds of billions of …
Galaxies - NASA Science
May 2, 2025 · Galaxies consist of stars, planets, and vast clouds of gas and dust, all bound together by gravity. The largest contain trillions of stars and can be more than a million light …
What Is a Galaxy? - Scientific American
May 9, 2025 · In modern times, though, we use “galaxy” more generically to refer to any large system of stars, gas, dust and dark matter, all held together by their mutual gravity.
What’s a galaxy? All you need to know - EarthSky
Mar 23, 2025 · A galaxy can contain hundreds of billions of stars and be many thousands of light-years across. Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, is around 100,000 light-years in diameter.
Galaxies—facts and information | National Geographic
Galaxies are sprawling systems of dust, gas, dark matter, and anywhere from a million to a trillion stars that are held together by gravity. Nearly all large galaxies are thought to also contain...
What Is a Galaxy? | NASA Space Place – NASA Science for Kids
Sep 25, 2025 · What Is a Galaxy? A galaxy is a huge collection of gas, dust, and billions of stars and their solar systems, all held together by gravity. We live on a planet called Earth that is …
Milky Way Galaxy | Size, Definition, & Facts | Britannica
5 days ago · Milky Way Galaxy (sometimes simply called the Galaxy), large spiral system of about several hundred billion stars, one of which is the Sun. It takes its name from the Milky Way, …
Hubble's Galaxies - NASA Science
Apr 14, 2025 · Our galaxy, the Milky Way, sits in a Local Group of more than 20 galaxies, but Hubble’s vision takes us far beyond our celestial neighborhood. Galaxies are the visible …
Galaxy Evolution - NASA Science
Oct 22, 2024 · A black hole weighing 4 million Suns sits in the center of our own galaxy, the Milky Way. It’s possible that the black holes came first, and galaxies grew around them.