What are spiral galaxies?

Spiral galaxies are big space cities made up of stars, dust, and gas, all swirling around like a spinning wheel.

Imagine you're playing with a toy that has a center piece, and when you spin it, the pieces on the outside move in a pretty pattern. That’s kind of how spiral galaxies work! At the very middle is a bulge, which is like the center of the toy, where most of the stars are packed closely together.

Then there are the arms, which are long, curly parts that stretch out from the bulge. These arms look like the spokes on a wheel, and they're full of young stars and gas clouds. When you look at a spiral galaxy from far away, it's like seeing a beautiful, colorful wheel spinning in space.

Some galaxies have a bar across their center, imagine a long stick connecting two sides of the bulge, and these are called barred spiral galaxies.

Spiral galaxies can be found all over the universe, and our own galaxy, the Milky Way, is one too!