Did you know that, during a clear night, you can see our galaxy, the Milky Way, with the naked eye?

The Milky Way is a spiral with several arms. Our Solar System is located in one of the arms (the Orion arm) on the outer edge of the Milky Way, which makes the inner part of the Milky Way visible from Earth, even with the naked eye. Especially in the spring, on a clear night, this is quite achievable. Try to avoid light pollution from cities as much as possible, as it significantly reduces the visibility of the stars. If you find yourself in a location with little ambient light and a clear view of the night sky, you can see the Milky Way as a faint nebulous or milky band across the sky. You will also notice some darker patches. These are gases and nebulas that block the light from the stars. You won’t be able to see individual stars. The galactic bulge, which forms the center of the Milky Way and is about 25,000 light-years away, is not visible because many gas and dust clouds obstruct the view.

The photo accompanying this article was taken by maysam pourghasemi via flickr.com