According to Hubble's initial calculation, approximately how far away was the Andromeda Nebula from the Milky Way?
Answer
900,000 light-years
Following the determination of V1's period and the subsequent calculation of its absolute magnitude using Leavitt's Law, Hubble performed the comparison calculation against its observed apparent magnitude. This calculation yielded an astonishing result for the time: approximately 900,000 light-years. This distance was considered enormous because the prevailing estimate for the diameter of the Milky Way, our entire universe up to that point, was only about 300,000 light-years across, thus forcefully arguing that Andromeda must lie outside our galaxy's boundaries.
Related Questions
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