galaxy
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galaxy
A huge system of stars, gas, dust, and dark matter held together by gravity. Our own galaxy is the Milky Way.
Mit modernen Teleskopen können wir Milliarden von weit entfernten Galaxien beobachten.
With modern telescopes, we can observe billions of distant galaxies.
'Galaxie' (galaxy) is an international word that comes from Greek. You will find it in a similar form in many languages, which makes it easier to understand.
Die Astronomie erforscht die Entstehung von Galaxien.
Astronomy studies the formation of galaxies.
The related adjective is 'galaktisch' (galactic). It means 'die Galaxie betreffend' (relating to the galaxy) or, colloquially, also 'riesig' (huge) or 'gewaltig' (enormous).
Die Reise durch das All führte durch mehrere galaktische Nebel.
The journey through space led through several galactic nebulae.
When people talk about 'unserer Galaxie' (our galaxy), they always mean 'die Milchstraße' (the Milky Way). This is the proper name of the galaxy in which our solar system is located.
Die Milchstraße ist eine Spiralgalaxie.
The Milky Way is a spiral galaxy.
In the figurative sense, the structure 'eine Galaxie von + [plural]' is used to describe an impressive collection.
Auf dem roten Teppich präsentierte sich eine ganze Galaxie von Filmstars.
A whole galaxy of film stars appeared on the red carpet.
universe
'das Universum' and 'die Galaxie' both belong to the topic of astronomy, but they are not the same thing. 'das Universum' is everything together: space, time, matter, and energy. 'die Galaxie' is a huge system of stars, gas, and dust. So a galaxy is only one part of the universe. Learners may confuse the words because both refer to very large things in outer space. Remember: there are many galaxies in the universe.
Unsere Galaxie heißt Milchstraße.
Our galaxy is called the Milky Way.
Das Universum ist viel größer als unsere Milchstraße.
The universe is much larger than our Milky Way.