What I mean by circular is that planets and stars do not come in square or retangular shape because of the internal gravity which has the same effect all around the body. The why are the galaxies mostly flat/disc in shape and do not have a more round type of dimension.
2006-06-19 07:11:02 · 7 answers · asked by desiguyinatlanta 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
There is a relationship between the speed of rotation and how much the object is flattened. The outer edge of the galaxy is moving a a very high rate of speed. Our own solar system is moving at 200 kilometers per second as the galaxy rotates . But Earth is only rotating at around 1600 kilometers per hour, or roughly 0.5km/second, and it is, in fact, bigger at the equator than elsewhere, not a true sphere. It's 6357km radius at the poles, and 6378km at the equator. The spinning makes it oblate. This is true of all the spinning planets. The faster they spin, the flatter they are, overcoming the gravitational attraction.
2006-06-19 07:54:18 · answer #1 · answered by Tom J 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Galaxies are swarms of stars and gas. The gas ingredient has a tendency to variety right into a disk, the place each and all of the gas orbits are in one airplane. If the gas weren't in a airplane, gas on distinctive orbits could collide and convey shocks. The loss of capacity has a tendency to reason the gas orbits to converge to a single airplane. as quickly as there, the gas makes stars that are additionally restricted to the airplane by making use of conservation of capacity. (a matching technique happens interior the formation of planetary structures, this is why each and all of the planets are in a airplane.) In a galaxy, stars do no longer, ordinarily, undergo close encounters that critically replace their velocity. the stars making up the galaxy, that shaped formerly the gas disk, variety an ellipsoidal shape, on the grounds this is the main in all probability ingredient a swarm of stars can do. it truly is the main in all probability shape. a sturdy deal is known approximately this, even yet it truly is a graduate-point direction in stellar dynamics, too lots to describe right here and requiring a great sort of math.
2016-10-31 03:26:18 · answer #2 · answered by holliway 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most galaxies are flat due to the high speed of rotation in the center, so all stars tend to align towards the equitorial center of the spinning center of the galaxy, which has the most power of gravitational pull and at the same time, the centrifical force of its speed is flatening what would otherwise be a more oval or round shape galaxy.
It's still round like a planet or star or moon, but it's flat due to high speed of rotation.
2006-06-19 13:14:32 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
galaxies are NOT FLAT! that is a common misconception. galaxies are actually a more of an oval shape. But to answer your question, galaxies shapes have nothing at all to do with planets. They are actually formed on the basis of the gravitational pull from other galaxies.
2006-06-19 10:46:08 · answer #4 · answered by Cameron F 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the planets affecting the shape of the galaxy would be like grains of sand affecting the shape of a beach. that is even too large a scale for comparison! single grains affecting the shape of the Sahara would be more exact. and the others are correct, a bulging spiral is not quite flat.
2006-06-19 13:36:39 · answer #5 · answered by Brian J 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because some galaxies are formed from spinning disks of gases and dust. As they grow older and "mature" they will tend to take on a more spherical form (like the eliptical galaxies).
2006-06-19 08:14:41 · answer #6 · answered by Dave_Stark 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well Glaxies are in some what gavitaionl that make evey big thing in sphere and it hold it in them. so the shpae mostly wouldn't matter.
2006-06-25 14:39:20 · answer #7 · answered by 009 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋