Can anything be seen from the center of the Boötes void? How dark would it be? Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern) 2019 Moderator Election Q&A - Question CollectionDo all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?What does the sky look like to human eyes from orbit?Names, maps for Milky Way dust clouds? (Dark Cloud Constellations)How much of sky can be seen on a typical night from a mid-latitude location?View of the Sun from Voyager 1How deep is the Great Red Spot?How to track the visual path of a LEO satellite as seen from the groundCan the Earth be seen to transit the sun from the outer planets?Establishing true (ie present) positions of cosmic bodiesIf someone from another part of the observable universe had their own Hubble Telescope, would they see different things than we did?How is it possible to see stars-light, from stars millions of light years apart with the naked eye?

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Can anything be seen from the center of the Boötes void? How dark would it be?



Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara
Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern)
2019 Moderator Election Q&A - Question CollectionDo all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?What does the sky look like to human eyes from orbit?Names, maps for Milky Way dust clouds? (Dark Cloud Constellations)How much of sky can be seen on a typical night from a mid-latitude location?View of the Sun from Voyager 1How deep is the Great Red Spot?How to track the visual path of a LEO satellite as seen from the groundCan the Earth be seen to transit the sun from the outer planets?Establishing true (ie present) positions of cosmic bodiesIf someone from another part of the observable universe had their own Hubble Telescope, would they see different things than we did?How is it possible to see stars-light, from stars millions of light years apart with the naked eye?










18












$begingroup$


Let's say I was at the very center of the enormous Boötes void, way out in deep, deep space. What could I see with the naked eye? I assume I could see no individual stars, but could I resolve any galaxies? If I gazed in the direction of a super-cluster of galaxies would it seem brighter than other directions? How dark would it be compared to, say, the far side of the moon when it is a full moon on earth?



I am told there are, in fact, a few galaxies in the void. So let's say I pick a spot in the void that is as far from any of those galaxies as possible.










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
    $endgroup$
    – JMac
    12 hours ago






  • 3




    $begingroup$
    Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    12 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
    $endgroup$
    – MikeTheLiar
    5 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
    $endgroup$
    – immibis
    2 hours ago















18












$begingroup$


Let's say I was at the very center of the enormous Boötes void, way out in deep, deep space. What could I see with the naked eye? I assume I could see no individual stars, but could I resolve any galaxies? If I gazed in the direction of a super-cluster of galaxies would it seem brighter than other directions? How dark would it be compared to, say, the far side of the moon when it is a full moon on earth?



I am told there are, in fact, a few galaxies in the void. So let's say I pick a spot in the void that is as far from any of those galaxies as possible.










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
    $endgroup$
    – JMac
    12 hours ago






  • 3




    $begingroup$
    Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    12 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
    $endgroup$
    – MikeTheLiar
    5 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
    $endgroup$
    – immibis
    2 hours ago













18












18








18





$begingroup$


Let's say I was at the very center of the enormous Boötes void, way out in deep, deep space. What could I see with the naked eye? I assume I could see no individual stars, but could I resolve any galaxies? If I gazed in the direction of a super-cluster of galaxies would it seem brighter than other directions? How dark would it be compared to, say, the far side of the moon when it is a full moon on earth?



I am told there are, in fact, a few galaxies in the void. So let's say I pick a spot in the void that is as far from any of those galaxies as possible.










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$




Let's say I was at the very center of the enormous Boötes void, way out in deep, deep space. What could I see with the naked eye? I assume I could see no individual stars, but could I resolve any galaxies? If I gazed in the direction of a super-cluster of galaxies would it seem brighter than other directions? How dark would it be compared to, say, the far side of the moon when it is a full moon on earth?



I am told there are, in fact, a few galaxies in the void. So let's say I pick a spot in the void that is as far from any of those galaxies as possible.







astronomy






share|cite|improve this question















share|cite|improve this question













share|cite|improve this question




share|cite|improve this question








edited 6 hours ago









costrom

314128




314128










asked 12 hours ago









Paul YoungPaul Young

1,316117




1,316117











  • $begingroup$
    The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
    $endgroup$
    – JMac
    12 hours ago






  • 3




    $begingroup$
    Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    12 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
    $endgroup$
    – MikeTheLiar
    5 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
    $endgroup$
    – immibis
    2 hours ago
















  • $begingroup$
    The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
    $endgroup$
    – JMac
    12 hours ago






  • 3




    $begingroup$
    Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    12 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
    $endgroup$
    – MikeTheLiar
    5 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
    $endgroup$
    – immibis
    2 hours ago















$begingroup$
The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
$endgroup$
– JMac
12 hours ago




$begingroup$
The Bootes void has some galaxies in it, and I don't know if it has much of a centre. IMO this needs to be more specific about the conditions.
$endgroup$
– JMac
12 hours ago




3




3




$begingroup$
Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
12 hours ago




$begingroup$
Let's pick the spot that is furthest from any galaxy.
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
12 hours ago




5




5




$begingroup$
@PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
$endgroup$
– MikeTheLiar
5 hours ago




$begingroup$
@PaulYoung so you're saying "if there's a bright center to the Universe, you're at the [point] it's farthest from"?
$endgroup$
– MikeTheLiar
5 hours ago












$begingroup$
@MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
$endgroup$
– immibis
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
@MikeTheLiar seems more like "let's get as far away from as many galaxies as possible"
$endgroup$
– immibis
2 hours ago










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes


















19












$begingroup$

The number density of galaxies in a void is typically 1/10 the average in the Universe. In this astronomy.SE post, I estimate the number density of galaxies of magnitude $M=-17$ or brighter in the Boötes Void to be $n sim 0.004,mathrmMpc^-3$, or $10^-4,mathrmMlyr^-3$ (i.e. "per cubic mega-light-year"). Hence, the typical distance to a galaxy from a random point in the Boötes Void is
$$
d = left( frac34pi n right)^1/3 simeq 13,mathrmMlyr.
$$



That distance corresponds to a distance modulus of $mu simeq 28$, so the apparent magnitude of the galaxy would be
$$
m = M + mu simeq 11.
$$

Typically, humans cannot see objects darker than $m simeq 6.5$ (the magnitude scale is backwards, so darker means "larger values than 6.5"), although some have claimed to be able to see $msimeq8$ — still an order of magnitude brighter than the $m=11$ estimated above. Moreover, this threshold assumes point sources, whereas a galaxy has its brightness smeared out over a quite large area, lowering its surface brightness significantly!$^dagger$



Hence, you would be floating in complete darkness.$^ddagger$




$^dagger$For instance, the Andromeda galaxy has an apparent magnitude of $m=3.44$ which, if its light were concentrated in a point, would make it easily visibly even under light-polluted conditions.



$^ddagger$Your eye might be able to detect individual photons, at stated in Árpád Szendrei's answer, but that hardly counts as "seeing anything".






share|cite|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 6




    $begingroup$
    Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
    $endgroup$
    – llama
    8 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
    $endgroup$
    – pela
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago


















4












$begingroup$

In fact you would see only individual stars. Like on Earth, you can only see individual stars, and no galaxies with the naked eye. Why? Because galaxies are too dim as a whole.



Now, if you would just float in empty space in the void you would be better off then on Earth. It is because here on Earth there is some light pollution.



But in the void, there is basically no light pollution, so you could see even single photons arriving from far away giant stars.



And yes, the human eye is able to detect even single photons.



By the way, all the stars that you can see with the naked eye from Earth are from the Milky Way. But again, that is too because of the light pollution and because our night sky even if there would be no light pollution here on Earth would be filled with brighter start from the Milky way. Our eyes would get used to that, and the start from other galaxies would just appear too dim to see.



Now on the dark side of the moon it would be a little different, but only that there is no light pollution like on Earth. Still, from the dark side of the Moon you could still only see stars from the Milky way.



Now in the void in your case, I think it is different. It is so dark and void, that even a single photon coming from a far away large star would be visible to our eyes that get used to the darkness.



Please see here:



Do all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?






share|cite|improve this answer









$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
    $endgroup$
    – CSM
    7 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
    $endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    2 hours ago


















1












$begingroup$

From the Wikipedia page on the Boötes void (the same that you linked to in your question):




According to astronomer Greg Aldering, the scale of the void is such that "If the Milky Way had been in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't have known there were other galaxies until the 1960s."




(The original article can be found thanks to the Wayback Machine.)



This means that if we were in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't be able to see any galaxies with the naked eye, and not even with some telescopes. Again according to Wikipedia, telescopes were invented at the beginning of the 17th century, radio telescopes in the 1930s and infrared telescopes in the 1960s.






share|cite|improve this answer








New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago











Your Answer








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3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes








3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









19












$begingroup$

The number density of galaxies in a void is typically 1/10 the average in the Universe. In this astronomy.SE post, I estimate the number density of galaxies of magnitude $M=-17$ or brighter in the Boötes Void to be $n sim 0.004,mathrmMpc^-3$, or $10^-4,mathrmMlyr^-3$ (i.e. "per cubic mega-light-year"). Hence, the typical distance to a galaxy from a random point in the Boötes Void is
$$
d = left( frac34pi n right)^1/3 simeq 13,mathrmMlyr.
$$



That distance corresponds to a distance modulus of $mu simeq 28$, so the apparent magnitude of the galaxy would be
$$
m = M + mu simeq 11.
$$

Typically, humans cannot see objects darker than $m simeq 6.5$ (the magnitude scale is backwards, so darker means "larger values than 6.5"), although some have claimed to be able to see $msimeq8$ — still an order of magnitude brighter than the $m=11$ estimated above. Moreover, this threshold assumes point sources, whereas a galaxy has its brightness smeared out over a quite large area, lowering its surface brightness significantly!$^dagger$



Hence, you would be floating in complete darkness.$^ddagger$




$^dagger$For instance, the Andromeda galaxy has an apparent magnitude of $m=3.44$ which, if its light were concentrated in a point, would make it easily visibly even under light-polluted conditions.



$^ddagger$Your eye might be able to detect individual photons, at stated in Árpád Szendrei's answer, but that hardly counts as "seeing anything".






share|cite|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 6




    $begingroup$
    Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
    $endgroup$
    – llama
    8 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
    $endgroup$
    – pela
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago















19












$begingroup$

The number density of galaxies in a void is typically 1/10 the average in the Universe. In this astronomy.SE post, I estimate the number density of galaxies of magnitude $M=-17$ or brighter in the Boötes Void to be $n sim 0.004,mathrmMpc^-3$, or $10^-4,mathrmMlyr^-3$ (i.e. "per cubic mega-light-year"). Hence, the typical distance to a galaxy from a random point in the Boötes Void is
$$
d = left( frac34pi n right)^1/3 simeq 13,mathrmMlyr.
$$



That distance corresponds to a distance modulus of $mu simeq 28$, so the apparent magnitude of the galaxy would be
$$
m = M + mu simeq 11.
$$

Typically, humans cannot see objects darker than $m simeq 6.5$ (the magnitude scale is backwards, so darker means "larger values than 6.5"), although some have claimed to be able to see $msimeq8$ — still an order of magnitude brighter than the $m=11$ estimated above. Moreover, this threshold assumes point sources, whereas a galaxy has its brightness smeared out over a quite large area, lowering its surface brightness significantly!$^dagger$



Hence, you would be floating in complete darkness.$^ddagger$




$^dagger$For instance, the Andromeda galaxy has an apparent magnitude of $m=3.44$ which, if its light were concentrated in a point, would make it easily visibly even under light-polluted conditions.



$^ddagger$Your eye might be able to detect individual photons, at stated in Árpád Szendrei's answer, but that hardly counts as "seeing anything".






share|cite|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 6




    $begingroup$
    Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
    $endgroup$
    – llama
    8 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
    $endgroup$
    – pela
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago













19












19








19





$begingroup$

The number density of galaxies in a void is typically 1/10 the average in the Universe. In this astronomy.SE post, I estimate the number density of galaxies of magnitude $M=-17$ or brighter in the Boötes Void to be $n sim 0.004,mathrmMpc^-3$, or $10^-4,mathrmMlyr^-3$ (i.e. "per cubic mega-light-year"). Hence, the typical distance to a galaxy from a random point in the Boötes Void is
$$
d = left( frac34pi n right)^1/3 simeq 13,mathrmMlyr.
$$



That distance corresponds to a distance modulus of $mu simeq 28$, so the apparent magnitude of the galaxy would be
$$
m = M + mu simeq 11.
$$

Typically, humans cannot see objects darker than $m simeq 6.5$ (the magnitude scale is backwards, so darker means "larger values than 6.5"), although some have claimed to be able to see $msimeq8$ — still an order of magnitude brighter than the $m=11$ estimated above. Moreover, this threshold assumes point sources, whereas a galaxy has its brightness smeared out over a quite large area, lowering its surface brightness significantly!$^dagger$



Hence, you would be floating in complete darkness.$^ddagger$




$^dagger$For instance, the Andromeda galaxy has an apparent magnitude of $m=3.44$ which, if its light were concentrated in a point, would make it easily visibly even under light-polluted conditions.



$^ddagger$Your eye might be able to detect individual photons, at stated in Árpád Szendrei's answer, but that hardly counts as "seeing anything".






share|cite|improve this answer











$endgroup$



The number density of galaxies in a void is typically 1/10 the average in the Universe. In this astronomy.SE post, I estimate the number density of galaxies of magnitude $M=-17$ or brighter in the Boötes Void to be $n sim 0.004,mathrmMpc^-3$, or $10^-4,mathrmMlyr^-3$ (i.e. "per cubic mega-light-year"). Hence, the typical distance to a galaxy from a random point in the Boötes Void is
$$
d = left( frac34pi n right)^1/3 simeq 13,mathrmMlyr.
$$



That distance corresponds to a distance modulus of $mu simeq 28$, so the apparent magnitude of the galaxy would be
$$
m = M + mu simeq 11.
$$

Typically, humans cannot see objects darker than $m simeq 6.5$ (the magnitude scale is backwards, so darker means "larger values than 6.5"), although some have claimed to be able to see $msimeq8$ — still an order of magnitude brighter than the $m=11$ estimated above. Moreover, this threshold assumes point sources, whereas a galaxy has its brightness smeared out over a quite large area, lowering its surface brightness significantly!$^dagger$



Hence, you would be floating in complete darkness.$^ddagger$




$^dagger$For instance, the Andromeda galaxy has an apparent magnitude of $m=3.44$ which, if its light were concentrated in a point, would make it easily visibly even under light-polluted conditions.



$^ddagger$Your eye might be able to detect individual photons, at stated in Árpád Szendrei's answer, but that hardly counts as "seeing anything".







share|cite|improve this answer














share|cite|improve this answer



share|cite|improve this answer








edited 10 hours ago

























answered 11 hours ago









pelapela

8,2522030




8,2522030







  • 6




    $begingroup$
    Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
    $endgroup$
    – llama
    8 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
    $endgroup$
    – pela
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago












  • 6




    $begingroup$
    Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
    $endgroup$
    – llama
    8 hours ago






  • 5




    $begingroup$
    @llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
    $endgroup$
    – pela
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago







6




6




$begingroup$
Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
$endgroup$
– llama
8 hours ago




$begingroup$
Well, that's an utterly terrifying concept to imagine. Thanks to everyone for making me aware of it, I am going to go lie down now
$endgroup$
– llama
8 hours ago




5




5




$begingroup$
@llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
$endgroup$
– pela
8 hours ago




$begingroup$
@llama Luckily, the terrifying scenario would be over in a minute, after which you'd die from asphyxia.
$endgroup$
– pela
8 hours ago












$begingroup$
Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
1 hour ago




$begingroup$
Maybe Hal would open the pod bay doors
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
1 hour ago











4












$begingroup$

In fact you would see only individual stars. Like on Earth, you can only see individual stars, and no galaxies with the naked eye. Why? Because galaxies are too dim as a whole.



Now, if you would just float in empty space in the void you would be better off then on Earth. It is because here on Earth there is some light pollution.



But in the void, there is basically no light pollution, so you could see even single photons arriving from far away giant stars.



And yes, the human eye is able to detect even single photons.



By the way, all the stars that you can see with the naked eye from Earth are from the Milky Way. But again, that is too because of the light pollution and because our night sky even if there would be no light pollution here on Earth would be filled with brighter start from the Milky way. Our eyes would get used to that, and the start from other galaxies would just appear too dim to see.



Now on the dark side of the moon it would be a little different, but only that there is no light pollution like on Earth. Still, from the dark side of the Moon you could still only see stars from the Milky way.



Now in the void in your case, I think it is different. It is so dark and void, that even a single photon coming from a far away large star would be visible to our eyes that get used to the darkness.



Please see here:



Do all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?






share|cite|improve this answer









$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
    $endgroup$
    – CSM
    7 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
    $endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    2 hours ago















4












$begingroup$

In fact you would see only individual stars. Like on Earth, you can only see individual stars, and no galaxies with the naked eye. Why? Because galaxies are too dim as a whole.



Now, if you would just float in empty space in the void you would be better off then on Earth. It is because here on Earth there is some light pollution.



But in the void, there is basically no light pollution, so you could see even single photons arriving from far away giant stars.



And yes, the human eye is able to detect even single photons.



By the way, all the stars that you can see with the naked eye from Earth are from the Milky Way. But again, that is too because of the light pollution and because our night sky even if there would be no light pollution here on Earth would be filled with brighter start from the Milky way. Our eyes would get used to that, and the start from other galaxies would just appear too dim to see.



Now on the dark side of the moon it would be a little different, but only that there is no light pollution like on Earth. Still, from the dark side of the Moon you could still only see stars from the Milky way.



Now in the void in your case, I think it is different. It is so dark and void, that even a single photon coming from a far away large star would be visible to our eyes that get used to the darkness.



Please see here:



Do all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?






share|cite|improve this answer









$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
    $endgroup$
    – CSM
    7 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
    $endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    2 hours ago













4












4








4





$begingroup$

In fact you would see only individual stars. Like on Earth, you can only see individual stars, and no galaxies with the naked eye. Why? Because galaxies are too dim as a whole.



Now, if you would just float in empty space in the void you would be better off then on Earth. It is because here on Earth there is some light pollution.



But in the void, there is basically no light pollution, so you could see even single photons arriving from far away giant stars.



And yes, the human eye is able to detect even single photons.



By the way, all the stars that you can see with the naked eye from Earth are from the Milky Way. But again, that is too because of the light pollution and because our night sky even if there would be no light pollution here on Earth would be filled with brighter start from the Milky way. Our eyes would get used to that, and the start from other galaxies would just appear too dim to see.



Now on the dark side of the moon it would be a little different, but only that there is no light pollution like on Earth. Still, from the dark side of the Moon you could still only see stars from the Milky way.



Now in the void in your case, I think it is different. It is so dark and void, that even a single photon coming from a far away large star would be visible to our eyes that get used to the darkness.



Please see here:



Do all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?






share|cite|improve this answer









$endgroup$



In fact you would see only individual stars. Like on Earth, you can only see individual stars, and no galaxies with the naked eye. Why? Because galaxies are too dim as a whole.



Now, if you would just float in empty space in the void you would be better off then on Earth. It is because here on Earth there is some light pollution.



But in the void, there is basically no light pollution, so you could see even single photons arriving from far away giant stars.



And yes, the human eye is able to detect even single photons.



By the way, all the stars that you can see with the naked eye from Earth are from the Milky Way. But again, that is too because of the light pollution and because our night sky even if there would be no light pollution here on Earth would be filled with brighter start from the Milky way. Our eyes would get used to that, and the start from other galaxies would just appear too dim to see.



Now on the dark side of the moon it would be a little different, but only that there is no light pollution like on Earth. Still, from the dark side of the Moon you could still only see stars from the Milky way.



Now in the void in your case, I think it is different. It is so dark and void, that even a single photon coming from a far away large star would be visible to our eyes that get used to the darkness.



Please see here:



Do all the individual stars that we can see in the night sky belong to Milky Way?







share|cite|improve this answer












share|cite|improve this answer



share|cite|improve this answer










answered 11 hours ago









Árpád SzendreiÁrpád Szendrei

4,3711624




4,3711624







  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
    $endgroup$
    – CSM
    7 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
    $endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    2 hours ago












  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
    $endgroup$
    – CSM
    7 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
    $endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    2 hours ago







2




2




$begingroup$
You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
$endgroup$
– CSM
7 hours ago




$begingroup$
You can see Andromeda with the naked eye, under optimal conditions. It's mag +3.44. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy and M33 should also be visible
$endgroup$
– CSM
7 hours ago












$begingroup$
the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
$endgroup$
– PM 2Ring
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
the human eye is able to detect even single photons Sort of. A human rod cell can be activated by a single photon. But the retinal circuitry extinguishes the noise of such isolated "pixels" as part of its pre-processing. However, the frog retina doesn't contain that neural circuitry, so frog brains can detect single photon events.
$endgroup$
– PM 2Ring
2 hours ago











1












$begingroup$

From the Wikipedia page on the Boötes void (the same that you linked to in your question):




According to astronomer Greg Aldering, the scale of the void is such that "If the Milky Way had been in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't have known there were other galaxies until the 1960s."




(The original article can be found thanks to the Wayback Machine.)



This means that if we were in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't be able to see any galaxies with the naked eye, and not even with some telescopes. Again according to Wikipedia, telescopes were invented at the beginning of the 17th century, radio telescopes in the 1930s and infrared telescopes in the 1960s.






share|cite|improve this answer








New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago















1












$begingroup$

From the Wikipedia page on the Boötes void (the same that you linked to in your question):




According to astronomer Greg Aldering, the scale of the void is such that "If the Milky Way had been in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't have known there were other galaxies until the 1960s."




(The original article can be found thanks to the Wayback Machine.)



This means that if we were in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't be able to see any galaxies with the naked eye, and not even with some telescopes. Again according to Wikipedia, telescopes were invented at the beginning of the 17th century, radio telescopes in the 1930s and infrared telescopes in the 1960s.






share|cite|improve this answer








New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago













1












1








1





$begingroup$

From the Wikipedia page on the Boötes void (the same that you linked to in your question):




According to astronomer Greg Aldering, the scale of the void is such that "If the Milky Way had been in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't have known there were other galaxies until the 1960s."




(The original article can be found thanks to the Wayback Machine.)



This means that if we were in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't be able to see any galaxies with the naked eye, and not even with some telescopes. Again according to Wikipedia, telescopes were invented at the beginning of the 17th century, radio telescopes in the 1930s and infrared telescopes in the 1960s.






share|cite|improve this answer








New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$



From the Wikipedia page on the Boötes void (the same that you linked to in your question):




According to astronomer Greg Aldering, the scale of the void is such that "If the Milky Way had been in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't have known there were other galaxies until the 1960s."




(The original article can be found thanks to the Wayback Machine.)



This means that if we were in the center of the Boötes void, we wouldn't be able to see any galaxies with the naked eye, and not even with some telescopes. Again according to Wikipedia, telescopes were invented at the beginning of the 17th century, radio telescopes in the 1930s and infrared telescopes in the 1960s.







share|cite|improve this answer








New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









share|cite|improve this answer



share|cite|improve this answer






New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









answered 2 hours ago









Fabio TuratiFabio Turati

1114




1114




New contributor




Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





New contributor





Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






Fabio Turati is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.











  • $begingroup$
    That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago
















  • $begingroup$
    That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
    $endgroup$
    – Paul Young
    1 hour ago















$begingroup$
That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
1 hour ago




$begingroup$
That quote and that I share Llama’s reaction to pela’s answer are what inspired the question.
$endgroup$
– Paul Young
1 hour ago

















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