The Known Universe

This cool animation, begins from the roof top of the Himalayas, zooms out to our globe, shows the orbital traces of the artificial satellites then begins the pan zoom out to mapped star systems and graphically illustrates the as yet unmapped regions. Thence we are taken outwards into a short journey of the outer edges of the known universe, which is represented as a globe including the background cosmic radiation left over by the big bang

Every star, planet, and quasar seen in the film is possible because of the world's most complete four-dimensional map of the universe, the Digital Universe Atlas that is maintained and updated by astrophysicists at the American Museum of Natural History. The new film, created by the Museum, is part of an exhibition, Visions of the Cosmos: From the Milky Ocean to an Evolving Universe, at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan through May 2010.