Take the 2-minute tour ×

If we know the universe is expanding in whatever direction we look, can't we reasonably estimate where the 'center' of the Universe is?

Is the rate of expansions in all directions the same?

share|improve this question
Possible duplicate physics.stackexchange.com/questions/2378/… –  Qmechanic Apr 10 '11 at 21:51
The data is actually sufficient to show that over all of the observable universe a hypothetical little green man with a telescope would observe "Everything is moving away from me.". So, are we at the center of the universe or is Marvin the Martian, ET, or Pizza the Hut? –  dmckee Apr 10 '11 at 21:57

2 Answers 2

The speed that a galaxy moves away from you is larger the further away the galaxy already is. This is most consistent with an expanding universe.

I find the following mental picture helpful: Imagine a balloon, with lots of little dots painted on it. If you inflate the balloon, then every point is moving away from every other point. Where would the "center" be? Pretty much everywhere.

share|improve this answer

Wikipedia kindly presents four models you can use to visualize the expansion of the universe. All of these are meant to explain why we think the universe is expanding, yet we think there is no center. Everything moves away from everything else, with expanding velocity proportional to the distance.



† Bound objects—in particular galaxies—are held together by binding forces like gravitation and therefore do not expand internally.

share|improve this answer

Your Answer


