How to Explore the Milky Way - Andromeda Collision 3D Explorer - Step by Step
The Milky Way - Andromeda Collision 3D Explorer starts as soon as the page loads: drag to orbit the view, scroll or pinch to zoom, and watch the two disks close a real 2.5-million-light-year gap. Everything renders on your own device - no install, no account.
Drag the Time slider
Drag the Time slider in the Andromeda Collision 3D visualizer to jump anywhere in the 10-billion-year timeline - the facts panel updates with the current merger phase and the published figures for that stage.
Press Play and watch the tidal tails stretch
Press Play and watch the two disks close the gap, then stretch into long tidal tails once the timeline passes the first close pass at about 3.75 billion years - the same distortion astronomers see in real merging galaxy pairs today.
Read the facts panel per phase
Read the facts panel beside the scene: current separation, approach speed, the Gyr milestones for the first close pass and the full merger, and the honest merger-probability caveat.
Compare the approach and the merged remnant back to back
Compare the approach and the merged remnant back to back by dragging the slider between 0 Gyr and 10 Gyr - the same two galaxies, but a completely different shape once the merger settles.
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