Scale of the Universe places cells, animals, buildings, planets and cosmic structures along a single zoomable range. The comparisons make extreme size differences tangible, while selectable objects provide short explanations without interrupting the journey.
Zoom slowly enough to compare
Drag the scale control in small steps and notice which familiar objects overlap each range. The experience becomes more useful when you pause to compare neighbours instead of treating the zoom as a race from one extreme to the other.
Open the objects
Select an illustration to read the accompanying explanation and its approximate size. Moving back and forth between an unfamiliar object and a known reference is the quickest way to turn a string of powers of ten into something memorable.
Understand the abstraction
Everything is arranged for size comparison, not according to real distance or three-dimensional position. A star beside a cell does not imply any spatial relationship; it means only that both occupy places on the same logarithmic scale.
Things to know
- The arrangement compares size rather than real spatial relationships.
- Illustrations and rounded measurements simplify irregular objects.
- The full visual and audio experience can take time to load.