Universe size comparison in 3D: see how big planets, stars, black holes and galaxies really are, side by side at true scale.
How big is the Sun next to Earth? How small is the Sun next to the largest stars? What does a black hole do to a star that comes too close? And where are we, inside the Milky Way and beyond?
Cosmic Scale lines up 77 objects from smallest to largest, from a 490-metre asteroid to the Solar System and the Oort Cloud, and 123 with the Beyond pack, which adds galaxies, nebulae and the largest structures in the cosmos. Every one is drawn at its true size. Fly through them like a size-comparison video you control.
12 SPACE SIMULATIONS
Watch how things in space happen, step by step, with real numbers: a pulsar, Earth's magnetic shield, the Sun's death, a black hole tearing a star apart, a supernova, how black holes are made, two black holes merging, two neutron stars colliding, a magnetar's giant flare, a quasar, the Milky Way meeting Andromeda, and the Big Bang. Each is simulated from real physics and measurements; anything no eye could see, like magnetic fields and radio waves, is drawn and labelled as drawn.
AS YOU'D SEE IT
Ten simulations also play as a short film of only the light your eyes would catch, in true colours, with nothing drawn over it.
THE TOUR
Press play and fly from an asteroid past moons, planets, stars and black holes out to the observable universe, with calm music and a bell for every step up in size. At each layer we live inside, the tour dives in to show where we are: Earth in the Solar System, the Solar System in the Milky Way, all the way out.
COMPARE ANY TWO
"The Sun is 109× wider than Earth. About 1.3 million Earths would fit inside it. Light crosses it in 4.6 seconds." Pick any two objects and see them side by side at real scale.
INSPECT ANYTHING IN 3D
Turn any object with your finger: tilt Saturn's rings, spin a galaxy edge-on, look down onto a black hole's glowing disk, and share a picture.
REAL MAPS, PHOTOS AND SOUNDS
Planets and moons wear real maps from NASA missions. Open any object for real photographs, from the Blue Marble to Webb's deep fields, each credited. Listen to the wind on Mars, lightning on Jupiter, Saturn's radio auroras and NASA's sonifications of black holes.
15 LANGUAGES
English, Español, Português, Français, Deutsch, Türkçe, Bahasa Indonesia, Tiếng Việt, Русский, Oʻzbekcha, العربية, हिन्दी, 简体中文, 日本語 and 한국어.
FREE, WITH OPTIONAL VIDEOS
The pulsar simulation is free. Each other simulation opens for good with one short video. The Beyond pack and Ultra graphics open for 24 hours with a video. Ads appear only at natural breaks, never inside a simulation.
COSMIC SCALE PRO
No ads, ever, and everything open at once: all 123 objects, every simulation and film, and Ultra graphics. $20 a year, $3 a month, or $30 once for life. Subscriptions renew until you cancel them in Google Play. No sign-up needed: Pro stays with your Google account.
SEARCH WORDS
Universe size comparison, planet size comparison, star size comparison, solar system 3D, space simulator, black hole simulator, galaxy and nebula explorer, astronomy for everyone, how big is space.
Sizes come from NASA/JPL fact sheets and published measurements. Supergiant stars and the largest galaxies are uncertain by tens of percent; for black holes the size shown is the event horizon.
Recent changes:
New: Sky. See what is happening above you: tonight's Moon and bright planets, plus the eclipses, meteor showers and planet meetings coming up this year, worked out on your phone from real orbits. Get a note the evening before something worth looking up for (switch it off in Settings), and add your location to see which eclipses you can see.
Also: optional anonymous usage statistics (Settings > Share usage statistics) to help improve the app.
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