astronomer help required

didn't know where else to put this as there isnt an astronomy section.

i am looking for anyone that can provide any information on the relation between sirius and the milky way (and possibly the month of october).

does sirius cross it or travel parallel to it at any time or does it have any known orbit that takes it close to the milky way?

thanks in advance

Dude, your question doesn't make a lot of sense.

Sirius is -in- the MW galaxy. It's about 8.6 lt-yrs from the Sun and about 27,000 lt-yrs from the center of the galaxy.

Only these stars are closer to us:

Name..............................Dist from Sun (lt-yrs)
Proxima Centauri..................4.22
Alpha Centauri A & B............4.39
Barnard's Star.....................5.94
Wolf 359.............................7.80
Lalande 21185.....................8.31

What else did you need to know? Basis for your question?



[edit on 20-10-2007 by Badge01]

reply to post by Badge01


reading the thread here will explain why im looking for some information on a connection

on a good night when you look out at the sky, you see a huge band of stars (we always called that the milky way) which has been likened to a river (like the nile and the thames)

as above so below etc...

what im looking for is whether sirius crosses or travels near or parallel to this particular band of stars and whether it would do so in october. thats the type of thing im looking for

Sirius does not go anywhere. It stays in the same place relative to the milky way.

reply to post by justyc


Then I'm your man!

Your question is a little unclear, however:

Sirius, like our own Sun is within the MilkyWay galaxy. We are both within one of the sprial arms of our Galaxy which is slowly orbiting the galactic core.

Does this answer your question?

so sirius, being a fixed star, would never cross over the visible area of the milky way at any time in its' history or the future, but would always always travel with it in the same place?

not being an astronomer i didn't know these things but thats why i was asking.

thanks for your help people

Nope, Sirius is fixed and doesn't travel relative to the band of the MW.

In fact it's only a few light years below the plane of the ecliptic.

HTH