From the Big Bang to the Tides

A journey through space in 10 stops: the Big Bang, galaxies, the Milky Way, the Sun's trip around it, the solar system, day and night, the seasons, the phases of the Moon, eclipses and the tides. Every scene is a simulation: you can pause it, speed it up, turn it and zoom in.

How to explore

Drag to turn the view. Scroll or pinch to zoom; keep scrolling to dive into the next stop.
Tap the names and the objects to learn about them. The dots on the card show what is left to discover at each stop.
Keyboard: ← → to change stop, space to pause.
Your pin on the Earth stays on this device and is never sent.

What is real and what is not

Times, angles, orbits and the order of events are real, and the planets are roughly where they are today. To fit on a screen, sizes and distances are squeezed (try “Real scale” in the solar system). The snow of the seasons, the bulge of water in the tides and the tilt of the Moon's orbit in the eclipses are exaggerated so you can see them.

Credits

Planet and Sun textures: Solar System Scope, CC BY 4.0.
Moon map: NASA Scientific Visualization Studio (public domain).
3D: three.js (MIT). Fonts: Lexend and Source Serif 4 (SIL Open Font License).
Sound and music are generated live in your browser.

📍 Where do you live?

Your pin is a guess from your time zone. The Earth is holding still. Drag to turn it, then tap your home to put your pin there. Then it will start turning, and you will see day and night come to your pin.