How did our galaxy get the name “Milky Way”?

"Whoever named the Milky Way did so through standing in darkness, night after night, gazing up at our own galaxy and trying to name that feeling of being one with the cosmos," Stanley said. "There's something extraordinary and sublime about standing on a mountaintop and seeing the vastness of our own galaxy wrapping around us," he added. read more

As for how our galaxy got its name, it is indeed because of its milky appearance as it stretches across the sky. While spotting the galaxy’s arms is a challenge from our current light-polluted centers, if you get out to a more rural area it really begins to dominate the skies. read more

In Germany, the galaxy is called “Milchstrasse” and Norwegians call the galaxy “Melkeveien.” Frank Mars invented the Milky Way candy bar after three years of research in 1923. It was the first filled candy bar. read more