I just received an email from a reader, Mary Murphy, who shared with me a fantastic interactive visualization of the scale of the universe. The Scale of the Universe 2 features a huge selection of objects in the universe that are arranged according to size and scale. You can zoom-in on the image to objects as small as neutrinos and quarks or as large as planets, constellations, and galaxies. When you click on an object in The Scale of the Universe 2 a small window of information about that object pops up.
Applications for Education
Trying to wrap their minds around the true size and scale of the universe can be a challenge for some students (I know it was for me). Exploring The Scale of the Universe 2 could be a great way for students to explore the size of the universe by comparing objects they're familiar with to objects that they've only read about.