How many times has the sun traveled around the Milky Way?

From Earth, the Milky Way looks like a separate entity from our planet but we are constantly moving right through the middle of it. (Image credit: Abdul Azis via Getty Images)

It can be hard to get your head around the fact that Earth is moving through space. But it is even stranger to realize that you are making two simultaneous journeys — around the sun and through the Milky Way.

Just like the moon orbits Earth and our planet orbits the sun, our home star is also circling the Milky Way — or, more accurately, orbiting the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy. The entire Milky Way is actually constantly spinning around our galaxy's black hole heart.