Far 3 kpc Arm [SEP] discoverer or inventor
Far 3 kpc Arm
The Far 3 kpc Arm was discovered in 2008 by astronomer Tom Dame (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA), while preparing a talk on the Galaxy's spiral arms for a meeting of the 212th American Astronomical Society. It is one of Milky Way's spiral arms and it is located in the first galactic quadrant at a distance of 3 kpc (about 10,000 ly) from the galactic center. Along with the Near 3 kpc Arm whose existence is known since the mid-1950s, the counterpart inner arms establish our
kpc from the Sun and 3.3 kpc from the galactic center. The last attempt to search for star forming regions in the Near 3 kpc Arm (in 1980) showed little star formation occurring in the numerous molecular clouds of this arm.
Along with the Far 3 kpc Arm discovered in 2008, these inner arms establish our Galaxy's simple symmetry.