Sun's Hill sphere

Region / boundary · Region in which an astronomical body dominates the attraction of satellites

About Sun's Hill sphere

Sun's Hill sphere is about 3.6 light-years from the Sun, so the light we see from it left about 3.6 years ago.

The map lists it as a region / boundary and shows it among the stars around the Sun, drawn on the plane of the Milky Way.

Its existence is not confirmed: it is shown where it has been proposed.

Roughly where the Sun's gravity stops dominating over the Galaxy's tides: about 230,000 AU (Chebotarev). Estimates range from 1 to 3.6 light-years.

Distance from the Sun	3.6 ly

Its place in the universe, from the inside out: Solar neighbourhood › Local Bubble › Orion–Cygnus Arm (Local Arm) › Milky Way › Local Group › Virgo Supercluster › Laniakea Supercluster › Observable universe.

Zoom out to see it in context: Nearest stars, a view about 24 light-years across.

In celestial mechanics, the Hill sphere is a common model for the calculation of a gravitational sphere of influence.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Hill sphere, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.