Simply gazing around gives a basic impression of the form of the Milky Way galaxy—a ragged, hazy ribbon of light circles the sky. That finding suggests that our Milky Way Galaxy is a flattened disk of stars, with us positioned near the disk's plane. It would appear different if it wasn't a flattened disk. A three-dimensional view of the Milky Way can be obtained by looking at it from several directions, but even then, all you see are curves and dots because the galaxy is so far away. Our view of the Milky Way is actually a conglomeration of light from billions of stars scattered through out its body. The galaxy has a dark center filled with old stars while its outer regions are full of young ones. By studying this distribution of stars across the galaxy, astronomers are able to learn much about the history of star formation within it. The Milky Way is not only important for its own sake, but as a key reference point when viewing other galaxies too. With its spiral shape and millions of stars spread across an enormous area, it's not easy to visualize as a whole entity. However, knowing that the Milky Way is itself a galaxy helps put many other smaller objects in perspective. Galaxies come in three main types: spiral, elliptical and irregular. Our Milky Way belongs to the galaxy category called "disk galaxies", which are shaped like a flat disk.