The image above is the most complete map of our local universe to date. It took more that ten years to create, has 43,000 galaxies and extends out 380 million light years from the earth. The 3D coordinates of each galaxy was recorded so the raw data could potentially be used to build a realistic 3D model of the universe. Throw in some holographic technology and you have something straight from Star Trek.
And if you’re wondering where we are in all these dots? Our galaxy, the Milky Way, runs horizontally through the centre of the image. [Slashdot, Harvard-Smithsonian centre for Astrophysics; image from the 2MASS Redshift Survey (2MRS)