. "The Milky Way is the galaxy that contains our Solar System. Its name \"milky\" is derived from its appearance as a dim glowing band arching across the night sky whose individual stars cannot be distinguished by the naked eye. The term \"Milky Way\" is a translation of the Latin via lactea, from the Greek \u03B3\u03B1\u03BB\u03B1\u03BE\u03AF\u03B1\u03C2 \u03BA\u03CD\u03BA\u03BB\u03BF\u03C2 (galax\u00EDas k\u00FDklos, \"milky circle\"). From Earth the Milky Way appears as a band because its disk-shaped structure is viewed from within."@en . . .