Al1en Ritchie, Age 8, Of Downsview, Ont., Canada, for his question:

What shape is the universe?

Our sun and its family of planets are part of a huge island universe made from billions of stars. This universe is ca11ed the galaxy, and it is shaped something like a monster pin wheel. It is round and flat, thicker in the middle and thinner near its edges. Streamers of stars like spiraling arms swing out from the bright center and curve around toward the rim of the island universe.

This starry home of ours is not the only island universe. There are billions more like it scattered throughout the vast oceans of space. We may call these starry islands other universes, or we may say that the island universes and the space between them is the cosmos. In any case we do not know where this cosmos or universe ends  so no one can tell us what shape it is.