It was only about 100 years ago that Andromeda and other so-called nebulae were actually proven to be other separate galaxies. The previous world view seemed to be that the Milky Way was the entire universe.

This seems to me like it would be the biggest shift in perception in human history, maybe alongside the discovery of Earths rotation around the Sun.

The Milky Way has been visible since the dawn of mankind, so to finally have confirmation that our entire universe just got exponentially larger, and civilisation has become even more insignificant, must have been profound.

Is there any studies, stories or findings around how perceptions changed during this time?

What might have been the mental effect on us as a population? The effect on religion? The effect on storytelling?

Originally posted on r/cosmology but was advised to post here. https://www.reddit.com/r/cosmology/comments/v2x0dg