The Universe is so epic

[Lady Jane]

Anybody out there?

[Lady Jane]

The Pillars of Creation. 70 by 50 light years in size and about 7000 Light years from Earth.

[kscarrol]

Here is a more recent one from the new Webb telescope.

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

The Pillars of Creation. 70 by 50 light years in size and about 7000 Light years from Earth.

On our planet we also have "Cinque Torri" ("Five Towers") in the Dolomites. Mesmerizing place.

Estimated age of the Dolomites: some say up to 250 million years.

Less travel time to reach than "The Pillars of Creation". Makes you realize we're all just a blip on a massive timeline in massive space.

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

The Pillars of Creation. 70 by 50 light years in size and about 7000 Light years from Earth.


Attachment 3155167

And, remember, a lightyear is 6 Trillion miles. (6,000,000,000,000) Which would be out and back to Pluto 2,000 times. And it took the New Horizons probe almost 10 years one way to get there. Ponder that.

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by snowbimmer

And, remember, a lightyear is 6 Trillion miles. (6,000,000,000,000) Which would be out and back to Pluto 2 000 times. And it took the New Horizons probe almost 10 years one way to get there. Ponder that.

"Pale Blue Dot is a photograph of planet Earth taken on February 14, 1990, by the Voyager 1 space probe from a record distance of about 6 billion kilometers (3.7 billion miles, 40.5 AU), as part of that day's Family Portrait series of images of the Solar System.
In the photograph, Earth's apparent size is less than a pixel; the planet appears as a tiny dot against the vastness of space, among bands of sunlight reflected by the camera.
Voyager 1, which had completed its primary mission and was leaving the Solar System, was commanded by NASA to turn its camera around and take one last photograph of Earth across a great expanse of space, at the request of astronomer and author Carl Sagan. The phrase "Pale Blue Dot" was coined by Sagan in his reflections on the photograph's significance, documented in his 1994 book of the same name."

[snowbimmer]

And yet, thousands, if not millions, of alien spacecraft have been able to find us and visit us.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by snowbimmer

And yet, thousands, if not millions, of alien spacecraft have been able to find us and visit us.

"It's the smell..."

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by snowbimmer

And yet, thousands, if not millions, of alien spacecraft have been able to find us and visit us.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Coolest photo in this entire thread!

To me, it is so humbling to see just how insignificant each one of us is when compared to the Universe. This photo emphasizes that feeling. Sure, each of us is important in our own way, but in the scheme of things, not so much.

It may sound sappy but just I feel lucky to be here.

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Well, I am happy to see that a simple picture managed to generate intelligent replies instead of the constant whining of the lack of T&A on this thread.

Originally Posted by sygazelle

To me, it is so humbling to see just how insignificant each one of us is when compared to the Universe. This photo emphasizes that feeling. Sure, each of us is important in our own way, but in the scheme of things, not so much.

It may sound sappy but just I feel lucky to be here.

Adding some words of wisdom of the late Carl Sagan.

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by Artemis

Adding some words of wisdom of the late Carl Sagan.

Billions and Billions...

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by snowbimmer

And yet, thousands, if not millions, of alien spacecraft have been able to find us and visit us.

True, and yet...according to the distinguished astronomer Avi Loeb, who published a book about it, an alien spacecraft *may* have passed the earth at relatively close distance a couple of years ago. Perhaps a craft that was billions of years old and just accidently passed by. Intriguing book, although I don't know what to think.

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by Llarry

True, and yet...according to the distinguished astronomer Avi Loeb, who published a book about it, an alien spacecraft *may* have passed the earth at relatively close distance a couple of years ago. Perhaps a craft that was billions of years old and just accidently passed by. Intriguing book, although I don't know what to think.

I’m going to be passing through Roswell in a couple weeks. I’ll try to find out if they know anything there.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by Artemis

Amazing video to help us fathom the enormity of it all. And here we are like a flea floating down the river on his back with a hard on yelling raise the draw bridge!

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by sygazelle

Amazing video to help us fathom the enormity of it all. And here we are like a flea floating down the river on his back with a hard on yelling raise the draw bridge!

Earth versus the sun:

[M_Six]

And the sun isn't all that big of a star, as stars go. More of a B-Lister.

[kscarrol]

B-lister?

[M_Six]

The small black dot you see below and to the right of center in this image is Mercury transiting the face of the sun. Now that's how to make a planet feel insignificant.


Mercury Solar Transit by Mark Johnson, on Flickr

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by kscarrol

B-lister?

Ok, maybe D-List.

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by kscarrol

B-lister?

Depending on which site, Antares and Betelgeuse switch places in the size category. But they are not the biggest.

[Admiral]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Depending on which site, Antares and Betelgeuse switch places in the size category. But they are not the biggest.


Attachment 3156917

Personally, I think it's a load of balls