TIL my dad's old telescope story changed how I look at the night sky

We were in his backyard in Tucson, trying to spot Jupiter with his cheap department store scope. He pointed at a faint dot and said, 'That light left there before I was born.' It hit me that every star photo I see online is a message from the past. Anyone else have a moment like that, where space just felt different?

3 comments

3 Comments

hannah4001mo ago

Ever think about how that old light is still reaching new people? Your bus stop story made me picture someone a hundred years from now seeing the same stars we do, but in a totally different world. It's like the sky is the one thing that connects all our short little lives.

kelly.hannah1mo ago

Read a book once that called starlight a message from the past.

seth_singh201mo ago

Your dad's story is exactly it. I get that same feeling sometimes when I'm just waiting for a bus at night. You look up and realize the light from that streetlamp hits your eyes instantly, but the light from even the closest star is older than your grandparents. It makes all the daily stuff feel small. My microwave feels pretty new, but it's heating food with light that's newer than the starlight hitting my roof.