The Star Of The Morrow
Today NASA announced record-breaking news: Hubble Space Telescope spotted the farthest individual star ever seen to date, named Earendel, which means “Morning Star” in old English. Besides sounding like a LOTR reference, Earendel existed in the first billion years after the Big Bang. Just wow. Can you imagine what the universe looked like when it was a baby and taking its first baby steps? Studying Earendel will provide insights into the early universe – the soon-to-be functional James Webb Space Telescope will be key to unlocking this.
In the history of humanity, stars and astronomical events have served as signs of light and hope. Reminders of our place in the big cosmic picture. Humans have looked up to the heavens for guidance and comfort from their gods. Also for inspiration and imagination. Such events and symbolism shaped the course of human history, made way for compassion and kindness, and gave rise to belief systems and religions. From the Star of David to the Star of Bethlehem to the Black Stone to many other examples of astronomical events and symbolism in ancient cultures and history. Literally, all of the above has steered the human narrative forward (and backward). Now our human story is transcending beyond all that came before due to modern science, awe, and our curiosity to discover, know, and understand the cosmos and our place within it. We are at a cosmic inflection point.
With all that is happening right now in the world, perhaps the cosmos will give us another sign of light and hope. Perhaps Earendel, our Morning Star, will set in motion a path forward. I like to imagine that once upon a spacetime, some Earendel was a Sun to worlds that went through what we are going through today. That they looked up for light and hope, planting their seeds for action. In the end, we are how we began in the universe…stardust. Maybe to overcome and move forward to a peaceful world, we must first become our own morning stars on Earth. We must first become the givers of light and hope. We must first take baby steps, plant the seeds for action, and make the world grow into the world we want to live in…today and tomorrow.
