I’m not sure if it was Star Wars or E.T. that started it but ever since childhood I have been fascinated with the sky. There’s just something about the moon and all those stars against the black canvas of space that blows my mind and propels me toward wonder. I just can’t get my mind around the universe. And maybe that’s the way that it’s supposed to be.
One of the random numbers that has stuck with me since elementary school is 93,000,000. I remember this number because it’s how far the sun is from the earth. I’m good with random numbers like this. For example, in 1961, Al Kaline batted .324. I know this from a baseball game I played as a kid.
HERE COMES THE SUN
Recently, my nerdery got the better of me and I decided to explore how long it would take to travel to the sun. What I discovered ruined science fiction for me. Apparently, NASA’s New Horizons space craft is the fastest moving space craft around. It’s capable of 37,282 mph. Traveling at that speed, you could cover 894,768 miles in a day and therefore reach the sun in 104 days. And yes I know that NASA would never use mph but I haven’t figured out this whole metric thing yet so just calm down.
First off, 37,282 mph is stupid fast and I would love to try it out. Although, based on my experience of riding along in my dad’s drag racers as a kid, I’d probably throw up. Also, 104 days in a tiny exploration craft that technically isn’t built for humans would be an incredibly constrictive and boring. In fact, I’m not exactly sure how a person could keep their sanity that long—especially without Wi-Fi.
GINORMOUS NUMBERS
Then I got to thinking about the immensity of the universe. Returning to my nerdery, I wondered how long it would take to travel to the next closest star. As it turns out, the next closest star to the earth is Alpha Centauri. Well, technically speaking, Alpha Centauri looks like a star from earth but is actually 3 stars. Anyway, flying aboard the speedy New Horizons, it would take a staggering 78,000 years to get to Alpha Centauri. That’s a whole lot of “Daddy, are we there yet?”
If that doesn’t blow your mind I don’t know what will. How is it possible that the universe is that big and what does that mean?
I’m sorry if this hurts your head but there are approximately (because I haven’t visited all of them) 400 billion stars in our little galaxy alone. I say “little” because some giant galaxies contain trillions of stars. And how many, the little nerd inside of me asks, galaxies are there in the universe? Of course, no one can answer that concretely because of our limited viewpoint but the answer is in the neighborhood of 170 billion. In short, the universe is absurdly ginormous and we can’t answer any question of size accurately because we simply can’t see that far. Perhaps it is endless.
WORSHIP
For me, all of this points back to God. I just can’t figure the universe without a designer. Someone must have started the explosion. Particles and gases existing all on their own doesn’t make sense to me.
When I think of the immensity of the universe and that according to the book of Genesis God created it all with merely His voice I am in awe. It blows my mind. I can’t get my mind around the fact that a creator this powerful, immense and scary actually knows my name and cares about me.
What exactly is the purpose of the universe? Is it simply God’s canvas? Is it a beacon? Perhaps it is one of the ways God is signaling us, letting us know how incredibly powerful and creative he is. Maybe he’s trying to get our attention with every sunset and shooting star?
Many people believe the universe is random. I believe it is designed to wow—to draw us back into relationship with Him.
