the Bigness of...(ignore )

I was trying to explain how far things are in the galaxy when I got thumped again.
I get a empty pit feeling but its also a joyful one.
Im almost giddy when I think about the numbers.

The only time I believe in god is when I look at the stars.
But not cause they look pretty etc ---- But because of how old they are.

(

I had one of those mornings where I left the TV on all night and was awoken by a good looking blonde TV evangelist. She was stating something like there has to be 7 criteria for a planet to develop and sustain life - such as having the right kind of sun and other geophysical, geochemical, etc. properties. She then proceeded to say, if I remember correctly in my morning daze, that there is one in 52 billion chance of meeting all the requirements so with that, there is only one god and he created only us.

I guess she doesn't realize that there are about 400 billion stars in the milky way alone and an estimated 5% of stars in the Milky Way fall in the galactic habitable zone. Outside that, there are millions upon millions of other galaxies as well - many of which qualify as habitable stellar systems

The closest star to our own is Proxima Centauri which is 4.2LY away. So traveling at the speed of light (approx. 186K miles per second) it would take 4.2 years to get there! That's a long way! :thinking:

To end this oddly and badly titled thread .
My mistake entirely

It takes 8 minutes for light to reach us from the sun .
Our Sun --- a normal star.
8 minutes away
One of the stars that is the part of of the Big Dipper is 84 million light light years away.

Thats 84 million years

No insult meant to those who think otherwise but those numbers give me hope


Imagine

I'll more concretely believe in God or higher powers when the answer can be had for does the universe end and if so what is after it? Meanwhile I'm just in awe as well and try to accept what I don't understand.

Perhaps if they stop using religion as a tool to control the masses through guilt and shame, more will believe. For me, I need tangible evidence. The bible or TV evangelista aren't it - especially when they make stupid, uneducated statements.

Most, if not all, have found themselves in a place that showed the huge contrast between ourselves and interests, and the "bigness" of all else. The feeling is awesome, and would be a great thing to discuss. Unfortunately, is is becoming a discussion of religion, and has fallen victim to the zeal and evangelizing accompanied by such discussion.

The thread is closed.