Life on Other Planets

When we think of our friend moving to a different state or country, we feel as if they're on the other side of the universe. 

When children are in a hurry to grow up and feel like it's taking them centuries to make it to twenty-one or when we're sometimes forced to read history from 200 years back but don't understand why it's relevant because it all happened "forever ago" are the times when we've got it all wrong.

I introduce you to the Universe-- where infinity of time and distance calls its home. (If you think Earth is big, you're in for a wild ride!)

Let's start with the sun, a star. Our star. Our planet's source of heat. One million, three hundred thousand (that is, 1,300,000) Earths can fit inside the sun. That is a LOT of Earths! 

But the sun is microscopic compared to the larger picture of the universe.

Here is an example of how small the Sun is compared to the star Arcturus:

Besides the sun, the next nearest star, Proxima Centauri, is 4.37 light years from us. If you're unfamiliar with light years, I'll make it easy for you and skip the math. 1 light year is equivalent to 5,880,000,000,000 miles. Or 5.88 trillion miles. (Source: Light Year in Miles). So, multiply that number by 4.37 and we have the amount of miles away our star neighbor actually is. 

If the fastest space shuttle travels at a speed of 35,000 miles per hour (that's FAST), it would still take 81,000 years to reach the nearest star. EIGHTY-ONE THOUSAND YEARS. And that is nearest star.

Alas, there are even farther stars away, that are actually billions of light years away- much more than just 4.37. Your friend may be a thousand miles away, but it's truly as if he or she is right next door compared to the Universe around you.

Check out this video by Buzzfeed that gives a great visual image of just how small we really are:

With this being said, there are trillions of stars in the sky, each trillions of miles apart from one another, and most with their own planets orbiting around them, just like the Sun. And there are actually people out there who dismiss the idea of life on other planets. As if they know every aspect of the Universe.  

With the discovery of Exoplanets, it is highly likely that other life forms do exist elsewhere in the Universe. "Exoplanets are planets beyond our own solar system. Thousands have been discovered in the past two decades, mostly with NASA's Kepler space telescope. These worlds come in a huge variety of sizes and orbits. Some are gigantic planets hugging close to their parent stars; others are icy, some rocky." (Source:Exoplanets).

The Sun is the perfect distance from Earth to maintain life. Who's to say there isn't another star out there that also is the perfect distance from one of its planets to sustain it's own life. Oh wait, there might be.

This is an Exoplanet called Kepler 186F. It orbits around the dwarf-star Kepler 186.

Life and the world around you is bigger than you think it is. 

There is more out there than just your hometown. Take a trip out of state. Better yet, out of your country. This is the only planet you will ever have the joy of living on. Experience it. Live it. Travel it. Explore it. Take an adventure. It's the only planet we have access to and this is your only life on it. It's the closest you'll ever come to seeing the world. Don't skip out. 

(Unless of course, you're like me and believe that our souls come back after death, take a look at my blog: Past Lives and the Infinite Soul).