Tiny Specks of Stardust

A telescope in Russia has been picking up a strong radio signal from star HD164595 that could indicate an extraterrestrial civilization. The signal comes from 94 lightyears away and is so strong that if it were artificially created by aliens, those aliens have capabilities far beyond those of humankind. Hold up and let your mind wander with that for a minute. Whoa… 

I’m going to ruin your alien fantasy now by telling you that what the Russian telescope picked up was probably not some far away civilization. The signal was not corroborated by any other telescopes. However, the star HD164595 will now be studied closely with the hope that astronomers will figure out the cause of the signal. The star has been deemed a good candidate for the SETI program (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence). So, they aren’t ruling out extraterrestrial life; they’re just saying that it’s not super probable. There is still hope! When the stars appear tonight, go outside and yell, “Is anyoneeee out thereeeee?!?!?” 

Thinking about space, the universe, and the possibility of life in another galaxy is mind-blowing. Thinking about ourselves in the context of all this can elicit feelings of fear, fascination, insignificance, bewilderment, etc. We are such tiny specks of stardust in a massive universe. What does that say in terms of our lives? Are we meaningless? Insignificant?  

Let’s put a “glass is half full” spin on this. If we don’t mean anything, we have the freedom to create our own meaning. We weren’t given lifelong roles to fill when we were born by the Gods of the Universe. It’s liberating to feel that nothing really matters in the grand scheme of things. All of the things that constrain you don’t matter. In fact, most of these constraints are probably illusions that you've created yourself. The past and the future don’t matter; they only carry meaning because you have assigned meaning to them. It’s all about perspective. Our insignificance can be depressing or it can be freeing. Let it be freeing. And by the way, if we’re all just tiny specks of stardust, make sure to be a bright and shiny tiny speck of stardust. 

For some perspective, watch these short and fascinating videos on YouTube:

Powers of Ten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0

Cosmic Eye: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfSNxVqprvM