James Webb telescope should lead us to focus on the Long Now
Images of deep time can help us focus better on what matters in the present.
For many years we have gazed in wonder at images from the Hubble Space Telescope, and, with the new James Webb Space Telescope going operational, we should forever show our appreciation to all those scientists, engineers and astronauts responsible for operating and maintaining Hubble.
The first published image from the JWST is of a cluster of galaxies in the southern hemisphere in the constellation of Volans - the flying fish. It is the deepest view of the universe to date.
The main cluster you can see above is only 4.6 billion light years distant, but notice the arcs of light around the central portion of the image. These are galaxies much further away, with their light magnified and smeared by gravitational lensing: the bending of light by massive objects in the foreground. The furthest objects you see in the image above are around 13.5 billion years old, shining just a few hundred million years after the universe came into being.
Think on that for a moment. Our place in the cosmos is not insignificant. It is, given that we exist as sentient beings and can appreciate the majesty of the universe, highly profound. There is no theology or other such frippery here, but rather a deep awareness of the whole, and the significance of its parts.
Whatever burdens day-to-day life impose on us, we live in a Long Now.
James Webb telescope should lead us to focus on the Long Now
well said, it is indeed exciting to think we may get to see the origin before we expire as a species!