3 Videos That Will Shift Your Perspective, Showing Just How Small We Really Are in the Universe

Buck Rogers, Staff Writer
Waking Times

Keeping a sense of perspective in these crazy times is imperative, and as astronomy pushes the envelope, seeking an ever greater understanding of our place in the cosmos, we are sometimes rewarded with fascinating new visual interpretations of our universe that have the power to completely re-write our sense of purpose and possibility. Making the struggles we have here on Earth seem small. The following 3 videos are inspiring examples of how technology can assist in our evolution, and help us to keep stay grounded, by providing us renewed perspectives on life here on Gaia.

1. Laniakea – The Immeasurable Universe

Thanks to the recent work of a team of researchers at the University of Hawaii, we now have an even better of idea of just how tiny our little lives are in the big picture of the universe. In fact, as a new model for mapping the movement of galaxies has revealed, the cluster of galaxies that is home to planet earth may be around 100 times bigger than previously thought.

Setting out to answer the question, “where in the universe is the Milky Way?,” the team of scientists has drawn a compelling new map of the super cluster of galaxies which is our home, in relation to neighboring clusters. Gathering data on the positions and relative movements of over 8000 galaxies, while accounting for the effects of the continuous tug of gravity, they have mapped the cosmic flows, or flight paths of these galaxies, which gives the most comprehensive picture we’ve ever had of how the universe organizes itself.

“Scientists previously placed the Milky Way in the Virgo Supercluster, but under Tully and colleagues’ definition, this region becomes just an appendage of the much larger Laniakea, which is 160 million parsecs (520 million light years) across and contains the mass of 100 million billion Suns.” [Nature]

Calling this newly defined section of the universe, Laniakea, which means ‘Immeasurable Heaven’, the new computer simulations give a mind-opening perspective on how small our solar system truly is in the infinite cosmic web that makes up the universe. Furthermore, the similarities between the designs that emerge in this new 3-dimensional map, and the diagrams of how neural networks within the human brain are organized reinforces the notion, ‘as above, so below,’ giving us visual evidence of the inseparable connections between our outer and inner worlds.

Take a look at this humbling new map of our corner of the universe:

2. Hubble – The Most Important Images Ever Taken

The Hubble space telescope has changed the relationship that human beings have with the heavens above, bringing us images that baffle the mind, showing just how densely and infinitely packed the universe is with other galaxies, solar systems, stars and planets. Some have called the Hubble images the most important photographs ever taken, because they give us a true bit of perspective to the unfathomable size and scope of our universe, while revealing the breath-taking celestial beauty that comprises the heavens.

“Astronomers, 1996, attempted to do something extraordinary. They pointed the Hubble Space Telescope into a part of the sky that seemed utterly empty. A patch devoid of any planets, stars and galaxies. This area was close to the Big Dipper, a very familiar constellation, and the path of sky was no bigger than a grain of sand held out at arm’s length…”

Here is what they found:

3. The Detailed Universe

The Detailed Universe takes you on a simulated journey from nano-meters to billions of light years. Beginning with planet earth, the video zooms out from the planet to reveal the scale of our solar system, our galaxy, then the surrounding galaxies that fill the void we call space. Zooming back into planet earth, the picture of our inter-connectedness becomes clear as the camera dials in on the planet, then furthermore, into to the biological structures that make up life. Beyond DNA lies the atomic structures that resemble the cosmos surrounding the planet, suggesting that an entire universe may ultimately be alive within each electrical charge that makes up the human body.

“The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” ― Carl Sagan, Cosmos

Watch this consciousness expanding video now:

Our exploration of the universe around us is one of the most inspiring endeavors of the human race, and these 3 videos have the power to help us along in our personal and collective evolution.

About the Author

Buck Rogers is the earth bound incarnation of that familiar part of our timeless cosmic selves, the rebel within. He is a surfer of ideals and meditates often on the promise of happiness in a world battered by the angry seas of human thoughtlessness. He is a staff writer for WakingTimes.com.

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