Starship Asterisk*

I truly appreciate everyone's kind comments. Most were both informative and interesting and I think I can say I've actually learned something about space and optics and should be able to look at these incredible APODs with a new perspective.

A diagram would be good. I do better with visuals and I also understand the fractal analogy, thanks. I guess I was mistakenly thinking that a light image (the reflection of an object) traveling through great distance in space, would somehow stretch out almost from its origin to it's final destinatio...

Sorry Makc, I was only trying to make reference to time. Thanks for your explanations. I now believe my entire premise is probably wrong. I will go back to the books.

Well, that's a good explanation makc. Thanks! Now I can mark a big red "X" through my faulty hypothesis. However, your answer has prompted another question in my mind: If the light from the Helix Nebula took 7 hundred light years to reach us, what did that point in space look like, say 8 l...

Thank you both for your responses and observations and it has helped me to grasp a slightly better understanding of these things but I'm afraid I'm still hopelessly befuddled and I haven't even had a drink. :? When I think about it, I’m not sure we can ever see or realize anything in absolute real t...

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070803.html Hello all, I'm new to this forum and also fairly un-enlightened when it comes to matters of time and space so I'm easily puzzled by the vastness of our universe and the tools we use to explore it. A couple of questions if I may: I've referenced the Heli...