How Big Is This Universe?

Hi,

It's been a manic month. What with starting several new sites about capital and internet marketing I haven't had time to scratch myself. I am also pleased to report that I am now an official runner in the London Marathon in April 2007. Look out for runner number 41750, that's me! I'm running for Mencap, the homeless and a school in Ghana.

Just prior to Christmas I got up to 9 mile in one hit but then I pulled a calf muscle. I've had a couple of try outs since then but without success. I'm now resting it and will have another short run tomorrow, so wish me luck. I really miss it. Sadly, my no alcohol campaign also hit the rocks over the Christmas period but I am now (nearly :o) back on track. To be honest, I think I need the discipline of running to replace it so it will be easier when the muscle heals.

Now, let's get to today's big question: Just how big is this Universe? I'm reading a couple of books on the subject at the moment and I'm absolutely astounded at the size of all that surrounds us. Whenever they talk about light years (the distance light travels in one of our years at the speed of light, which just happens to be exactly 299,792,458 metres per second or 670,616,629.384 miles per hour) I start to lose focus and my eyes start to glaze over.

So, enough to say that a light year is a long way, a very long way indeed. But it's when they start talking about this place being so many MILLION light years away, I then start to lose perspective. Blimey! How far? For example, the closest spiral galaxy to our own, Andromeda is 2.5 million light-years from Earth. So the way I understand it, I've got to sit in a spaceship, if it were possible, that travels at 670.6 million miles per hour, for around 2.5 million years and I can then get a postcard to say that I've visited the CLOSEST spiral galaxy. Blimey! Double blimey! I have also recently read that several leading physicists reckon that there may be TRILLIONS of Universes!! I'm sorry, I'm going to have to lie down, my brain has just exploded.

Final thought for today, if you are right at this moment worried about something. Try putting that problem or worry into the perspective of the Universe. It probably won't seem so big after all....wishing you a life free of worry and problems.....all the very best, Allen