Scientists set out to find the darkest point in our sky. If, in between all those billions of stars, they could find a place in the sky that looked completely black, what would be there? They wanted to know if anything was in that dark corner of the sky. Would there be more stars? Would there be simply darkness? Blank nothingness? Our universe is expanding, and the nothingness that it is expanding into might appear in our sky. Could that darkness be seen from Earth? Scientists wanted to know.
After lots of research and scanning the skies, a single point was found in our sky that had no stars in it. This point is so small, that if a grain of sand were held up into the night sky at arms length, the grain of sand you held would cover this point in the sky. Said another way, the angle of view in the picture was narrower than how the width of a dime would appear, 75 feet away. That’s a small point of space in our sky.
Hubble was aimed at these coordinates and several timed exposures were made. Later, these pictures would be stitched together to form a full picture that we could see. The scientific community held it’s breath. Would would come back in the picture? Stars? Darkness? Another planet, perhaps? The photo was blown up to a wall size and placed behind a curtain. The picture behind the curtain, when revealed in the press conference, would blow away everyone in the room. It changed the way we humans look at the heavens. The revealing of this photo made our world infinitely more grand. The scientific community was shocked. The year was 1995, and you may remember it.
Here is the picture of the darkest point in our sky, the Hubble Deep Field (HDF):
There are no less than 1500 galaxies in this photo — not stars, but galaxies. There may be as many as 1800 galaxies visible. All behind a grain of sand held at arm’s length!
To help put this in perspective, here are some tidbits you’ll want to know:
The average galaxy has 100 billion stars.
Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. So in one second, light will be 186,000 miles away from where it started, or seven and a half trips around the Earth. That’s fast.
Our average sized Milky Way galaxy is 100,000 light-years across. Light, traveling 186,000 miles per second, takes 100,000 years to simply cross our Milky Way.
The Milky Way is 16,000 light years thick at its center and 3,000 light years thick at its outer edges.
The next closest star system to our Sun ( a group of four stars, called Alpha Centauri) is four and a half light years away from us.
The next closest galaxy to us is Andromeda, which is 2.5 million light years away.
Our local group, or the set of the closest galaxies to us, are spread out over 10 million light years across. That is just several galaxies.
Now go back to that picture of the HDF and think about the stars and distances involved. It is mind boggling and beyond comprehension.
. . . And yet. Like Pastor David Dykes has reminded his audience, Isaiah 40:12 says: The Lord has measured the width of the Universe with the span of His hand. Is there something you are struggling with today? Are you concerned about a decision you have to make? A situation that you think is impossible? Just remember that the same God who made the huge vastness of space and calls each star by name, is there for you, right now, this very second.
Laura and I are facing some unknowns in our life as we ready ourselves for a new job, and a trip halfway around the world in Hong Kong. Five airlines have gone under this past week, one, a competitor to Cathay Pacific: Oasis Airlines, based in Hong Kong. The airline industry is not the safest bet when it comes to having a steady job. The only way to live life with any certainty, is to look to Him for guidance and strength. We have to remember that the God of the Universe is also the God over tearful pillows, lost jobs, ruined dreams, and impossible odds. The same hand that marks off the heavens also holds our hand as we go through difficulties and holds us close to His heart. The One who created all we see, cares even for us!
When you look up at the stars tonight, and you ponder the vastness of space, think of the one who put it all together and be thankful that in all the universe, He cares so much for little old us.

As a side note, the Hubble deep field has been outdone. In 2004, the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) was introduced. It is an even deeper view of space, seeing objects over 13 billion light years away. The size of the HUDF covers one thirteen-millionth of the total area of the night sky. In it, are pictured over 10,000 galaxies! Simply amazing. It is pictured below and you can click on it for better detail.
