Sign from the Heavens

I was one of the lucky few to have witnessed the star explosion (gamma ray burst) last week, while soaking in my hot tub. Read up on the event here.

So, I thought I'd share some thoughts.

In short, simply awesome. At one moment, I was peering at just a bunch of stars, the next, I'm staring at the brightest object in the night sky (under the moon of course). The event was over as quickly as it started, what was a bright spot in the sky, quickly faded away to nothing. Just another black spot in the sky.

Ideas raced through my mind: Space station exploded? Nah, no trailing marks. Mark of Jesus born again? Nah, I'm just too educated for that. Marking of the passing of Arthur Clarke? Cool, but no. Star must have exploded? Nah, chances are too slim. Imagination? That had to be it. Thank goodness for the internet, the truth is never too far away (okay, that's debatable).

What's interesting is how human kind once (and some still do) believe celestial events were signs of God(s). The harsh reality, in this case, when that sun exploded, it wiped out entire solar systems, killing who knows what, perhaps even intelligent life. I guess that would be the "pissed off" Old Testament God.

BTW, the distance of 7.5light years is about 1e23 miles.