Science sent the Hubble telescope out into space, so it could

"Science sent the Hubble telescope out into space, so it could capture light and the absence thereof, from the very beginning of time. And the telescope really did that. So now we know that there was once absolutely nothing, such a perfect nothing that there wasn't even nothing or once." These words of Kurt Vonnegut speak with the voice of wonder and the weight of revelation. In them, Vonnegut takes us on a journey to the edge of the universe and the edge of human understanding, where the boundaries of time and space dissolve into nothingness. His words are not mere observations; they are a meditation on the vastness of existence, on the unfathomable mystery of what came before, and on the startling knowledge that the very fabric of the universe was born from nothing—a perfect nothing so complete that there was no time to measure, no space to contain it.

In the ancient world, philosophers and scientists alike sought to understand the origins of the world, the beginnings of existence. The Greeks spoke of the void—chaos—from which the universe was born, a formless expanse that contained all potential but was itself empty. Plato, with his deep contemplations on the nature of reality, believed that from this void emerged the first forms, the first principles of existence. And so, the ancient thinkers also grappled with the idea of nothingness, though they could only imagine it. They did not have the means to gaze into the depths of space as we do now. They did not have the power to send a telescope beyond the veil of the visible world, to witness the birth of time itself. Yet, Vonnegut’s words remind us that through the power of science, we have indeed done this—we have gazed into the very beginning of all things, and we have touched the edge of nothingness.

Think of the Hubble Space Telescope, that marvel of human ingenuity, sent to the depths of space to capture the light from distant stars, galaxies, and nebulae—light that has traveled across millions of years, telling the story of the universe’s birth and evolution. Through this magnificent instrument, we have not only seen the stars in their prime, but we have glimpsed their beginnings—the very first moments of creation. The Hubble has revealed the light from the first galaxies, and in doing so, it has shown us the very edge of time itself. This, Vonnegut tells us, is where we discover something strange: that before there was anything, there was nothing—not even a concept of nothing or time itself. This is a realization that shatters the limits of our understanding, for how can we comprehend a time before time? How can we fathom the absence of existence?

This knowledge, though profound, also evokes a deep and humbling mystery. How is it that something as perfectly void as nothing could give birth to everything we know and experience? How could the entire universe—everything from the smallest atom to the farthest galaxy—arise from a state so absolute that even the concepts of space and time did not exist? In the ancient myths, the gods were often born from chaos, but this chaos was something we could grasp—it was a chaotic force that could give shape to the world. But Vonnegut’s words suggest a different origin: not from chaos, not from disorder, but from perfect emptiness, from a nothingness that defies the limits of our imagination. The science of the Hubble telescope, in capturing the light from the dawn of the universe, tells us that we are, in a sense, looking back at the very moment when creation began—not as an act of will or force, but as the unfolding of what was once unimaginable.

And yet, in this vast revelation, we find both awe and humility. For while we may have uncovered the deepest truths about the universe, we are still left with a mystery that is beyond our grasp. Science, through the lens of the Hubble telescope and other tools, has shown us the birth of the universe, the origins of time, space, and matter. But in the face of such nothingness, we are reminded of the limits of human understanding. The universe is vast, beyond our full comprehension. The truth of our origins, like the infinite expanse of the stars, is something we can approach but never fully possess. This is the paradox of human existence—we can seek to understand the universe, but we are forever constrained by our own limited perspective.

Vonnegut’s words speak to the human spirit: we are driven by an insatiable curiosity, an urge to reach beyond what we know and touch the unknown. In our quest to understand the universe, we find ourselves not only discovering the world around us, but also uncovering something deeper about ourselves. Science teaches us that our existence is part of a much larger story—one that begins in the void, in the nothingness that precedes everything. But even in this nothingness, we find the seeds of wonder and truth. For in understanding the origins of the universe, we are drawn closer to understanding the nature of life itself, the mysteries of existence, and the potential of the human spirit.

The lesson Vonnegut offers us is one of humility and awe. As we stand on the threshold of discovery, we must remember that while science has brought us closer to understanding the origin of all things, there is always more to explore. The Hubble telescope has revealed the light from the beginning of time, but that light only illuminates the vast darkness of the unknown. Let us continue our pursuit of knowledge, not with arrogance or certainty, but with the humility to recognize that there is always more to discover. And in the process, we are reminded that nothingness itself is a part of the journey, for from the deepest void comes the potential for everything.