A Look Inside the Past

Mirrors in space? What would we be able to see?

The universe is vast and mysterious, and the way light travels through it has allowed us to see into the past. The speed of light is a constant, traveling at a rate of 299 792 458 meters per second. When we gaze up at the sky, we are actually peering into the past, seeing objects as they were years, decades, or even centuries ago. For example, when we look at Proxima Centauri B, we see what the exoplanet looked like approximately four years ago, as the light from this celestial body has taken that amount of time to reach us on Earth.

But what if we had a way to see even further into the past? What if there was a huge mirror placed in front of the celestial objects, and we had a powerful enough telescope to see it? The light would have to travel twice the distance, meaning we could see what the Earth looked like years ago! This is exactly what this interactive product aims to simulate, by offering the opportunity to view historical events through eyepieces that imitate those of a telescope.

Laser cut the names of celestial bodies onto the wood with a machine and attaching the eyepieces

The video accompanying this interactive product shows the images you would see when you look through the eyepieces. It displays the historical events that would be reflected in the mirrors placed in front of the celestial objects. For instance, if you look to the mirror on Kepler-186f, you would witness the attack of the Vikings on Anglo-Saxon villagers. Meanwhile, the mirror on 3C 273 would reveal the birth of our very own planet, Earth!

The wooden pieces of the product are made to fit on my laptop, so the video will play on the screen behind the eyepieces.

In conclusion, the universe offers a glimpse into the past, and this interactive product allows you to witness historical events as if you were looking back in time.