2007-03-06 02:45:37 · 7 answers · asked by Alex F 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Because they are so far out (many light years away), by the time the light they emit gets to our eyes, years and years have passed. So in that time, they could have possibly burnt out.
2007-03-06 02:50:23 · answer #1 · answered by eriq p 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The velocity of light is still a stump in Physics due to the two postulates of Relativity. Perhaps Relativity theory may be just an aproximation in local space.
That means that light from far away stars could be travelliing trillions of time faster from theri source and slows down to the velocity that we measure on earth.
So the existance time of stars may just be relative.and so would the burning out time of the stars.
I find difficult to believe that our Creator of the Universe has given us all the stars in the Universe so we can observe something that does not exist anymore.
The present concensus in physiscs is like saying there used to be a Universe but has burned up and what we see is signal which have taken billions of years to travel.So the Universe does not exist anymore.(this appears as an absurdity).
It is more feasible to believe that "what you see is what you get"
In other words =its real.
2007-03-06 11:11:21 · answer #2 · answered by goring 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Enough light coming from them and there is no proof that they have already burnt up.
Some though, have been witnessed as exploding, those have changed greatly since then, but we do not see that, we see them according to how far away they are, and therefore, how far back in time the event actually occurred.
2007-03-06 10:51:51 · answer #3 · answered by occluderx 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most stars are hundreds of millions of light years away. a light year is how the distance that light travels in one Earth year. so if a star is 200 million light years away the light from that star takes 200 million years to reach Earth which is longer than the lifespan of most stars.
We don't actually see the supernova until 200 million years after it actually happened.
2007-03-06 16:18:43 · answer #4 · answered by Belru Tytor 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Light travels at a specific speed. Once it leaves the star it takes time for it to reach us. Even if the source of that light goes out the original beam is still traveling.
2007-03-06 10:54:03 · answer #5 · answered by Larry 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It has to do with the distance an object is and the speed of light. Many pictures we see of far away planets are actually what they looked like long ago, because the light that has refelcted off the planet is just reaching us now. Remember we don't see objects we see light bouncing off of objects.
2007-03-06 10:51:47 · answer #6 · answered by foxhound34 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It comes from the sun's reflection and what makes them twinkle is the water off the earth's surface.
2007-03-06 10:59:03 · answer #7 · answered by ibithedust 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋