Look at the stars, see how they shine…? Well…

There is something comforting/disconcerting [del. as applic.] about looking up at the stars and planets in the night sky, the wonder of the crescent moon, the Milky Way, the firmament…the vastness of all that eternity out there. And, as I’ve mentioned before, there’s a great Peter Cook quote where he says the view when he looks up just makes him realise how insignificant they all are! But, of course, they’re not insignificant to stargazers and astronomers. However, those in the know realise that much of what we consider a fixed feature of the night sky is not in the slightest but permanent. The stars seem to stay put. Jupiter (Zeus Pater etymologically, who knew?) is reliably jovial, with his Giant Red Spot. Saturn is inevitably saturnine with her magnificent rings. The Plough points dutifully towards the Pole Star, and every so often the Moon blocks out the Sun completely. None of this is permanent. Everything is moving, changing, decaying. We just happen to live at a time when a…