Rømer’s Diagram
Observation is always delayed. The present is never accessed directly.
Visual Provenance
A simple geometric proof that changed our understanding of reality, showing Earth's orbit relative to Jupiter's eclipses.
The Hesitation of Light
Before Rømer, Descartes and others believed light was instantaneous. Rømer's diagram proved otherwise. By tracking the timing of Io's disappearance behind Jupiter, he showed that light took about 22 minutes to cross the diameter of Earth's orbit (a figure later refined). This 'hesitation of light' meant that the universe was not a single, simultaneous 'now', but a patchwork of delayed signals.
The Ghost of the Past
Rømer's discovery unmoored us from the present. If we look at the Sun, we see it as it was 8 minutes ago. If we look at a distant galaxy, we see it as it was millions of years ago. We are trapped in a bubble of causality, forever cut off from the absolute present of the wider universe. Observation is archaeology.
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Data Source: The Human Archives
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