​

Something we are aware of, something that exists, but something we are not able to identify … When I first heard of this sentence, the thing that instantly came to my mind was space. Space is the biggest known unknown humanity has ever faced. 

​

Starting from a very young age, schools teach children about space, in particular the place where our planet is located in the solar system. I am sure that we have all learned about the stars, our galaxy, the order of planets in the solar system over the years. In my years of learning about science, I have always thought that we lived in a universe consisting only of different galaxies. Little did I know that space was much more than what I was told, or even what is known...

​

Behind the face of the universe we know, there is a whole new part waiting to be discovered. At this point, the latest research states that only 4% of the universe has been discovered yet. This 4% contains the planets, galaxies, stars, astronomers we hear about regularly.

​

We, as humans, are used to leading everything and (perhaps) pretending to know what is what. Society chooses to disregard the fact that 96% percent of the universe that we belong to has not been discovered yet. The majority of human beings continue their life only regarding their close surroundings, not understanding that they are only a small part of a much larger whole.

​

The mysterious enormity of the universe relates to the importance of our existence. The more I think about how big and mysterious the universe is, the smaller I feel. We think that every score we get on a test, every mistake we make is going to affect our lives forever. What would happen if it does have an effect? There are 7 billion people— including you and I— on a planet that is not even the biggest one of its galaxy. When you think of the whole universe— the part we know only the 4% of the whole thing— you see how little the decisions you make in life are. 

​

This lack of knowledge we have of 96% of the universe, may sometimes makes us scared and apprehensive, but it can also be a source of relief. In a universe so big that only 4% of it is discovered, how much do we matter? How big of an impact does one bad action of ours have on the universe? At times when I feel disappointed and insecure about myself, I remind myself of the mind-blowing mystery and enormity of space. We live in a universe that is too big to be discovered; your one mistake will not be the end of the world. That is the fascination of space.

​

I believe that space is a magical subject— truly worth exploration via discussion and something that should be written about extensively. Space is something you can’t get tired of; there is always more being discovered and ideas about space are always changing. Thinking about space is a way to find motivation during low times and provides a short kick of adrenaline all through life due to its mystery. Although we know that another 96% of the universe is yet to be discovered, the content of it is unknown to us. Let's see how long it will take for us to stop calling space an “unknown known”.