Astronomy: humanity's oldest science

One of the first things mankind surely did was look at the sky. Astronomy is perhaps the oldest science of all, present in all cultures and civilizations, even having its own muse, Urania. These muses provided poetic inspiration for all intellectual activities; the fact that astronomy has its own demonstrates the importance it held for all of humanity for thousands of years! The first geometers of humanity had a practical interest, and the first thing they did was invent the clock to be able to measure time... they did it with the sky, and from there came years, seasons, months, days, and later on minutes, seconds, miles, degrees, etc. Its practicality was marked by subsistence, and they began to measure the Earth, establish measurements of time, and order cycles to be able to sow, harvest, etc., as the stars influenced all terrestrial and climatic phenomena... in the same way that they also influence man, which is why astronomy and astrology were the same science in their origins. In their origins, it is assumed that humanity had plenty of time to observe and relate things to each other; from there, among other things, the constellations emerged. Today, we have lost the ability to interpret the mysteries locked in places like RapaNui, Petra, Stonegenghe, Göbekli Tepe, or the very talayots of Menorca. We have forgotten the contemplation of the greatest spectacle of each day... which is free! And it is not the same to contemplate as it is to see, which is involuntary and only depends on perceiving through the action of light. Nor is it the same as looking and even observing, which already involves raising one's gaze and filling it with consciousness. To contemplate, as the word implies, is to look from the temple... one contemplates life, art, and nature, and it requires time to understand what one is seeing and to let emotion flood us. Do not allow the word, the name, or the label to prevent us from seeing the tree. The beauty of astronomy is coming to understand what one is seeing... when looking at the stars, remembering that the light penetrating our retina left perhaps thousands of years ago, perhaps emitted by a star that no longer exists! That is the impressive thing about astronomical observation. It is a true cure for humility before the great and the magnificent, and a moment of relaxation for our entire being. Astronomy in Menorca has, we could say, just begun, but the potential is enormous, and for those who are encouraged, enjoyment is guaranteed!