Of the roughly 117 billion people who have ever lived on this planet, we are the first to glimpse this far into space. Just think about that.

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI

Of the roughly 117 billion people who have ever lived on this planet, we are the first to glimpse this far into space. Just think about that.

Throughout my career, I’ve also found the perspective of Earth and our solar system incredibly grounding. No matter your success, setbacks, challenges, or opportunities at any given moment, there is so much left to discover surrounding us.

So as we continue to receive more extraordinary images like these over the coming years, I encourage you (if you’d like) to take a grander perspective. What else might we find? What will our descendants see that we can’t even imagine today while sitting at our desks, driving in our cars, or dealing with everyday life. Just two hundred years ago, it was impossible to humans to fly like birds (airplanes,) walk on the moon (space flight,) speak to billions at once (TV, Youtube, social media,) or hold all the knowledge of the world in your pocket (internet, smartphones.)

The future is looking exciting—new places to discover.

Get the full resolution images here: First Images from the James Webb Space Telescope