Mliječna staza iznad Glacier Pointa

Yosemite je imao najtamnije nebo koje su većina američkih posjetitelja ikada vidjela. Polly je to čula od Tomasa. Odlučila je saznati više.

Yosemite had the darkest sky most American visitors ever saw. Polly had heard that from Tomas. She decided to find out.

Čekala je kasno poslijepodne na Glacier Pointu, vidikovcu na rubu litice 970 metara iznad dna doline. Mala gomila okupila se zbog zalaska sunca. Donijeli su deke, termosice i sklopive stolice. Polly se smjestila na ogradu na stražnjem dijelu vidikovca, gdje je gužva bila rjeđa. Većina ljudi imala je fotoaparate. Većina ih je gledala prema zapadu.

She waited out the late afternoon at Glacier Point, the cliff-edge overlook 970 metres above the valley floor. A small crowd had gathered for the sunset. They had brought blankets and Thermoses and folding chairs. Polly perched on the railing at the back of the overlook, where the crowd thinned. Most of the people had cameras. Most of them were facing west.

Sunce je zašlo iza grebena Sierre. Dolina se ispunila sjenom. Half Dome, s druge strane, uhvatio je posljednju crvenu svjetlost na svom visokom zakrivljenom licu i zadržao je. Dvadeset sekundi. Zatim je i crvena nestala. Gomila je blago zapljeskala, kao da je planina učinila nešto pristojno.

The sun went down behind the Sierra ridge. The valley filled with shadow. Half Dome, across the way, caught the last red light on its high curved face and held it. Twenty seconds. Then the red was gone too. The crowd applauded gently, as if the mountain had done something polite.

Astronom iz parka u smeđem prsluku postavio je mali teleskop na rubu vidikovca. Održao je kratko predavanje dok je nebo postajalo tamnije. O svjetlosnom onečišćenju. O tome kako su većina američkih gradova izgubila Mliječnu stazu zbog ulične rasvjete. O tome kako, u Yosemiteu, na vedroj noći bez mjeseca, još uvijek možete vidjeti ono što su ljudi na ovoj širini vidjeli kroz cijelu povijest čovječanstva.

A park astronomer in a brown vest had set up a small telescope at the edge of the overlook. He gave a short talk while the sky grew darker. About light pollution. About how most American cities had lost the Milky Way to streetlights. About how, in Yosemite, on a clear moonless night, you could still see what humans had seen at this latitude for the entire history of being human.

Polly je slušala. Također je promatrala nebo.

Polly listened. She also watched the sky.

Prve zvijezde pojavile su se jedna po jedna. Vega. Arcturus. Zatim su se popunile konstelacije. Do potpune tame, Mliječna staza bila je pojas blijede svjetlosti koji se protezao od horizonta do horizonta, prekinut tamnim oblacima prašine gdje su se tek rađale zvijezde.

The first stars came out one at a time. Vega. Arcturus. Then the constellations filled in. By full dark, the Milky Way was a band of pale light running from horizon to horizon, broken by dark dust clouds where stars were just being born.

Astronom je rekao da se ti oblaci prašine zapravo zovu tamne maglice. To su područja međuzvjezdane prašine dovoljno gusta da blokiraju svjetlost zvijezda iza njih. Onaj poznati koji se proteže duž kralježnice Mliječne staze zove se Velika pukotina. Polly ju je sada jasno vidjela, tamna rijeka koja teče kroz blijedo polje.

The astronomer said the dust clouds were actually called dark nebulae. They were patches of interstellar dust thick enough to block the light from the stars behind them. The famous one that ran along the spine of the Milky Way was the Great Rift. Polly could see it now, clearly, a dark river running through a pale field.

Posjetitelj se postrojio da pogleda kroz teleskop. Astronom ga je usmjerio prema maloj mrlji blizu konstelacije Strijelca. "Ovo," rekao je, "je središte naše galaksije. Supermasivna crna rupa u njenom srcu udaljena je dvadeset i šest tisuća svjetlosnih godina." Polly je preskočila duž ograde do mjesta gdje je mogla vidjeti okular teleskopa. Astronom ju je primijetio. Čekao je dok se posjetitelj nije odmaknuo, a zatim je malo nagnuo teleskop kako bi ona mogla vidjeti unutra.

A visitor lined up to look through the telescope. The astronomer pointed it at a small smudge near the constellation Sagittarius. "This," he said, "is the centre of our galaxy. The supermassive black hole at its heart is twenty-six thousand light years away." Polly hopped along the railing to where she could see the telescope eyepiece. The astronomer noticed her. He waited until the visitor stepped back, then he tilted the telescope slightly so she could see in.

Kroz okular, mali gusti skup zvijezda i prašine. Astronom to nije dalje objašnjavao. Nije ni trebao. Polly je dugo gledala. Prije dvadeset i šest tisuća godina, svjetlost koja je napustila taj skup započela je svoje putovanje prema ovom teleskopu. Polly je bila živa da je primi. Astronom također. I posjetitelj. To joj se činilo kao nešto o čemu bi trebalo šutjeti.

Through the eyepiece, a small dense cluster of stars and dust. The astronomer did not explain it further. He did not need to. Polly looked for a long time. Twenty-six thousand years ago, the light leaving that cluster started its trip toward this telescope. Polly was alive to receive it. The astronomer was. The visitor was. It struck her as the kind of thing you should be quiet about.

Kad je podigla pogled s okulara, Mliječna staza je još uvijek bila tamo. Blijeda cesta kroz nebo. Razmišljala je o svim milijunima godina koliko je bila tamo prije nego što je itko mogao vidjeti, i o svim milijunima godina koliko će još biti tamo nakon.

When she looked up from the eyepiece, the Milky Way was still there. A pale road through the sky. She thought about all the millions of years it had been there before there was anyone to see it, and all the millions of years it would still be there after.

Astronom je već pakirao teleskop. Kimnuo joj je. Ona je nagnula glavu unatrag. On se nasmiješio i nastavio s pakiranjem.

The astronomer was already packing up the telescope. He nodded to her. She tilted her head back. He smiled, and went on packing.