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Hawaii Tribune-Herald Sunday, December 24, 2017 39 For over a thousand years, Maunakea was treasured as a beacon to guide fearless seafarers into safe refuge. They were the best astronomers of their age, able to pinpoint their location on a spinning sphere, orbiting a distant sun, using the stars visible at night and connections to the wind, currents and signs of the sea to navigate a vast ocean. Once ashore, Maunakea was revered as a source of water and food needed to sustain thousands of people. Maunakea was a giver of life itself. This majestic mountain was also revered as a portal to Wakea (sky father) and Papahanaumoku who brought forth all things from po, a vast sea of empty darkness. Captured in the Kumulipo or creation story, this genesis of life has always intrigued Mahalo, Maunakea me as an astronomer in the 21st century who has spent most of my life in the graces of Maunakea’s shadow. Today’s astronomy depicts a genesis of all things that started in a Big Bang, which emerged from an infinite vacuum — a vast sea of infinite darkness. This intersection of origins — in what Hawaiians believed for centuries and we have discovered using sophisticated techniques from Maunakea and beyond — is perhaps the intersection of our collective future. Tonight, the most powerful collection of telescopes in the world will harvest ancient light from distant reaches of our universe to answer ancient questions. They are part of an epic quest to unravel the nature and genesis of all matter, energy and life in the realm we call the universe. The tallest mountain on Earth, and the second largest shield volcano in our entire solar system, Maunakea is arguably the best site on our planet for observing the cosmos. Surrounded by a flat ocean surface on all sides for thousands of miles, the placid topography of Maunakea minimizes turbulence in the air that is gently blown up and over its summit, leading to exquisite clarity in our views of distant nebulae and galaxies. From Maunakea, we see our origins reflected in the night sky above. The unique attributes of Maunakea, including some of the darkest skies anywhere and its high altitude, leaving most water vapor far below, make it a treasure for studying the universe, and for studying ourselves. From that vantage point, today’s astronomers have made some of the most startling discoveries in history, including a behemoth black hole lurking in the heart of our Milky Way galaxy, and the existence of the greatest form of energy in the universe — so-called Dark Energy – that pervades all space, including that between the molecules in our bodies. Maunakea is a key to unlocking the mysteries of our existence. It is a sacred and timeless place of peace, reverence, knowledge and guidance. We all ride a wave of life that crests in our time. For the Hawaiians that came before us, and the generations that will follow, Maunakea helps sustain that wave of life. This special section of the Tribune-Herald celebrates some of the many stories of the Maunakea Observatories as they too ride that wave of life. One of those stories is about high school students from Honoka‘a who are among the first teenagers in the world to use the most powerful telescopes in the world to probe their chosen piece of distant space. They are among the first of many ‘opio that, with powerful time machines at their fingertips, will explore ancient space and connect that to modern space. In the near future, young Maunakea Scholars will participate in a fantastic search for nearby terrestrial class planets that, once discovered, they will name for posterity. These may be among the planets that a future generation will send the first interstellar probes, in the search for life beyond the confines of island earth. Think of it: In a century or two, our species may reach out to touch life on a distant world, named by a child in school now, in our midst, in Hawaii. It’s not that far-fetched. The story that began a thousand years ago by brave seafarers who relied upon Maunakea to signal home, continues today as we search for distant islands afloat in space with the goal of improving the lives of future generations. This multi-generation cascade of discoveries is our legacy in Hawaii. When Maunakea was discovered by the first Hawaiians centuries ago, it wasn’t the end of a voyage. It was the beginning of an incredible journey that we are just starting to recognize. — Doug Simons, on behalf of the Maunakea Observatories. From Mauka to Makai We can handle ALL TERRAINS! 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