A Cosmic Genealogy

A Cosmic Genealogy expresses how one’s lineage can be traced back to the macrocosm of the Big Bang by exploring my origin within the microcosm of my familial lineage. It is impossible to quantify the expanse of the universe; we are only capable of maneuvering through infinitesimal fractions of space. Similarly, tracing one’s lineage back to a definite point of origin is impossible to grasp, but one investigates and charts their lineage one branch at a time.

To begin to quantify the expanse of the universe, I use a system of planetary classifications found in science and space exploration, to create a system of classifying and organizing the individual members of my extended family. Organizing this particular section of my space, I based my numerical classification on what I have termed, E-Class Planets. Determining the planets in my section of discovered space as E-Class Planets is inspired by Star Trek’s planetary classification system of M-Class Planets. The Star Trek franchise created an entire system of grouping planets, J-Class for gas giants like Jupiter or Class-N for sulfuric planets like Venus, but the M-Class Planets are similar to those fitting within a habitable region, (what NASA has termed as the “Goldilocks” zone), a region similar to that of Earth.

The numbering system associated with each planetary body stems from a variation of the individual’s “discovery date” (birthdate) and maternal or paternal relationship to the central planet E-0785. These planets represent a particular individual in my family, but they have been dissociated from a particular name and have been assigned a specific number to suggest that the constellations could be any genealogical family and that we are individual pieces in a much larger genealogical system.

Photo Credit: John Bernardo