ATEEZ Fans Are In Awe At NASA’s New Discovery Perfect For ATINY Day

As most ATEEZ fans know, November 17 is an important day for the fandom. On that date in 2018, the fandom name, ATINY, was announced, and each year the group and fans come together to celebrate the anniversary of the special occasion.

[📷] THANK U ATINY❤
⠀
언제나 같은 곳을 바라보며 함께해 주는 에이티니 항상 고마워요❤
⠀#ATINYDAY #ATINY #에이티니 #ATEEZ #에이티즈 pic.twitter.com/xeSMmSv08b

— ATEEZ(에이티즈) (@ATEEZofficial) November 17, 2022

ATEEZ even has a song, titled “Star 1117”, that was made in honor of ATINY day (11/17). With lyrics like, “Gather all your painful memories/I’ll make you shine like a star” and “I will never forget those days/To you, the star that always watched for me”, the song is a beautiful tribute to the love that ATINYs and ATEEZ share for each other through the use of celestial analogies.

Most ATINYs are also aware that there is certain symbolism that is important to ATEEZ’s ongoing lore and worldbuilding. One of the most commonly reoccurring symbols is an hourglass — it’s included in many different music videos of theirs, is part of the group’s lightstick designs, and even made an appearance during their live stages for Kingdom: Legendary War.

The lore behind the hourglass is complex and not entirely known, but there’s no denying that it’s a huge part of ATEEZ’s universe.

Now, what do ATINY day and the hourglass have to do with each other? Well, on November 16 this year (which would have been November 17 in South Korean time), NASA made a beautiful and awe-inspiring discovery that was absolutely perfect for ATINY day.

In the center of a dark cloud called L1527, a very young star — called a protostar — is in the process of being formed. About 460 million lightyears from Earth, a photo taken by the Webb Space Telescope using its Near-Infrared camera was able to capture what the space surrounding the protostar looks like, and it was none other than an hourglass shape.

The shape is created by light from the protostar — which is hidden in the neck of the hourglass — illuminating the cavities that are created as material is thrust away from the protostar and collides with other matter surrounding it. The colors — mostly blue and orange — are determined by layers of dust that lay between L1527 and the Webb Space Telescope, with blue showing thinner layers of dust and orange caused by thicker layers.

The protostar within L1527 is considered a class 0 protostar, which is the earliest stage of star formation. Over time, it will continue to gather mass and the core will gradually compress until it grows hot enough for nuclear fusion to occur. While the dark band of the hourglass that holds the growing star looks tiny, it is actually about the size of our own solar system! According to NASA, “Ultimately, this view of L1527 provides a window into what our Sun and solar system looked like in their infancy.”

It’s incredible that such a beautiful image was taken on the same day as ATEEZ and ATINY celebrated the fandom’s anniversary. The article from NASA even included the quote, “Shocks and turbulence inhibit the formation of new stars, which would otherwise form all throughout the cloud.” “Turbulence” is the name of one of ATEEZ’s most beautiful songs, so the coincidence is just fascinating!

The universe loves Ateez

— Carrie Desemar Atiny Rainbow Butterfly (@CDesemar) November 17, 2022

how is EVERYTHING in this fandom and group so destined I’m so

— Dee (@peachxwoo) November 16, 2022

The universe is an atiny

— FAY 🦋 (@theehongverse) November 17, 2022

So, whether you think it was just coincidence or if there is some greater power at play, it’s still an awesome discovery that ATINYs can enjoy!