A Tiny, Faint, Ancient Neighbor

One of the problems with astronomy is best portrayed by an old joke: At night, a cop notices a kid under a street light, looking intently all around him. The cop walks over and asks, "What are you doing, son?" The kid responds, "I lost a dollar, and I'm looking for it." The cop looks around for a moment, then asks, "Well, where did you lose it?" The kid points over to a dark spot across the street. "Over there." "Well then, why are you looking over here?" the cop responds, reasonably. The kid sh...