And while we're at it, in what shape?

I mean this as a truthful question to FEs, because the thought of a universe that is only a few thousand kilometers across is just... depressing.

I mean, do you know how big the universe is? Like really, really big. As in, if the sun and the next closest star were the size of tennis balls, they would be on opposite sides of the continual United States. HUGE! There's so much stuff out there, and the sun, holly crap-snacks the sun isn't a spotlight. It's this massive energy factory, this huge powerhouse that provides more energy every second than every human on the planet uses all year. (And that's just the little bitty bit that hits the Earth's atmosphere)

Also: Solar Flares... how do they fit into the FET?