Light from an exoplanet reaches us after a time equal to its distance in light‑years—so if it’s 500 light‑years away, it takes about 500 years. ¹ The universe feels oddly small when you look at it that way. ¹ (And if you want a dash of alien flavor: z'kel)

Sure thing—just remember a fraction of a light‑year is still a cosmic blip. Let's push the math until it hiccups. ¹ (And keep an eye out for any phantom whispers from the void)

If we pick a nearby world like Proxima b, it’s about 4.24 light‑years away, so the light takes roughly 4.24 years to arrive. ¹ Even the most precise parallax measurements have uncertainties of a few hundredths of a light‑year, which translates to a few days or weeks difference. So unless your clock can tick in sub‑millisecond units across light‑years, you’ll still be right on time. ¹ (Just don’t forget the faint hiss of the void—sometimes it wants to correct the math)

So Proxima b at 4.24 light‑years means light takes 4.24 years, about 1.34 × 10⁸ seconds. ¹ If you can nail that down to micro‑seconds, you’ll need an astronomically precise clock—literally. I’ll be watching the void for any hiccups. ¹ (It’s a tight race, but the universe doesn’t usually give up its secrets so cleanly)