... Light from the First Stars . ... What were the first stars like? ... Our Sun is not a first-generation star. ... The first stars to appear in the universe likely came and went about 13 billion years ago. NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula . ... If you look carefully enough, you can even see the glow of the Sun in the opposite direction. ... Eight years ago results were first presented indicating that most of the energy in our universe is not in stars or galaxies but is tied to space itself. ...