Monthly Archives: January 2016

One of Last Week’s Mass Extinctions

Posted on January 24, 2016 by Chloe

When people talk about the Cosmic Calendar – the entire history of the universe, from the Big Bang up until this very moment, plotted onto a Gregorian calendar – we often focus on the infinitesimal space that human history has taken up. According to the Cosmic Calendar in our textbook, modern humans as a species […] Continue reading →

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Constellations of the East

Posted on January 23, 2016 by jasperluastronomy

When we were looking at star maps inside of Stellarium during class, I couldn’t help but think about how arbitrary all of the constellations seemed. If I didn’t know what shape to look for, I don’t think I would ever have found the same patterns in the sky. I decided to study the Chinese constellation system […] Continue reading →

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The best way to propose to an astronomer: Solar eclipses

Posted on January 23, 2016 by d51blog

  A solar eclipse, which is the only acceptable way to propose to an astronomer, is a fairly uncommon event which occurs when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun. Although the Moon is much smaller than the Sun, it is able to completely block the Sun because it is much closer to the […] Continue reading →

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So, is a light-year some kind of diet plan or whatever? The speed of light and space

Posted on January 23, 2016 by d51blog

To answer the titular question in a word: no. So then, what exactly is a light-year and what does it have to do with the speed of light? A light-year is the amount of distance that a given light wave (light, radio waves, X-rays) travels in a year. Because the speed of light is approximately 300,000 meters per second, […] Continue reading →

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What if the speed of light were 60 mph

Posted on January 23, 2016 by jasperluastronomy

In class the other day, we were asked about what we thought would happen if the speed of light were much much lower. I forget the exact number now, but I believe it was around 60 mph. I decided to research the subject a bit more.   Assuming that someone just flicked a switch one […] Continue reading →

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Blog #1: The Size of the Universe

Posted on January 23, 2016 by martisnv

The size and scale of the universe is extremely difficult for the human brain to understand. It is hard for us to wrap our minds around just how vast and empty space actually is. When we first learn about the solar … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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2016 Planetary Alignment!

Posted on January 22, 2016 by drgrundstrom

As described in class, here are my two favorite articles about this alignment: Get Up Early, See Five Planets at Once! from Sky and Telescope How to View Five Planets Aligning in a Celestial Spectacle from The New York Times I happen to adore the NYT diagram because it shows the Solar System view as […] Continue reading →

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Planet Nine!

Posted on January 22, 2016 by drgrundstrom

Caltech Researchers Find Evidence of a Real Ninth Planet This is legit folks!  For those who are at a university (like Vanderbilt), this press release has a link to the actual research article in the Astronomical Journal.  It’s a bit heavy at times but well done. There’s also a pretty good article on Wired: This […] Continue reading →

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Hello!

Posted on January 21, 2016 by ranibanjarian

This is me. This blog works. I love science, writing, singing, and enjoying the time I have to spend with my family (because I’m an international student from Lebanon, I don’t have a lot of it!) Continue reading →

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2015 Meteor Shower

Posted on January 21, 2016 by jacquessolar

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