Monthly Archives: February 2016

Stephen Hawking and the Universe

Posted on February 17, 2016 by paxtonastronomy

Stephen Hawking has fascinated me since I was a young child. Besides just his scientific discoveries and knowledge, the fact that he has been able to succeed so amazingly with such a potentially hindering disability is extremely remarkable. One of Hawking’s talks that I found extremely interesting was his “Questioning the Universe” TED Talk. In […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Universe | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Stephen Hawking and the Universe

The Simplicity of Science

Posted on February 17, 2016 by paxtonastronomy

When studying science, something that often overwhelms or pushes people away is the apparently complexity of it. In chemistry, a lot of people give up when they reach organic; in physics, some people just can’t get past certain theories. However, when reading about the nature of science in chapter three, something occurred to me: science […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Simplicity of Science

The Fermi Paradox

Posted on February 17, 2016 by OscarBen

Have you ever sat around and wondered, where are all the aliens? Well, you certainly aren’t the only one. In 1950, Enrico Fermi came to the realization that “any civilization with a modest amount of rocket technology and an immodest amount of imperial incentive could rapidly colonize the entire galaxy” according to SETI.  His theory, known… More The Fermi Paradox Continue reading →

Posted in Aliens, Class | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Fermi Paradox

MUSE Telescope

Posted on February 17, 2016 by OscarBen

The Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) telescope is one of the newest telescopes that allows us to get 3D views of the universe. MUSE is installed on the European Southern Obserbatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile. It took over a decade to design and develop it but finally went online in March of 2014 and captured… More MUSE Telescope Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Instruments | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on MUSE Telescope

The Slowest Speed of Light

Posted on February 16, 2016 by nickwtheastronomer

Quickly imagine the speed of light. It’s fast right? I’m sure you’ve been taught that the average speed of light falls somewhere around 3 x 10^8 m/s (6.706 x 10^8 mph) and you are partially correct. But what if I told you that you would have been equally right with an answer of just 38 […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Light, Physics | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Slowest Speed of Light

Photo from the Opportunity

Posted on February 16, 2016 by imanig625

  This incredible photo from the rover Opportunity pictures the Endeavor crater rim. It’s truly amazing how that even 12 years after being sent, Opportunity is still sending back photos this amazing. Opportunity is the longest-running Mars Rover, having been exploring and taking pictures of Mars since 2004. Opportunity has been documenting mineral samples, craters,… Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Space Travel | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Photo from the Opportunity

Telescope

Posted on February 16, 2016 by siyuan2016

image source Throughout human history, the invention and improvement of telescope occupied an indispensable place in the advancement of astronomy. And this blog is devoted to introducing  the history of telescope in last four hundred years. The earliest known workingtelescopewas created by Hans Lippersheyin 1608 to “see things far away as if they are nearby”. […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Telescope

Diversity of Telescopes

Posted on February 16, 2016 by imanig625

There is such a diverse range of telescopes accessible to consumers around the world. Of course, these telescopes are not of high quality in terms of magnetization and clarity. However, comparing accessible telescopes to high-powered, extremely large telescopes that have entire buildings designed to contain them is not impossible, but seeing as these large telescopes… Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Diversity of Telescopes

Celestial Navigation

Posted on February 16, 2016 by siyuan2016

Navigational Compass used in Ming Dynasty      image source Before the invention of artificial satellites and development of data transformation, celestial navigation played an indispensable role in human’s exploration and discovery of newfound lands. And in this blog, I would like to introduce some celestial navigating technologies implemented in Zheng He’s treasury voyage, one […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Celestial Navigation

Negative Energy (Gravity)

Posted on February 16, 2016 by Ahmed A

When one considers that amount of energy that occurs from splitting a single atom, and then multiples that by the 10^80 particles that exist in our universe, one might conclude that the net total of energy in the universe is a astronomically large. Surely beyond anything a human mind could comprehend. The reality however is […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Negative Energy (Gravity)