Daily Archives: February 15, 2016

Where is Everybody?

Posted on February 15, 2016 by astr2110geoffren

The Fermi Paradox questions how is it possible that if there are so many planets orbiting so many stars existing in so many solar systems making up so many galaxies composing so many superclusters creating our observable universe, how is it possible that we haven’t seen any other signs of intelligent life? This has many […] Continue reading →

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The Serial Killer Known as Light

Posted on February 15, 2016 by astr2110geoffren

Pretty Much a Giant Lightsaber Gamma Radiation Bursts (GRB) make up the brightest flashes of light from outer space and it isn’t even a contest. If we had the ability to see them we would probably all instantaneously go blind. These flashes of light can last anywhere from a few milliseconds to a few minutes […] Continue reading →

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Stonehenge: Change the How!

Posted on February 15, 2016 by astrologankeller

We all know Stonehenge as a Wonder of the World, in which there are multiple sets of 3 massive rocks stacked together. The major question revolving around Stonehenge (to the lay person) is how they got the rocks up there, since the technology of the time would have made this incredibly difficult. While this is […] Continue reading →

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Blog #4 Spacecraft and “Gold Foil”

Posted on February 15, 2016 by seanmcsolsys

If you’ve ever seen pictures of satellites being prepped in clean rooms, you’ve probably seen the immense amounts of gold foil covering the crafts. You might think the foil’s purpose is to keep the probe clean until launch, or that gold’s conductive and malleable properties aid the function of the vehicle. For space travel, it’s neither. […] Continue reading →

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Geostationary Orbit – Calculations and GIF

Posted on February 15, 2016 by podolakvandysolarsystem

Geostationary Orbit (GSO) is a specific type of orbit around the earth with a period of exactly one day, intentionally matching the rate of earth’s rotation. GSO is at zero inclination, meaning it is directly above the equator. This also means that a geostationary satellite will always be in the same point in the sky […] Continue reading →

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GRAVITATIONAL WAVES!!!!

Posted on February 15, 2016 by harperastronomyblog

According to the this video by the New York Times, Scientists working at LIGO (the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) have made a monumental discovery that reinforces Albert Einstein’s theory of special relatively put forth almost a hundred years ago. Einstein predicted gravitational waves when he announced his theory, but until LIGO’s announcement on Thursday, no […] Continue reading →

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LIGHTSPEED, COSMIC SPEEDLIMITS, AND (FINALLY!) LOOKING INTO THE PAST (Part 2)

Posted on February 15, 2016 by harperastronomyblog

In one of my previous posts , I explained what a light-year was and how the speed of light remains constant in a vacuum (a.k.a. space). I also explained that there would be another post explaining some of the things that I couldn’t fit in that post. Now I am finally ready to finish–the long awaited!–part […] Continue reading →

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Hearing the Universe

Posted on February 15, 2016 by alecsolarsystem

One of the most groundbreaking theories in astronomy has just been proven with the announcement last week that gravitational waves have been detected. Einstein had predicted these waves in 1916 in his theory of general relativity, and they were only just found today using lasers, which Einstein also laid the foundation for one year later in 1917. These […] Continue reading →

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Tidal Forces

Posted on February 15, 2016 by lindseynestor

As a person that has always been happiest by the ocean, I really enjoyed learning about tides and decided to do some further research into other effects and instances of tidal forces in our solar system. Just as the Moon causes tides on the Earth, Earth creates tidal forces acting on the Moon. This is […] Continue reading →

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Planet IX

Posted on February 15, 2016 by lawlorsolarsystem

I have been fascinated by the possibility of a new ninth planet ever since I heard about it, so I thought I would use this blog to share some information on it. First, the discovery of it came, in many ways, from Pluto itself. Once astronomers discovered that there were other objects like Pluto (Kuiper […] Continue reading →

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