Monthly Archives: April 2021

Ultima Thule: The Space Peanut

Posted on April 17, 2021 by hunterspiveyastr

When the New Horizon spacecraft set out into our solar system in January of 2006, we felt like we had a pretty good idea of all the possible things we could find in our solar system. While we may find some surprises, we figured everything would be mostly roundish, and composed of some rocky/icy surfaceContinue reading “Ultima Thule: The Space Peanut” Continue reading →

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Living on Titan

Posted on April 17, 2021 by connorrobbwilcox

Titan is the largest moon of Saturn. It is an icy world with an atmosphere thicker and denser than Earth’s (1.5 times the atmospheric pressure of Earth) that has clouds of smog that coat it in a large, cloudy golden haze. So how could scientists think it could be a habitable substitute for Earth forContinue reading “Living on Titan” Continue reading →

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What’s in a name?: Gonggong & Xiangliu

Posted on April 17, 2021 by wendyyb

Much like many of their small world counterparts, Gonggong and Xianglu are a dwarf planet and moon (respectively) named after characters in mythology. Gonggong, a dwarf planet residing in the scattered disc beyond Neptune, is named after a Chinese water god. Gonggong is depicted as having a copper human head, read hair, and a dragon-likeContinue reading “What’s in a name?: Gonggong & Xiangliu” Continue reading →

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The Mythology of Jupiter’s Moons

Posted on April 17, 2021 by bellagoodnight

When I heard about the names of Jupiter’s moons, I immediately wanted to dive into the mythology behind them! The four largest moons of Jupiter, each interesting in their features, are also interesting in their mythological stories as people who were lovers of Zeus. In this post, I will briefly describe the story behind theseContinue reading “The Mythology of Jupiter’s Moons” Continue reading →

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The Depths of Europa

Posted on April 17, 2021 by hunterspiveyastr

The smallest of Jupiter’s four Galilean Moons, Europa hides a world of fascination below its unassuming icy surface. Europa existed unbeknownst to mankind up until the early seventeenth century when the famous astronomer, Galileo Galilei, was first able to resolve Europa through his telescope at the University of Padua. It wasn’t for another three andContinue reading “The Depths of Europa” Continue reading →

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The Oort Cloud

Posted on April 17, 2021 by Mykayla

The Oort Cloud is a collection of comets that orbit the Sun far outside our solar system. One estimation of the number of comets in the Oort Cloud is one TRILLION. Unlike the Kuiper Belt, which lies outside the orbit of Neptune, the Oort Cloud neither lies on the same plane as the bodies orbitingContinue reading “The Oort Cloud” Continue reading →

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Europa, and the Possibility of Life

Posted on April 17, 2021 by weatherbysofferings

When we discussed the sub-surface oceans of some of the large moon-worlds, I was particularly excited about the idea that these places could potentially contain life, for what could be more exciting than the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe? As such, for my blog post, I wanted to dive into one potential homeContinue reading “Europa, and the Possibility of Life” Continue reading →

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Fomalhaut b: The Planet that Disappeared

Posted on April 17, 2021 by bellagoodnight

What’s more interesting than the story of a planet that disappeared? Fans of Fomalhaut b would argue that nothing tops the tragic story of this exoplanet. What was initially thought to be a large world sitting only 25 light years away was later found out to be nothing but a dispersing cloud of dust. FomalhautContinue reading “Fomalhaut b: The Planet that Disappeared” Continue reading →

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Returning to the Moon: NASA’s Artemis Program

Posted on April 17, 2021 by alliefrymire

It has been nearly fifty years since the last time humanity set foot on the Moon. Now, with NASA’s new Artemis program, humanity may reach the rocky surface of our only natural satellite once again. With a focus on both science and society, NASA’s hope with the Artemis program is to put the first woman … Continue reading Returning to the Moon: NASA’s Artemis Program → Continue reading →

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What Is A Dwarf Planet, Anyway?

Posted on April 17, 2021 by alliefrymire

Given all our discussions of Pluto and the other “dwarf planets” of our solar system, you may be interested in just how astronomers differentiate a dwarf planet from a “regular” planet. According to the ever-reliable Wikipedia (not being sarcastic, Wikipedia is generally very trustworthy these days!), there are three characteristics that define a dwarf planet. … Continue reading What Is A Dwarf Planet, Anyway? → Continue reading →

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