Monthly Archives: February 2022

blog post 02

Posted on February 21, 2022 by graceward02

NASA’s James Webb Telescope was launched on December 25, 2021. It is a collaborative effort between NASA (United States), The European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency. This telescope has four main areas where its data will be used: considering the first light in the universe, early assembly of galaxies in the universe, birth […] Continue reading →

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How Tides Actually Work

Posted on February 21, 2022 by Sheila Chau

When I was younger, I thought that mermaids were the reason why the tides moved. I thought that mermaids were pulling the ocean back and forth. I later learned the actual origins of the tides in school, but I would still like to think that mermaids were the reason. Instead of mermaids, tides are actually…Continue reading » Continue reading →

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How the Moon Affects the Earth’s Tides

Posted on February 21, 2022 by McKenzieKing

It is a common misconception that the tides on Earth are caused because the Moon’s gravitational pull is just pulling the ocean towards it. However, if this were the case then there would only be one tidal change every day…

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Gyroscopes in Space – Angular momentum

Posted on February 21, 2022 by Jack Walton

In this 2016 demonstration aboard the ISS, the ESA astronaut Tim Peake demonstrates how a gyroscope spinning in space maintains its orientation even when a rotational force is applied. While, this video was published in 2016, the physics of rotation have not changed since then! In the video, Peake demonstrates how once a gyroscope gets […] Continue reading →

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Historical Vanderbilt Astronomer

Posted on February 20, 2022 by AndreaS

If you have spent much time in E. Bronson Ingram residential college on Vanderbilt’s campus, you may have noticed that part of the dorm is named after one Edward Emerson Barnard. As it turns out, Barnard was an astronomer who attended the university from 1883-1887. His research focused on observation and photography of stars and […] Continue reading →

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Reversing Falls

Posted on February 20, 2022 by gcomartin

In Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, 100 billion tons of water flow in and out of the Bay of Fundy each day by way of the Saint John River. Yes, in and out of the same river. The water level of the Bay of Fundy changes a dramatic 28 feet between low and high tide. […] Continue reading →

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Light: Wavelength, Frequency, and Energy

Posted on February 20, 2022 by solarelizabeth

A prism splits white light into a spectrum of colors ranging from red to violet. These colors correspond to different wavelengths, frequencies, and energy levels. Light with a longer wavelength has a lower frequency and lower energy level, and light with a shorter wavelength has a higher frequency and higher energy level. Violet light has […] Continue reading →

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Hypatia of Alexandria

Posted on February 20, 2022 by jordanekstein

Hypatia of Alexandria (335 CE – 415 CE) was an important mathematician and astronomer often credited as the first female astronomer and the last head librarian of the Library of Alexandria. Her father, Theos, was also an astronomer and mathematician and was the last official member of the Library of Alexandria. He also played a […] Continue reading →

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Blog Post 2 Bending of Light

Posted on February 20, 2022 by isaachuggins

Light is a weird thing. It is both a particle and a wave, yet it has no mass to it. This means it should be immune to certain laws of physics, such as gravity, since gravity requires two masses to generate a force. However, light does bend due to gravity. This is not the normal […] Continue reading →

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Eratosthenes the Excellent??

Posted on February 20, 2022 by alexlitt

Newton, Kepler, Galileo, Copernicus… Eratosthenes?? The name Eratosthenes is not as universally renowned, or even as known, as the likes of Newton or Galileo.; however, his contributions are just as exceptional. More than 2200 years ago, around 240 B.C.E, Eratosthenes correctly measured the circumference of the Earth to within 5% of its correct value. Considering […] Continue reading →

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