Monthly Archives: February 2022

The First Space Telescope

Telescopes have come a long way since they were invented in 1608. Not only have ground based telescopes made significant advances, but in recent decades telescopes have even been launched into space to mitigate the effects of Earth’s atmosphere on obse… Continue reading

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Retrograde Motion

It is often easy to look back at historical astronomical theories and think that they were silly or nonsensical. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, and with what ancient astronomers knew at the time, it makes sense that they created bizarre models of the universe. Retrograde motion is a phenomenon that gave scientists a lot ofContinue reading “Retrograde Motion” Continue reading

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The James Webb Space Telescope (Post 2)

The Hubble Space Telescope has been a staple in the NASA space program since its launch in 1990. It has led to monumental discoveries and pictures such as the famous Hubble Deep Field; however, 30 years later, technology has evolved tremendously and so, NASA has launched a new telescope aimed at succeeding it. Planning of […] Continue reading

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The James Webb Space Telescope

As you may have heard in the news recently, the James Webb Space Telescope (or JWST) was launched into space on December 25, 2021. The JWST is meant to be the successor to the Hubble Telescope, as it detects light further into the infrared spectrum than the Hubble telescope, and so can see stars that […] Continue reading

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The Nature and Beginnings of Science

Ever since the development of the rational brain, human beings have tried to understand the world around them. For the first few millennium, we went about understand the world around us through story and narration. Whether or not you consider yourself religious, it is evident that prominent religious works, such as the Bible of Christianity,Continue reading “The Nature and Beginnings of Science” Continue reading

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The History of Gravity

Gravity has been a mystery for most of human history, and it was only recently(about 350 years ago) that the first gravitational theory was published. Gravity was always thought of as a force that brought things to their “natural place.” But when Copernicus came up with his idea for a heliocentric solar system, a theory […] Continue reading

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Galileo and the Telescope

Galileo and the telescope have become synonymous over the ages. It’s difficult to think of one without also considering the other. But it was not Galileo who invented the telescope– although he was one of a few who revolutionized its use for astronomy. The telescope’s origins can be traced back to English philosopher Roger BaconContinue reading “Galileo and the Telescope” Continue reading

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Retrograde motion

Like the ancients Greeks, I also had some trouble understanding retrograde motion and how it’s possible that it might seem that some objects in the sky move in reverse motion. Instead of rising in the east and setting in the west, it appears that some objects move in reverse from west to east for a […] Continue reading

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What makes the Tides happen?

This blog will be referencing information sourced from the Tides: Crash Course Astronomy #8 video. We know that mass has gravity, and more mass had more gravity. This raises the question, why does the moon have a greater impact on the Earth’s tides than the Sun, even though the Sun has such a greater gravitational …

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How Stonehenge is Astronomical

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument that is basically a ring of stones. Located in Salisbury, England, tourists come everyday to see the beautiful mystery. There are many legends and myths about how Stonehenge was created. According to different theories it could have been built by wizards, Danes or it was ruins from Roman Temples. Although […] Continue reading

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