Author Archives: isaiandrade01

Where is Everyone?

The Fermi Paradox was developed in 1950 by the Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi. The paradox itself refers to the notion that if there is an extremely high possibility of life outside of Earth, then why have humans not discovered evidence of other intelligent life forms. This could be for a multitude of different reasons such […] Continue reading

Posted in Aliens, Space Travel | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Where is Everyone?

Wrapping Up Solar System

One of the biggest takeaways I have from the Solar System course is how different perspectives can be, and how they can really shape the way we think about not only space-related topics but life in general. The picture above is a prime example of perspective as almost everything we know about space is viewed […] Continue reading

Posted in Observables, Space Travel | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Wrapping Up Solar System

Life Among the Rings

Perhaps one of the best chances of finding life on another world in our solar system, one of Saturn’s moons, Enceladus, is a world of great interest. Although considerably smaller than our own Moon, Enceladus is a small world composed of a top layer of ice, which is on average 20 km thick across the […] Continue reading

Posted in Space Travel | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Life Among the Rings

Interstellar Travel using Warp Drives

Perhaps the most challenging obstacle between humans and interstellar travel is the distance it would take to traverse the light-years of distance to even the closest stars. The closest star to Earth, besides the Sun, is known as Proxima Centauri, at about 4.25 light-years. For reference, the fastest a human spacecraft has traveled was a […] Continue reading

Posted in Physics, Space Travel | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Interstellar Travel using Warp Drives

The Himalayas of Venus

The Himalayas might be considered the most impressive mountain range on Earth, but what about other geological formations on planets around the solar system? Most famously, Olympus Mons is the tallest mountain in the solar system, located on Mars at 21229 meters, and about 2.5 times the size of Mount Everest. Alternatively, while not as […] Continue reading

Posted in Observables | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The Himalayas of Venus

Warping the 4th Dimension

The concept of time dilation is one of the direct results of the theory of general relativity proposed by Albert Einstein, and it explains the effect of gravity on time. The theory of general relativity describes space as a three-dimensional space with time being the fourth dimension through which space is moving, creating the spacetime […] Continue reading

Posted in Physics, Space Travel | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Warping the 4th Dimension

Tides on Titan

As we learned in class, different celestial bodies can have varying tidal forces depending on their masses in relation to the object of interest. This phenomenon was mainly explored by the tidal forces on the Earth by the Moon and the Sun. In order to calculate the gravitational forces between two objects, we utilized the […] Continue reading

Posted in Physics | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Tides on Titan

Historical Astronomers in Context: Johannes Kepler

Johannes Kepler Born: December 27, 1571 Died: November 15, 1630 Important Contributions: Johannes Kepler and his discoveries were integral to understanding planetary motion in our solar system. Other than his three laws, Kepler was actually the first person to publish work defending Copernicus’ heliocentric model of the solar system. Copernicus did propose a heliocentric theory […] Continue reading

Posted in Historical | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Historical Astronomers in Context: Johannes Kepler

Eclipses of the Past

Due to advancements in technology, we can easily explain the scientific reasoning behind astronomical events such as lunar and solar eclipses. We understand solar eclipses occur in the new moon phase when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, appearing to cover the Sun and cast its shadow on the Earth. The opposite is […] Continue reading

Posted in Historical, Instruments, Observables | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Eclipses of the Past

The Future of Humanity

I think this picture represents me well because I have a big passion for space, specifically interplanetary travel. Images like this inspire me because I believe the future of humanity resides on multiple planets, and I want to be a part of the engineering behind it. Continue reading

Posted in Class | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Future of Humanity