Author Archives: Katie

Why We Haven’t Been Invaded by Aliens

Posted on April 29, 2018 by Katie

As we learned in class, the Drake equation can estimate that the existence of life should exist. The universe is huge, its been in existence for a very long time, and there is no foreseen limit to what can exist, especially life off Earth. Fermi’s paradox is super cool, creepy, exciting and puzzling all at … Continue reading Why We Haven’t Been Invaded by Aliens Continue reading →

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The End of the World?

Posted on April 8, 2018 by Katie

There are so many objects in the solar system that coexist with Earth in this universe. These objects range range from other planets, moons, asteroids and comets. But what would happen if they stopped playing nice with each other and ended up colliding? Specifically, what would happen if a comet hit the Earth? Well, that … Continue reading The End of the World? Continue reading →

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Odd One Out

Posted on April 8, 2018 by Katie

  Neptune’s moon Triton is a peculiar world in the Solar System. It just doesn’t fit with any solar system formation theory and the mysteries still remain. Why does the moon orbit backwards? Why is the surface so smooth? Is there a subsurface ocean? If a collision caused the backwards orbit, why does Triton still … Continue reading Odd One Out Continue reading →

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Where Did All of Mars’ Water Go?

Posted on March 17, 2018 by Katie

It is currently known that Mars has only a fraction of the atmosphere that Earth has. This could be due to a number reasons ranging from its further distance away from the Earth and its smaller size in comparison to Earth and Venus, however, all terrestrial worlds had something that could have resembled an atmosphere … Continue reading Where Did All of Mars’ Water Go? Continue reading →

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Betelgeuse: When will it reach its end?

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Katie

Betelgeuse is in the top ten of the brightest stars in the sky. As one of the closest stars that has the potential to have a supernovae. This is super special not only because of the closeness of it, but because of its massive size.  According to Forbes Betelgeuse has the potential to light the … Continue reading Betelgeuse: When will it reach its end? Continue reading →

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GMT: What else is out there?

Posted on February 7, 2018 by Katie

This telescope, the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) is currently in the process of being built. It is a refractory telescope with 7 separate mirrors that each have a diameter of 8.4 meters. This telescope is going to be incredibly large. In fact, it is going to be the largest optical telescope to be built. According … Continue reading GMT: What else is out there? Continue reading →

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Katie

Galileo Galilei was born in 1564 and he died in 1642. It’s crazy to think that history that appear to be in completely different contexts actually occurred at the same time. For example, during Galileo’s lifetime while he was revolutionizing asttronomy, Miguel de Cervantes was revolutionizing literature. His publication of Don Quijote de la Mancha … Continue reading Historical Astronomers in Context Continue reading →

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Faster than Expected

Posted on January 20, 2018 by Katie

The universe is expanding faster than was originally expected. Just recently, NASA has adjusted the Hubble constant to 45.5 miles per second per megaparsec. This translates into a doubling of the size of the universe in 9.8 billion ears. AHHHH crazy! This adjustments is to correct for the increase in speed that the universe is actually … Continue reading Faster than Expected Continue reading →

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This is Me!

Posted on January 18, 2018 by Katie

I’m Katie! I’m a freshman and I’m from the Chicago area and I absolutely love every part of it. From the Cubs to the brutal winters, I wouldn’t trade any of it. Usually, I intentionally avoid “touristy” Chicago because they can’t see the true beauty of Chicago beyond the picture the news creates (I’ll give … Continue reading This is Me! Continue reading →

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