Category Archives: General

Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

Posted on April 24, 2017 by pkunetz97

Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, also known as “Brewer’s yeast”, is a very strange extremophile. It is known as an “Osmophile”, or an organism that thrives in environments with high sugar concentrations. Many people fear osmophiles because they are responsible for the spoiling of many sugary drinks such as orange juice or soda. However, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae is a species […] Continue reading →

Posted in General, Science | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

Specific Europa Mission Currently Under Works, Now Named

Posted on April 4, 2017 by njelinek425

In the quest to find habitable bodies, Jupiter’s moon Europa has been a high priority on the exploration list due to its liquid saltwater ocean underneath its ice crust. Three key ingredients for life must be present in order for biological activity to take place: liquid water, chemical ingredients, and energy sources able to enable […] Continue reading →

Posted in General, Moons, Space Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Specific Europa Mission Currently Under Works, Now Named

New Horizons Probe Halfway Between Pluto and Its Next Target in Kuiper Belt

Posted on April 4, 2017 by njelinek425

Just today, (April 4) the NASA probe New Horizons reached its halfway point between the Pluto system and its next target in the Kuiper belt, the small object 2014 MU69. 2014 MU69 is a trans-Plutonian, rather small Kuiper Belt object; with an average diameter of only about 30 miles it is only about 1% the size of […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General, Space Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on New Horizons Probe Halfway Between Pluto and Its Next Target in Kuiper Belt

Rogue Radio Burst Leads to Discovery of Billion-Year-Old Galaxy

Posted on February 14, 2017 by njelinek425

The detection of fast radio bursts, one of the universe’s most mysterious and rare occurrences, took place in early January of this year when signals from a dwarf galaxy over 2.5 billion light years away were first recorded. Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are an incredibly rare phenomenon usually occurring in a millisecond or so, each […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General, Instruments, Light | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Rogue Radio Burst Leads to Discovery of Billion-Year-Old Galaxy

The Importance of Spectroscopy in Solar System Exploration

Posted on February 14, 2017 by njelinek425

While the very existence of visible light allows for the viewing of celestial bodies, not enough credit is oft given to the true capability of light’s full spectrum. Spectroscopy is an imaging and scientific method of measurement that involves the unique spectra that occur when light comes into contact with an object or substance of […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General, Instruments, Light | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The Importance of Spectroscopy in Solar System Exploration

“Ring of Fire” to appear over South Africa

Posted on February 14, 2017 by njelinek425

The appearance of an impressive annular eclipse is slated to take place later this month, Sunday the 26th, in the southern half of the world. The eclipse is scheduled to appear west of Southern Chile, with the best viewings possible from Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zambia. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General, Observables | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on “Ring of Fire” to appear over South Africa

Why is the Moon so Crater-y?

Posted on February 14, 2017 by Matt Machado

Have you ever wondered why the Moon is full of so many craters?  The surface of the Moon is so textured that many of its topographic features are visible from Earth with the naked eye. Most people would say that all of the crater scars on the Moon’s surface are a result of meteor impacts. […] Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Why is the Moon so Crater-y?

Gravity in Space?

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Matt Machado

Videos of astronauts floating around inside space shuttles have led many to believe that gravity does not exist in space. However, this is simply not true. While the force of gravity affects, for example, astronauts who are orbiting the Earth in the International Space Station differently than it affects us, it still exists in space, […] Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Gravity in Space?

The Power of the Powers of Ten

Posted on February 5, 2017 by Matt Machado

The Powers of Ten is a 1977 short film that puts the immensity (and smallness) of the universe into perspective by zooming out from a couple’s picnic in Michigan at a distance of 1 meter to a vast view of galaxy clusters at a distance of 10^24 meters. By watching this journey from small to […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General, Universe | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The Power of the Powers of Ten

SpaceX

Posted on April 10, 2016 by martisnv

Elon Musk is well known for his innovative publicly-traded companies Tesla and SolarCity. However, it may be SpaceX, the private company that he founded, that has the most promise to change the world. SpaceX made history on Friday (April 8) when it landed … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Class, General | Tagged , , | Comments Off on SpaceX