Category Archives: Physics

Some facts about the speed of light

Posted on January 21, 2018 by lin0214

The speed of light is 299,792,458 meters per second (186,282 miles per second), but this is not always the case. The speed of light, which is actually the highest speed that light can reach, has to be in a vacuum.  In other cases, light actually slows down as it passes through different media. For instance, … Continue reading Some facts about the speed of light → Continue reading →

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Blog 3: Cosmic Background Radiation

Posted on February 15, 2017 by mchastr2110

A radiation that is an after-effect of the Big Bang still around today. It was actually discovered accidentally by two Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson in 1965. They noticed a static that appeared to be coming from every direction at the same strength. Later scientists were able to trace out a Black Body curve for … Continue reading Blog 3: Cosmic Background Radiation Continue reading →

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Blog 1: The Speed of Light And Refractive Index

Posted on February 15, 2017 by mchastr2110

Light travels at a velocity incredibly difficult for us to comprehend other then as just a very, very large number. To be exact, light travels at a constant velocity of 299,792,458 m/s within a vacuum. This is not the same for light traveling through other conditions. When light does travel through things other then a … Continue reading Blog 1: The Speed of Light And Refractive Index Continue reading →

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Space Physics and the Cassini Probe

Posted on February 14, 2017 by kendylldellinger

Gravity is the magic super glue that keeps everything we know (and things we don’t know) together and functioning. Earth’s gravity keeps us on the ground, the moons gravity creates tides, and the sun’s gravity keeps us from flying away into oblivion. But why did Earth and the rest of the planets stay orbiting around […] Continue reading →

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Gravity Waves

Posted on February 14, 2017 by pkunetz97

Have you ever wondered what the speed of gravity is? Were you under the assumption that the force of gravity was immediate? Like everything else in the universe, gravity has a finite speed. In fact, gravity travels at precisely c, the speed of light in a vacuum. This was first theorized as a result of Einstein’s […] Continue reading →

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Light Cones

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Natalie

We all know that light travels really fast. It can appear instantaneous to us on earth, but when you look out … More Continue reading →

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Gravitational Waves

Posted on February 13, 2017 by brandonandthesolarsystem

Up until about two years ago, gravitational waves were rarely discussed outside of the scientists who based their careers on its discovery. To the public, the entire phenomena was unknown. However, that quickly changed on September 14, 2015 when the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave observatory directly detected gravitational waves. As this news spread across the globe, […] Continue reading →

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Phobos is Doomed and Should be Afraid

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Ashley Garcia

The red planet is orbited by two moons, Phobos and Deimos (Greek for Fear and Panic respectively), and given the predicted fate of Phobos, the small moon has good reason to be afraid. Both moons may have originally been asteroids that were captured by Mars’ orbit, however in time, Phobos may become a ring around… Continue reading Phobos is Doomed and Should be Afraid Continue reading →

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Light Can Do the Twist Too

Posted on February 12, 2017 by Ashley Garcia

As many of my fellow classmates may know, the Earth orbits about the Sun, while also spinning on its axis. It is less known however, that light exhibits the same behavior. Normally, measurements regarding light record things such as direction and energy, and occasionally the spin polarization. Light also has an orbital angular momentum (OAM) however,… Continue reading Light Can Do the Twist Too Continue reading →

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Death by Black Hole

Posted on February 12, 2017 by josiezd

Unfortunately, astronomers and physicists are pretty sure you can’t just go through a black hole and pop out the other side – you will, in fact, die. The real question is, how exactly will you die? Continue reading →

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