Category Archives: Physics

Tidal Changes from a Beach Stand

Posted on February 12, 2015 by dillonkoval

I worked for two years renting out beach umbrellas and chairs at Assateague State Park for two summers in high school. I would walk out to the beach and set up my little stand next to a fence used to protect the dunes from wandering beach-goers. Assateague has a very large sandbar and some days […] Continue reading →

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My favorite tides

Posted on February 9, 2015 by drgrundstrom

DIFFERENTIALS!! :) During class today, I talked about tides and how there is a great deal of misinformation out there. My favorite websites for the astronomical explanation of tides are: A rigorously correct but a tiny bit snarky treatment – it’s my favorite: Tidal Misconceptions by Dr. Donald E. Simanek One of the links from […] Continue reading →

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My favorite tides

Posted on February 9, 2015 by drgrundstrom

DIFFERENTIALS!! :) During class today, I talked about tides and how there is a great deal of misinformation out there. My favorite websites for the astronomical explanation of tides are: A rigorously correct but a tiny bit snarky treatment – it’s my favorite: Tidal Misconceptions by Dr. Donald E. Simanek One of the links from […] Continue reading →

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The World’s Largest Vaccuum

Posted on February 9, 2015 by jclyncmp

The world’s largest vacuum is located at NASA’s Space Power Facility in Ohio. In this video, a bowling ball and a feather are dropped together under the conditions of outer space to demonstrate the concept that objects will fall at…

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Astronomy and Religion in Germany: The Story of Johannes Kepler

Posted on February 3, 2015 by emilyksharp

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) Johannes Kepler’s work began when he apprenticed for Tycho Brahe in the year preceding Tycho’s death. Kepler …

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Just how small… or big… am I?

Posted on January 23, 2015 by jamej00

The Known Universe This video really puts into perspective the true size of the observable universe.  Some say this makes us insignificant, but I disagree.  I think that our ability to map the nature of the universe to such an extent makes us quite significant! Realize that everything we know about the universe came solely from… Continue reading →

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My Introductory Post

Posted on January 13, 2015 by ctogrye

Hey there, This is the first test post Dr. G asked me to put up. I attached a picture of the Pound-Rebka experiment because I’m a physics major and it seemed to tie into an astronomy class (with verifying gravitation redshift and such). Continue reading →

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The origins of life and the Drake equation

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Drew Hamilton

In using the Drake equation to discuss and estimate the probability of non-Earth life in our universe, one factor we estimated was the probability of life developing on a given planet in the habitable zone. The problem with making such an estimate as students in an Astronomy 201 course, of course, is that we all… Continue reading →

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Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Posted on April 28, 2014 by jblubin

“We are a way for the Cosmos to know itself,” said Carl Sagan.  Astronomy is not only the oldest science, but also a window through which mankind peers through in attempt to glimpse the fleeting answers to our deepest and most fundamental questions. As a direct result of the this class, I find myself looking … Continue reading Standing on the Shoulders of Giants → Continue reading →

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Metallic hydrogen

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Drew Hamilton

In learning about the interiors, we’ve heard a lot about metallic hydrogen. To me, it was a confusing idea, simply because I only really hear about hydrogen in the context of being a gas or being a compound such as water or methane. Furthermore, it was not clear what phase metallic hydrogen would be, since… Continue reading →

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