Category Archives: Science

Using Variable Stars to Find Exoplanets

Posted on April 17, 2022 by alexlitt

One of the preeminent methods for finding exoplanets is tracking periodic variations in stellar brightness. In class, we practiced this technique by examining the light curves of certain variable stars and identifying the presence of orbiting exoplanets. In the real world, scientists must first identify variable stars and then determine which of these variable stars’ […] Continue reading →

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blog post 05

Posted on April 17, 2022 by graceward02

In 2006, Pluto was taken off the list of planets, leaving our Solar System with just 8 planets. This demotion occurred 76 years after Pluto was initially added to the list of planets. This decision by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined what objects could be classified as a planet. An object needs to be […] Continue reading →

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Are Wormholes Possible?

Posted on April 17, 2022 by jschorr21

What is a wormhole? A wormhole is a theoretical bridge joining two points in space-time that would create shortcuts for extremely long journeys throughout the universe. Albert Einstein and Nathan Rosen back in 1935 came up with the idea and concluded that due to Einstein’s theory of general relativity, wormholes could exist. He concluded that […] Continue reading →

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The Artemis Moon Rocket (Post 6)

Posted on April 17, 2022 by ccatanese1

NASA has continued ground tests this week for the Artemis I mega moon rocket. The rocket encountered a hydrogen leak on Thursday so it seems like there is still some improvements that must be made until the rocket is ready to be launched. The Artemis mission manager said that all of the problems that the […] Continue reading →

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Planet 9 (Post 5)

Posted on April 17, 2022 by ccatanese1

The Kuiper Belt is a doughnut shaped group of ice, rock, comets, and dwarf planets, beyond Neptune. There have been discussion recently about whether there is a ninth planet within the Kuiper Belt. These discussions began back in 1846 after the discovery of Neptune, but they became more focused when it was discovered that the […] Continue reading →

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Amateur Astronomer Discovers Jupiter’s 80th Moon

Posted on April 7, 2022 by gcomartin

Amateur Astronomer Kai Ly used images from the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope taken in 2003 to identify a previously undiscovered Satellite orbiting Jupiter, the first planetary moon discovered by an amateur astronomer. The telescope used was the 3.6 meter Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope located on Mauna Kea. Ly used an image captured in February 2003 to identify a set […] Continue reading →

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Cryovolcanoes on Pluto

Posted on April 6, 2022 by gcomartin

A recent discovery published by Nature Communications has revealed a series of ice volcanoes on the surface of Pluto. The images which lead to this discovery were captured by Nasa’s New Horizons in 2015, but it was only recently that scientists were able to identify specific peaks that they now believe are ice volcanoes, known […] Continue reading →

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Thousands of Other Planets (Post 4)

Posted on March 23, 2022 by ccatanese1

Other planets and galaxies in space have been the subject of many science fiction novels and television shows, most notably Star Trek. This week, NASA officially confirmed that 5,000 exoplanets outside of our Solar System exist. This discovery is monumental within the astronomy community, because although it has been speculated that there are millions or […] Continue reading →

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Nuclear Fusion: The energy of the universe… but not the energy of the Earth?

Posted on March 23, 2022 by alexlitt

Nuclear fusion is the fundamental source of energy generation in our universe. Stars (like our Sun) undergo nuclear fusion in their cores and emit energy in the form of heat and light. This stellar energy stands in the way of a dark, cold, lifeless universe, and provides the necessary ingredients for life on Earth. Sadly, […] Continue reading →

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The Evolution of Earth’s Atmosphere

Posted on March 22, 2022 by AndreaS

So many of Earth’s features today, from our blue sky to life itself, depend on the atmosphere surrounding the planet, but it has taken billions of years to evolve to where it is today. This post will explore the evolution and progression of Earth’s atmosphere as well as the processes that led to these changes. […] Continue reading →

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