Category Archives: Moons

Potential for Life on Europa

“Two possibilities exist: Either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. Both are equally terrifying.”-Arthur C. Clarke In order for their to be the possibility of life, there needs to be liquid water. That is why life is so successful here on Earth; we have an abundance of liquid water in the […] Continue reading

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Wrapping Up the Solar System – Cameron Klein – Blog #8

Wow. I simply cannot believe that the second semester of my freshman year has come to a close. Entering this class, I was expecting to struggle through just another science course, however, I could not have been more wrong. I have learned more in this class than any other class that I have ever taken. […] Continue reading

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Blog 5 – Triton!

Things that break all patterns are often the most interesting objects in our solar system. Neptune’s moon Triton is a prime example of breaking general patterns. It is the only large moon in our solar system that orbits in retrograde, opposite the rotation of Neptune (NASA). Originally I was interested in Triton because of its […] Continue reading

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Solar Eclipse in Nashville

Around 2 pm today on Apr 8, 2024, I was fortunate enough to see the eclipse reach its peak in Nashville amidst intermittent cloud cover. Although Nashville wasn’t in the path of totality like it was in 2017, it was very close! For a quick background on solar eclipses, a solar eclipse happens when the […] Continue reading

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Europa

Alien life could very well be found in our own Solar System, and Europe is a prime candidate! Being one of Jupiter’s moons, Europe is one of the coolest moons of the giant planets in our solar system. It is about 90% the size of our Moon, with an equatorial diameter of 1,940 miles. However, […] Continue reading

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Blog 5: Pluto and its Largest Moon

Pluto, situated 40 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun, orbits the Sun every 248 years. Its path stands out due to its highly elliptical shape and inclination relative to the ecliptic plane, distinguishing it from the other planets. Pluto is orbited by five moons, with Charon being the largest and most notable. Charon orbits Pluto […] Continue reading

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Titan’s Tremendous Atmosphere and its Striking Similarity to Earth

One of the most fascinating things that I have learned from this unit was the diversity that are the jovian moons. Originally, I believed moons to be rocky, non geologically active objects that orbited planets. Although this is the case for some moons, especially the smaller ones, some moons hold very unique characteristics, such as […] Continue reading

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Life on Europa??

One of humanity’s greatest wonders is if life could exist outside of Earth. Surely humans are not the only living creatures to exist in the entire universe, but where could other organisms flourish? Scientists have identified three key criteria that make life possible: liquid water, chemistry, and energy. Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons and the […] Continue reading

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The Cataclysmic Creation of Earth’s Moon

~”We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard” ~ John F. Kennedy Earth’s moon is a vital factor for life on our planet, and it plays a major role for tides and tilt. However, the origin of our […] Continue reading

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Spring Tides and Rising Sea Levels

The effects of human-induced climate change are becoming more and more apparent over time. Some of the most highly impacted areas are those on the water, who, when facing spring tides, can experience dangerous levels of flooding. Spring tides occur when the Sun and the Moon are exerting gravitational force on the same line, both […] Continue reading

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