The Tools of Discovery

Posted on February 13, 2023 by dromalley

For my second blog post, I’ve decided to provide an overview of a few of the most advanced telescopes both on and around the world which have allowed astronomers to peer into the distant mysteries of our universe and uncover more about its nature. First, we will examine some of the most advance ground based telescopes.

Several of the Very Large Array‘s telescopes

First completed in 1980, the Very Large Array is the largest terrestrial telescope array on the planet, with each of its three arms measuring 21 kilometers at full extension. The VLA consists of 27 individual dishes each 25 meters across, providing a total of more than 13,000 square meters of collecting area. The VLA takes observations in the radio range, providing astronomers with deep views into the cosmos.

The Gran Telescopio Canarias in Spain

The largest single optical telescope on Earth, those which observe in the visible range, however, is the Gran Telescopio Canarias in Spain which observed its first light in 2007. This telescope is 10.4 meters across and provides astronomers with their clearest views of the sky in the visible light range.

The Hubble Space Telescope

Moving into orbit, we come to probably the most famous telescope in the history of astronomy: the Hubble Space Telescope. Launched in 1990, its first few years were troubled as a defect in the mirror restricted scientists to observing less taxing objects. However after this was corrected in 1993, Hubble went on to make many important discoveries, especially in helping researchers understand the history and origin of the universe. Hubble has taken many famous photos, including the “pillars of creation” and the Hubble deep field, an incredibly detailed photo of an unremarkable section of night sky which may include as many as 10,000 galaxies.

The Hubble deep field

Finally, we have the newest and most technologically advanced telescope ever created: the James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST. the JWST was launched in 2021 and has a diameter of 6.5 meters, giving it about 6 times more collecting area than Hubble. The JWST’s observations are focused on the near-infrared as opposed to Hubble’s visible light and near-ultraviolet capacities, providing astronomers with a different perspective on many objects and taking our most detailed measurements of other star systems to date. As the JWST’s mission has just begun, there is much work for it still to do, and it will surely have many great contributions to astronomy in the future.

An illustration of the James Webb Space Telescope
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Blog Post 2: Celestial Navigation

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Myles7235

In order to navigate the vast seas when traveling in today’s time, we can easily use modern technology to pinpoint exactly where we are in the ocean. A prime example of this type of technology would be GPS systems. However, GPS systems haven’t been around forever. Celestial navigation is the art of determining both the location and orientation of one’s position based on stellar bodies. A prime example of a stellar body used for celestial navigation is the North Star, Polaris. People often mistake its importance to be connected to its brightness, but in actuality there are many other stars that are as bright or even brighter than Polaris. The real reason that Polaris is important is that it is always positioned above the Earth’s North Pole. There are a common set of steps to help people locate Polaris. You can find more information about celestial navigation here.

First, you scan through the constellations until you locate Ursa Major. You can look for the big dipper, which is in ursa major. Next, you locate the 4 stars that create the spoon-like pattern of the big dipper and the 3 stars that create the handle. Follow a line towards the little dipper from the 2 stars in the spoon-like pattern that are furthest away from the handle and you’ll find the North Star! You can check out a visual of this process here.

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Sextants – Then and Now

Posted on February 12, 2023 by 7smessier45

Humans have navigated the open ocean for thousands of years; among the first to do so were the aboriginal Australians and Polynesian seafarers about 50,000 years ago. More recently–but still a few hundred years ago–celestial navigation by Western cultures relied on a navigator’s understanding of the stars (and other heavenly bodies, including the sun), the current (assumed) position of the vessel, and tools like a sextant and an accurate clock. A sextant was a tool that enabled seafarers to determine their latitude and longitude using the angle (as measured by a sextant’s graduated radial arm) between a celestial body and the horizon. From there, the navigator would record the angle and the time of day to cross reference with tables, called “almanacs,” published by either a Navy or a reputable navigation source. Using these two pieces of information, the navigators of the 18th century could determine their position within a few hundred meters. 

Old Sextant

In the 1970s, with the launching of military GPS satellites, the use of and training with sextants largely disappeared. However, in our era of cyber attacks and fears about technology security, the US Navy began reviving its usage of the historical tool. Nowadays, the US Navy–and other branches of the military that rely on accurate measures of position without landmarks–require at least some of their offices to be proficient with the tool.  

QMSM Rodgers using Sextant

I find it incredible that no matter how advanced we think we are as a society, we always fall back on our fundamental tools at some point or another. It’s incredible to think that even with our technological advancements, we still rely on and honor our ancestors’ techniques through our use of the heavens to navigate. 

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Powered and Unpowered Gravity Assists

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Trevor Pillow
A visualization of the Voyager 1 using Jupiter’s gravitational well to reach Saturn

The farthest planets in the solar system are so distant, it is infeasible to reach them using only rockets. The delta-v, or change in velocity, required to propel a spacecraft to a gas giant like Saturn is far too impractical for today’s rockets to achieve. The main problem is that a spacecraft needs tons of fuel to reach a planet, but to get that fuel into orbit, the spacecraft needs even more fuel. The costs of such a rocket escalate until it is too expensive to even attempt to build.

However, by using our understanding of physics to our advantage, we can efficiently generate delta-v using gravity wells. An object with a significant mass, such as a planet, will develop a field of gravitational influence. Objects within this influence are attracted to the planet, while the planet is equally attracted to the object. We can take advantage of this in order to achieve higher speeds using little to no extra fuel.

If a spacecraft approaches a planet in the same direction that the planet is travelling, the spacecraft will increase its orbital velocity relative to the sun. Approaching a planet from the opposite direction that a planet is travelling will decrease a spacecraft’s orbital velocity around the sun. This maneuver is known as an unpowered gravity assist. By increasing a spacecraft’s orbital velocity, the spacecraft will be able to expand its orbit to reach further planets in the solar system. By decreasing a spacecraft’s orbital velocity, the spacecraft will shrink its orbit around the sun.

We can use this knowledge to travel not only to the furthest extents of our solar system, but also to deep within the sun’s gravitational influence. The most efficient way to get a close orbit around the sun is to first travel to Jupiter, and then perform a powered flyby. Changing a spacecraft’s velocity from within a deep gravity well is more efficient, and therefore allows the spacecraft to get closer to the sun than it otherwise would be able to. So, we can launch a spacecraft into Jupiter’s orbit and perform a burn at a much greater efficiency than we can achieve near Earth. It seems counterintuitive that the best way to reach the sun is to first approach Jupiter, but studying the orbital mechanics that allow us to efficiently travel through space have given me a greater understanding into the effects of gravity.

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The “Why?” behind Synchronous Rotation

Posted on February 12, 2023 by alicebyrnes

As we’ve discussed in class, the Moon revolves about the Earth in synchronous rotation, meaning it rotates such that the same side of the Moon always faces the Earth. Not only does the Moon do this, but all moons in our solar system do as well. (The information for this blog post is sourced here.)

This is different from geosynchronous orbit, which means the orbiting body stays above the same point of the Earth at all times when orbiting. Many of our satellites are placed into geosynchronous orbit, for example. However, given the Moon’s orbital period of 29.5 days compared to the Earth’s 24-hour rotation, the Moon is clearly not in geosynchronous orbit.

Instead, the Moon rotates at the same rate that it orbits Earth. The theory behind this has to do with the formation of the Moon: namely the impact theory, which posits that some body struck the Earth and broke off to become the Moon. At the time of formation, the new “Moon” was spinning incredibly fast.

However, Earth is so much larger and more massive than the Moon that at all times, the side of the Moon facing Earth would be deformed towards the Earth, as shown in the figure below. This deformation, always facing the Earth, counters the angular momentum of the Moon’s spin, slowing it down until it reaches an equilibrium. This is the point at which the same side of the Moon is always facing the Earth, and synchronous rotation has been achieved.

Diagram showing the effect of gravitational deformation on the Moon’s spin over time.
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Blog Post 2 – The Doppler Effect

Posted on February 12, 2023 by constellationsarentreal

Most people have already heard of the Doppler Effect, an interesting phenomena of sound that alters the pitch of moving objects depending on their direction. The Doppler Effect functions similarly by affecting the shifts of light wavelengths. When, for example, a planet is moving toward us, its light waves will be clumped together and appear as shorter wavelengths. We call this blueshift, as shorter wavelength of light are bluer on the visible spectrum. If a planet is moving away from us, then its light wavelengths will be more spaced out and appear longer. This is redshift, as longer wavelengths of light are redder on the visible spectrum.

We measure Doppler Shifts by comparing how much measured spectral lines have moved compared to their reference spectral lines at rest. It’s important to note, however, that we will not observe a wavelength shift if the object is moving tangentially to us and, therefore, not toward or away from us. Similarly, if an object is not moving directly away from us, then the Doppler Shift will only reveal part of the object’s speed toward or away from us (only one vector component) and not its speed in the other wayward direction (another vector component. Regardless, by using a measured wavelength shift we can then determine an object’s radial velocity.

What I find fascinating about the Doppler Shift is how it appears on rotating planets. As a planet spins, light on one edge will be blueshifted (since its spinning toward us), light on the other edge will be redshifted (since its spinning away from us), and light in between will not be shifted.

Doppler Shift and Star Rotation

There are so many ways to utilize the Doppler Effect in space exploration and study. Read how NASA used the Doppler Effect to track the Mars Odyssey Spacecraft in its orbit around Mars in 2001.

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Why the Speed of Light May Not Be Constant

Posted on February 12, 2023 by georgeboardman20

Source: Speed of Light Properties Explained

One of the biggest current paradigms in the science of astronomy is the certainty that the speed of light is constant in a vacuum. However, new research shows that this might not entirely be accurate which could have massive consequences for cosmology.

Thanks to the use of lasers here on the earth, the speed of light has been measured very accurately at a speed of 299,792,458 m/s. Current scientific knowledge has this placed as the ultimate speed limit in the universe. Two scientific papers propose that the speed of light varies due to the very nature of spacetime. They propose that with the assumption that the vacuum of space is full of basic quantum particles like quarks, they speed of light is affected by them. Depending on their charge, these quarks would absorb and emit photons, effecting the speed of light by one millionth of one billionth of a second for every square meter of vacuum.

This study also purports that the charge of the quark, which varies, would also vary the effect of it on the speed of light. Since the incidence of these quantum particles would be random, the speed of light could, over billions of light years, be random. Although the second paper proposes subatomic particles’ interaction with electromagnetic fields, rather than individual photons, the proposal is the same. Although this is firmly in the hypothesis portion of the scientific process, this would have drastic implications on cosmology and the cosmic distance ladder. Predictions on the age of the universe could be drastically off and estimates on the size of the universe could similarly be off.

Source: Speed of Light May Not Be Constant

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Black Body Radiation, analyzing the Universe at Long Distance

Posted on February 12, 2023 by noahherrero

Illustration of Supermassive BlackHole Formation (An Ideal Black Body) from GOODS

Source: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Scuola Normale Superiore/Pacucci, F. et al, Illustration: NASA/CXC/M. Weiss Optical: NASA/STScI;

Celestial Bodies throughout the universe are extraordinarily far away, yet despite this we are able to describe these objects with precision. The reason this is possible is because the radiation of these objects. We can determine a bodies composition through the spectra of light they emit/reflect; however today’s focus is determining a star’s temperature, which requires understanding black body and by extension thermal radiation.

Radiation itself is just the distribution of electromagnetic waves, so thermal radiation must then have some relation to light. William Herschel can be cited as the first person to find this connection though measuring the temperature of light at different frequencies. From this it was deduced that thermal radiation was something that was carried by light, which Balfour Stewart used that to describe how a black surface would absorb the most thermal radiation.

With this knowledge Gustav Kirchhoff theorized that if in thermal equilibrium, a surface that can potentially absorb all radiation can emit them as well. This theory showed that in the ideal situation absorption and emission ratio are a function of only temperature/the thermal energy. Later on, Planck was able to produce a formula and graph that the amount of possible emitted spectra at various temperatures, otherwise known as a black body curve.

Now the word ideal was used a lot when describing black bodies, that’s because a perfect version does not really exist. The closest example in the universe would be a black hole (Which is displayed in the above image), however despite this, for many celestial bodies using a black body curve still yields a good approximation towards the exact thermal energy emission.

Black Body Approximation of the Sun, Source: Physics Exchange

Above is the image of a black body curve which as you can see covers most of the emission spectrum of the sun, showing the curve is a good approximation. Furthermore, the most prevalent wavelength is green given by the curve, which is the color of the sun spectral class. Side-note: Stars can be any range of colors, however we ourselves cannot perceive green stars due to how our red, blue and green rods have a lot of overlap at that frequency, so “green stars” appear white. Side-Side-note: green is also not a color possible incandescent color in black body radiation.

Despite that this means that the apparent color of a star can be a good approximation of the temperature, where a hotter star constitutes a bluer color, and a cooler star red. It’s such that if one were to apply a red filter to a cool star it would look dimmer. Doing that just so happens to be known as a Color Index, measuring the difference in magnitude of the star under an Ultraviolet, Blue and visible light filter.

Color Indices were then used in 1911 to form the Hertzsprung Russel Diagram, as the axis vs absolute magnitude, and became the metric in which modern spectral are defined.

Hertzsprung Russel Diagram – Source: Britannica

Black body radiation and how light and thermal energy thus are related are core to figuring out exactly very minute details about bodies, from temperature to classification. Showing that physics reigns true at all sizes and distances.

• Noah Herrero

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The Hubble Space Telescope

Posted on February 12, 2023 by sahilreddy2

Hubble Telescope First Light Image (May 1990)

The Hubble Space Telescope was one of the most impactful inventions in furthering our understanding of the universe. Launched in 1990, this telescope provided us with detailed information of our solar system and universe. Some of the incredible discoveries the Hubble has made are determining the age of the universe and determining changes in many different celestial bodies in our solar system.  Throughout its time in deployment the Hubble has made over a million other observations including the birth and death of stars and galaxies billions of light years away. The importance of the Hubble comes from it being in the earth’s atmosphere which allows it to get a much better view of the universe than a telescope on earth. It operates by using two mirrors to collect and focus light, the light travels down the telescope and hits the primary concave mirror which than reflects and travels back to the front of the telescope.

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Retrograde… what the heck

Posted on February 12, 2023 by sadiekarr

(Diagram showing Ptolemy’s early explanation of retrograde motion)

Understanding retrograde can get a little confusing. Before taking astronomy, I’d only ever heard the term used by the astrology girlies. I thought maybe it was another “constellations are not real” scenario- but retrograde is real!

Early astronomer Ptolemy (c. AD 100), as he observed the night sky, noticed that a planet in the sky appeared to move backwards. He explained this “backwards” motion using “epicycles”- smaller circles moving along a larger circle- to explain retrograde motion. In the past, when a geocentric model ruled astronomy and religion ruled societies, individuals believed that the heavens (space) had to consist of perfect circles, as God’s creations were always perfect. This may have had a role to play in Ptolemy’s model, which also consisted of perfect circles.

Today, we know that retrograde is not actually the backwards motion of planets, but rather, created by the differing number of days it takes each planet to revolve around our sun. Think of it as Earth lapping the other planets on the race track that is orbit! Pretty cool.

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