Tag Archives: astro201

Orbital Mechanics and Common Misconceptions

Posted on February 16, 2014 by zkorman

So guys let’s face it: when it comes to space, a lot of us just don’t know a lot about how to get up there. Quick quiz for you: is the following statement true or false? In order to get to orbit, we shoot a rocket straight up and then once it gets into space, … Continue reading Orbital Mechanics and Common Misconceptions → Continue reading →

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The Largest Telescope in the World

Posted on February 16, 2014 by Chad F

Larger telescopes allow for better angular resolution, which allows for us to discern between two light producing objects that are close together.  Therefore, telescopes are ever increasing in size to get better and better images.  Beating out telescopes called “Very Large Telescope” and “South African Large Telescope”, the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico is […] Continue reading →

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The Beauty of Science and the Firewall Paradox

Posted on February 16, 2014 by paanvaannd

  Image from this site. For more information on the conventional view of black holes, read the hyperlinked article. “Einstein was wrong.” Of course he wasn’t wrong about everything, and to many it may seem like he was only wrong over a minor point. And to most, like myself, it may seem obvious to conclude that … Continue reading The Beauty of Science and the Firewall Paradox → Continue reading →

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Mass, Space-Time, and Light

Posted on February 16, 2014 by zkorman

Mass, as we know, bends space-time. Examples of such bending (in 2 dimensions for ease of comprehension) can be seen here for our sun, a white dwarf, a neutron star, and a black hole. A good question was asked recently, and I would like to clear up some misconceptions. The question, which was very insightful, … Continue reading Mass, Space-Time, and Light → Continue reading →

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Light in the Universe

Posted on February 16, 2014 by Chad F

Light is a very meaningful aspect of the universe that allowed us to make the observations about space that we have made so far.  The light that stars produce allows us to determine many things about them.  Their absorption line spectra allow us to determine their composition and the Doppler effect allows us to determine […] Continue reading →

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Travel Inside a Black Hole

Posted on February 16, 2014 by gradytlynch

Although we usually think of black holes as extremely massive objects, anything in the universe with mass can theoretically become a black hole. As this video discusses, it is mathematically possible for a black hole to form with the mass of the earth, or even Mount Everest. However, the object’s Schwarzschild radius, the size it […] Continue reading →

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Hip-stars Wobble Too!

Posted on February 16, 2014 by juliamac17

So one of the things I think is cute about the universe we live in is that even in the most vastness you rarely find things alone. And these kindred stellar bodies don’t just ignore each other. Oh no, they get caught up in each other’s gravity. And it is this fun and nifty relation […] Continue reading →

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Why is gravity so weak?

Posted on February 16, 2014 by bsturge93

Gravity is a fundamental force that holds together our solar system, our galaxy, and every person to Earth. It must be pretty strong to hold something as massive as Jupiter in orbit right? Actually, compared to the three other fundamental forces, gravity is unimaginably weak. To demonstrate this, use a common refrigerator magnet to pick … Continue reading Why is gravity so weak? → Continue reading →

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The Celestial Compass

Posted on February 16, 2014 by paanvaannd

For millennia, humans have known that the movements of certain celestial objects repeat in a predictable pattern, and for millennia humans have mapped the movements of stars and other objects in the heavens and tried to make predictions about the cycles for these objects.  Most humans probably didn’t care about what might be up in … Continue reading The Celestial Compass → Continue reading →

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Gravitation and the theory of everything

Posted on February 16, 2014 by Drew Hamilton

Over the last several class periods, we have talked a lot about the force of gravitation. Incidentally, gravitation is considered one of the four fundamental forces of nature, along with weak force, strong force, and electromagnetic force. Interestingly, though, gravitation is the only one of these that is explained by a separate theory—the general theory… Continue reading →

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