Tag Archives: blog2

Nashville’s “Snow Moon”

On the evening of Saturday February 9th, the Nashville area saw an abnormally large moon known as a super-moon. This was also a special moon because it was also known as the “snow moon.” The “snow moon” is a full or new moon of astronomical and cultural significance around the globe. The super-moon phenomenon occursContinue reading “Nashville’s “Snow Moon”” Continue reading

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The Basics of Our World

The Standard Model consists of 17 elementary particles that fit into a mathematical and theoretical framework that explains matter and forces. Since last century, the model has been able to not only explain, but also to predict existences of undiscovered particles. The particles are categorized into two groups: fermions and bosons. Fermions make up matter.Continue reading “The Basics of Our World” Continue reading

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WFIRST: The Newest Vanguard of the Mission to Understand Dark Energy

At some point this decade, a new space observatory will be launched into orbit; one unlike any that we have seen before with extraordinary equipment and capabilities. WFIRST, the Wide-Field InfraRed Survey Telescope, could potentially revolutionize what astronomers know about our universe and how it behaves by focusing on three major categories: dark energy, exoplanetContinue reading “WFIRST: The Newest Vanguard of the Mission to Understand Dark Energy” Continue reading

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The Importance of Spectroscopy

The impact that spectroscopy and light has had on the world has not been recognized enough. The discovery of spectroscopy has allowed us to know so much more about astronomy and what makes up our universe. Spectroscopy is the investigation and measurement of spectra when matter interacts with electromagnetic radiation. In astronomy, we look atContinue reading “The Importance of Spectroscopy” Continue reading

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The History of Astronomy

Astronomy, the scientific study of the universe and of the objects that exist naturally in space, is one of the oldest natural sciences to reach a high level of sophistication. The history of this science has impressive continuity and duration, as observed changes would take thousands, millions, and even billions of years. In 3000 BC,Continue reading “The History of Astronomy” Continue reading

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What’s up with the tropics?

Latitude and longitude coordinates are seen everywhere; they’re immensely useful for marking geographic location and helping with navigation. The system is simple enough: latitude is distance north or south from the equator and longitude is distance east or west from the Prime Meridian. But what are the Tropics of Cancer and of Capricorn that areContinue reading “What’s up with the tropics?” Continue reading

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Light: It’s More than We Think

Flip a switch. Turn a knob. Push a button. Look in the sky in the day or at night. Each of these actions will allow you to see light, and most people see light as nothing more than an illuminator. Its purpose in the field of astronomy is much more than illuminating the Universe forContinue reading “Light: It’s More than We Think” Continue reading

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Gravity in Space

An intriguing phenomenon that took millennia for the modern human to explain is gravity. First explained by Sir Isaac M. Newton, gravity as a force as a function of mass is a difficult one for many to wrap their heads around. The reason many non-scientists struggle to understand the basics of gravity is because itContinue reading “Gravity in Space” Continue reading

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the mysterious cosmic rays

THE MYSTERIOUS COSMIC RAYS What causes static on the radio and white noise on the TV?  Why do GPS and phone calls sometimes malfunction?  And what if I told you that the very same phenomenon was the cause for the “magical” aurora borealis (Northern lights).  As a matter of fact, just one phenomenon can account…

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Archeoastronomy and the Newgrange monument

Newgrange is a monument located in County Meath, Ireland.  This mysterious structure is estimated to be over 5,000 years old and was built by ancient inhabitants of Ireland during the Neolithic period.  Since its construction, word of the structure was passed down through generations as part of Irish folklore.  In the meantime, the mound-like shape…

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