Tag Archives: Moons

Tardigrades and extraterrestrial life

I first saw a picture of a tardigrade when I was a child, and even then, I was fascinated. I prefer the more affectionate term “water bear”, and these cute little “micro-animals” are a classic example of just how resilient life can be. As we briefly discussed in class, tardigrades have survived exposure to outer […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Moons, Science | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Tardigrades and extraterrestrial life

Blog 05 – Enceladus

The image shows the lower portion of Enceladus’ jets taken in 2010. Image and information gathered from the NASA website. Enceladus, one of Saturn’s moons, got its name in Greek mythology because Saturn (Cronus) was the leader of the Titans. Despite its namesake, it is only about 310 miles across which is about the size […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Moons | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Blog 05 – Enceladus

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

Posted in Class, Moons, SolarSystem | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Potential for Life on Europa

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

Posted in Class, Moons | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Titan’s Tremendous Atmosphere and its Striking Similarity to Earth

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

Posted in Class, Moons, SolarSystem | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Cataclysmic Creation of Earth’s Moon

A tidal bore worth traveling for

Mont Saint-Michel at high tide Chapter 4 of the textbook explained how the Moon and the Sun affect ocean tides. We learned that the timing and height of tides at a given location depends on its latitude, the orientation of the coastline, and the depth and shape of any channel the tide has to flow […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Moons, Science | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on A tidal bore worth traveling for

Future Visits to Solar System Worlds

Now that I have learned a great deal about the Solar System, I am looking forward to keeping track of the ongoing and future missions sending spacecraft to various worlds in the solar system. This post will outline some highlights of upcoming missions, as well as their objectives. Additionally, these missions are the ones focused […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Moons | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Future Visits to Solar System Worlds

Extremophiles in Space

Extremophiles are lifeforms that can survive in what we would consider extreme conditions, such as very hot, cold, acidic, or salty environments. Since the various worlds we have observed in the Solar System are vastly different from Earth, astrobiologists predict that if any lifeforms exist in these places, they would be extremophiles. In this post, […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Moons, Science | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Extremophiles in Space

The Moons of Saturn

There are many moons of Saturn, but the two largest are Titan and Enceladus. Titan is an enormous moon, the second largest in the Solar System after Jupiter’s Ganymede. It is notable for its thick atmosphere, which is made up of mostly Nitrogen compounds. Its surface is characterized as geologically young, with evidence of lakes […] Continue reading

Posted in Moons | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Moons of Saturn

The Moons of Jupiter

Jupiter has many moons, but the largest of them are the Galilean moon, Ganymede, Callisto, Europa, and Io. This post will explore the defining features of these Jovian moons. The largest of Jupiter’s moons is Ganymede, the largest moon in the Solar System. In fact, Ganymede is larger than Mercury. This moon has a liquid […] Continue reading

Posted in Moons | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Moons of Jupiter