Tag Archives: planets

The Geology of Mars

Posted on March 24, 2020 by maverickbennett

My previous blog discussed the geology of Venus, so this week I thought it would be fun to research the geology and makeup of Mars! Mars and Earth have more similarities than you would think. Having a similar axis tilt, a day just slightly longer than 24 hours, similar land areas because of Earth’s oceans,Continue reading “The Geology of Mars” Continue reading →

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The Geology of Venus: Earth’s “Sister Planet” (Post 3)

Posted on March 24, 2020 by maverickbennett

Even though Venus is not the planet closest to the Sun, it is still the hottest planet in our solar system. This is because the planet’s dense atmosphere, which is composed of thick clouds of carbon dioxide and other gases, prevents heat from the Sun from being released into outer space. We are lucky toContinue reading “The Geology of Venus: Earth’s “Sister Planet” (Post 3)” Continue reading →

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Planetary Distances to the Sun

Posted on March 15, 2020 by seths1

Okay, hear me out – Mercury is the closest planet to every other planet in the Solar System, on average. When I read this it kind of blew my mind but after reading this article it makes a lot of sense. This is true because Mercury is on a very tight orbit around the sun.Continue reading “Planetary Distances to the Sun” Continue reading →

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Juno and Jupiter

Posted on March 15, 2020 by jackfumagalli

For my post this week, I decided to learn more about the Jovian planets, specifically Jupiter. Through my research, I discovered that Jupiter had a spacecraft sent by NASA to observe Jupiter named Juno.  Juno was launched in 2011 and reached Jupiter by 2016. It is a rotating, solar-powered spacecraft. Because of the images andContinue reading “Juno and Jupiter” Continue reading →

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How do we name our Solar System?

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Avery Bradley

We all remember learning the mnemonic device in elementary school: My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Noodles (or whatever variation you prefer). Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, the eight planets of our solar system. But what do these names actually mean? How do planets and moons and other stuff inContinue reading “How do we name our Solar System?” Continue reading →

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Nashville’s “Snow Moon”

Posted on February 9, 2020 by jackfumagalli

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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Star Atlas

Posted on January 19, 2020 by jackfumagalli

This picture is a screenshot of the night sky view on January 19th, 2020 over Nashville through the lens of Star Atlas. Star Atlas is a website that allows anyone across the world to see the names and locations of various stars and planets they might see in the sky. In addition to a nightContinue reading “Star Atlas” Continue reading →

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Jovian Planets

Posted on March 12, 2019 by michaelfung1661

Jovian planets always interested me. The term “Jovian” is naturally everyone’s first guess – derived from the Latin root, Iovis, or Jovis. It’s a 3rd declension, genitive singular noun, so any classics nerds should know that it very specifically translates to OF Jupiter. I don’t know, I just find it interesting that an entire class … Continue reading Jovian Planets → Continue reading →

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Awesome Planetary Formation Videos

Posted on February 27, 2019 by drgrundstrom

I’d love to show you a whole bunch of videos that show planetary formation! Some showcase certain parts of formation better than others but they all are pretty awesome. Beginning of Solar System formation (from gas cloud to disk) from ESA (0:39) Why is the Solar System Flat? from Minute Physics (3:12) Planetary Formation – […] Continue reading →

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Grasping the Scale of the Solar System (with help from Josh Worth)

Posted on January 20, 2019 by jpeilbert

Have you ever wondered just how big the Solar System is? One helpful website to answer that question is Josh Worth’s “If the Moon Were Only 1 Pixel” site. This beautiful website allows you to scroll through the Solar System, to-scale, as if the Moon were only 1 pixel (that is, teeny-tiny and barely visible … Continue reading Grasping the Scale of the Solar System (with help from Josh Worth) → Continue reading →

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