Tag Archives: planets

Blog Post #6: Gas Giant Rings

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Elizabeth D.

Universe Today Very few people know that Saturn is not the only planet in our solar system that has rings. …

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Planets bigger than Earth beyond Pluto?

Posted on January 17, 2015 by agiantchicken

Could it be possible that planets larger than the size of Earth lie beyond Pluto? According to researchers, the behavior of far-out celestial bodies far from the sun (such as Sedna and Pluto), seems to suggest so.  Such bodies, called “extreme trans-Neptunian objects” (or ETNO’s), should generally have an orbital distance of roughly 150 AU and […] Continue reading →

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The Solar System: An Overview

Posted on April 20, 2014 by hollyreichert

This year I learned details about the Solar System that I did not even know existed.  Before astronomy this year, I did not know about the Kuiper Belt.  I thought we only had the Asteroid Belt.  I knew that comets and asteroids were different– but I was not sure what the difference was.  Now I […] Continue reading →

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“Games without rules have many possible outcomes.” – Andrew Knoll, Harvard

Posted on April 9, 2014 by juliamac17

On a slightly more positive note to my other post about my reservations to the search for extraterrestrial life, NASA has recently confirmed that Saturn’s moon, Enceladus has been hiding a Lake Superior-sized ocean. It was discovered using data gathered by the Cassini spacecraft, and while suspicions have been around for a while, it has […] Continue reading →

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What are we even looking for?

Posted on April 9, 2014 by juliamac17

So recently we’ve been looking at different planets. Some of the planets that we tend to find most interesting are those that we think could possibly support life. But instead of tackling the life question from an excited human standpoint, I’m looking at it in a slightly wary, totally suspicious one. What are we looking for? […] Continue reading →

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Why did the other planets get cool names but not us?

Posted on March 17, 2014 by reidrcreviston

If you start naming of the planets you will realize that they all have something in common except for one of the planets.  That planet is actually our very own Earth.  The rest of the planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) are all named after a Greek  or Roman God or Goddess.  Earth […] Continue reading →

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The “Mars One” Project has 200,000 Applicants

Posted on March 13, 2014 by waldentb

Over 200,000 people have applied for a one way trip to Mars to live out their lives. Does this say …

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Nontraditional Planets

Posted on March 12, 2014 by juliamac17

We’re learning about the formation of solar systems, however this is something we can’t observe since it happens over such a long period of time. And so to remedy our curiosity we have come up with models.These hypotheses in order to stand have to explain the various phenomena in the solar system while leaving room […] Continue reading →

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What excites me? Mars!!

Posted on April 28, 2013 by jacob933

Well, it’s been a great semester. I loved astronomy going into this class, and I love it even more going out. It definitely made me realize that planetary science is my favorite part of astronomy, and that’s why I’m pursuing the minor! However, I wanted to make this post about what excites me regarding the […] Continue reading →

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And It All Leads Up To The Now

Posted on April 21, 2013 by wherrysg

This semester we have studied everything from the creation of the universe to black holes to microscopic bacteria living on the bottom of the ocean floor. The range of topics covered in this class has helped round my view of the beginnings of time up until now and clarified many common misconceptions ranging from tides […] Continue reading →

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