Tag Archives: Solar System

A Vacation on Venus?

Posted on March 15, 2016 by harperastronomyblog

I was recently reading a book in which humanity had terraformed all of the Terrestrial planets (and also some gas giant moons) in the solar system, and it got me thinking: could humanity ever actually terraform a planet. And if so, which planet? After researching this question, Venus seems the most likely candidate for a […] Continue reading →

Posted in Science, Universe | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on A Vacation on Venus?

Juno, the Probe to Jupiter

Posted on March 15, 2016 by imanig625

The Juno spacecraft is on its way to Jupiter, getting closer and closer as the years go by. Having left in August of 2011, five years later, Juno is due to arrive in July of this year. It is going to be the first solar-powered spacecraft to reach as far as Jupiter. Its mission is to study the… Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Space Travel | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Juno, the Probe to Jupiter

Here Comes the Sun, doo doo doo doo…

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Gabi Grys

  The Sun serves at the central focus of our Solar System, our source of heat and light. However, sometimes things tend to ~flare up~ on this Sun that can disrupt things here on Earth. Eruptions of hot gas on the Sun (or solar flares) can cause shock waves that produce radio waves that worm […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Observables, Stars, Sun | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Here Comes the Sun, doo doo doo doo…

Dating the Solar System?

Posted on March 15, 2016 by samihahplanet

No,  I’m not referring to taking our Solar System out to a romantic dinner and movie. What astronomers and physicists are interested in is the age of our Solar System. And given the vastness and inaccessibility of most of the Solar System, revealing the true age of it has proven to be quite the challenge. Astronomers have, however, been able to […] Continue reading →

Posted in Observables | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Dating the Solar System?

Blog #6 (auroras)

Posted on March 15, 2016 by astronomer0110

One of the most interesting aspects of astronomy for me is the existence of auroras. As a bit of background, there exist charged particle belts in the magnetosphere that contain high-energy particles. When solar wind gives these particles energy, they leave the magnetosphere and cause radiation in the atmosphere that produces the visual effect of the […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Blog #6 (auroras)

Blog #5 (The dangers of climate change)

Posted on March 15, 2016 by astronomer0110

Simply put, when humans pollute the atmosphere, it leads to an increase in greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Then, these greenhouse gases slow the release of infrared radiation reflected off of Earth’s surface, and this leads to an increase in temperature. Historically, this issue has caused a large controversy in American culture. Today, the main disagreement […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Blog #5 (The dangers of climate change)

Venus’s Atmosphere

Posted on March 15, 2016 by lawlorsolarsystem

Venus is of a similar size to Earth, but has an incredibly different climate. The main reason for this is Venus’s atmosphere, which is extremely different from Earth’s. Venus’s atmosphere is made up almost entirely of Carbon Dioxide, and has barely any Oxygen. Because of this, Venus has a much greater greenhouse effect than Earth, […] Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Science | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Venus’s Atmosphere

Look Back at It

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Sofia

The surfaces of the terrestrial planets tell us a lot about their histories. The geological surface features of the planets give insight into the geological processes that have occurred in the planets’ pasts. There are four main processes that have lasting geological impacts on the terrestrial planets in our solar system. The processes are impact … Continue reading “Look Back at It” Continue reading →

Posted in Class, Terrestrials, Universe | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Look Back at It

Why We Should All Love Earthquakes

Posted on March 15, 2016 by 2016spaceodyssey

Earthquakes are one of the most obvious consequences of Earth’s plate tectonics.  The crust slowly moves along the with the “current” of the mantle as the Earth surface constantly rearranges itself.  Without plate tectonics, it is very possible that life could not have taken a foothold on Earth.  On Mars, which does not have plate […] Continue reading →

Posted in Science, Terrestrials | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Why We Should All Love Earthquakes

Planet 9

Posted on March 15, 2016 by sarabkeller

It was a sad day when the powers that be decided that Pluto was no longer fit to be called a planet. However, this January, in a shocking turn of events, scientists at Caltech may have discovered (or somewhat indirectly presume) the existence of a real ninth planet, an ice giant by the incredibly original […] Continue reading →

Posted in Dwarf Planets | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Planet 9