Category Archives: SolarSystem

Venus: A Resemblance to Classical Images of Hell

Posted on March 16, 2015 by jamej00

Hot potato hot potato! It all boils down to the greenhouse effect!  Yes, the greenhouse effect goes beyond causing global warming here on Earth.  It is, in fact, necessary for life on Earth; without it, the planet would be far colder than it is today.  Certain gases present in both Venus’s and Earth’s atmosphere essentially act like… Continue reading →

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An Ocean on a Moon?

Posted on March 16, 2015 by emilyksharp

One of the largest satellites in the solar system is Jupiter’s moon Ganymede. Though Ganymede is classified as a moon …

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Where did we come from?

Posted on March 16, 2015 by jamej00

Formation of the Solar System In only the recent history of astronomy, we’ve began to understand that our solar system is in fact no different than other star systems in the universe.  We now understand that stars in fact all form from a collapsing cloud called a nebula, which is composed mostly of hydrogen and… Continue reading →

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“Y” in the Atmosphere of Venus

Posted on March 16, 2015 by revanth111

Source: dailymail.co.uk For decades, scientists have been discussing the origins of a Y shaped feature in Venus’ atmosphere. The strange feature is shown above in a picture from the Pioneer Venus Orbiter in 1979. A recent theory is that the Y shape is formed by differences in the wind speed in the atmosphere. The theory states […] Continue reading →

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Salt Water Oceans Thought to be on Ganymede

Posted on March 16, 2015 by conorastr201

Astronomers have recently determined that Jupiter’s largest moon Ganymede likely has an ocean of salt water underneath its icy, inhospitable crust. Ganymede is the only moon in our solar system that has a functioning magnetic field; because of this it is also the only one to have auroras. Scientists in Cologne studied these auroras over a […] Continue reading →

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Jupiter’s Watery Moon

Posted on March 16, 2015 by abbeyrstephens

Recent evidence has shown that Jupiter’s largest moon (and the largest moon in our solar system), Ganymede, has a massive ocean lying underneath a thick layer of ice. In fact, it’s believed to have more water than all of Earth! Ganymede, which is just slightly larger than the planet Mercury, has long been suspected of […] Continue reading →

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NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Orbits Ceres

Posted on March 16, 2015 by conorastr201

That’s no moon! Just this past week, the Dawn spacecraft entered orbit around Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt. The dward planet is one of the oldest planetary object left in our solar system, and as such could provide valuable information about the early formation of the planets; it is an in-between step, a […] Continue reading →

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Our Place in the Universe

Posted on March 15, 2015 by lindenmuthadam

When Carl Sagan requested that NASA redirect its Voyager 1 camera towards Earth from the edge of the Solar System, he knew that it would be of little scientific value. The image taken, “Pale Blue Dot” proved to be one of the most iconic and powerful space photographs ever taken. The sheer magnitude of space […] Continue reading →

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What if Earth stopped spinning?

Posted on March 15, 2015 by agiantchicken

*Warning: rather long documentary!* I’ll sum up the documentary, but suggest you watch if you have time. In essence, a slowing Earth result in an orbit where the length of the day is equal to the entire year. Long exposure to the sun, and long exposure to space at night would result in extreme temperature […] Continue reading →

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Venus’s Atmosphere

Posted on March 15, 2015 by abbeyrstephens

In my opinion, one of the most interesting things in the readings was the section about Venus and its atmosphere in Chapter 10. What I found so interesting about it was the fact that Venus and Earth are so alike in terms of size and mass, but the difference that distance from the Sun made […] Continue reading →

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