The Hale-Bopp Comet

Posted on April 3, 2017 by pkunetz97
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Hale-Bopp at its brightest

Comet Hale-Bopp, also known as the The Great Comet of 1997, was a comet that appeared in – you guessed it – 1997. It was first discovered in 1995 by both Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp, after whom it was named. It was first visible in mid 1996, but did not reach its brightest until mid 1997. It was visible for a total of 18 months, which is the longest a comet has been visible in recorded history. This time span is twice as long as the previous record of 9 months held by “The Great Comet of 1811”, appearing in the year of – *gasp* – 1811. The comet was brighter than all but one star and was even visible in many crowded cities. If you’re wondering when this comet will pass by planet Earth so we may witness its greatness once again, you’re out of luck. The comet won’t return until around the year 4385. If you’d like to see it, you’ll unfortunately have to cryogenically freeze yourself. Sadly, many of the members of ASTR 2110 were not alive at the time of the comet’s passing, and those who were were only babies. I myself was not born until 12 months after the comet’s appearance. Do you think we will ever see a comet that lasts as long as Hale-Bopp? To what lengths would you go to see it?


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Climate Change & Global Warming

Posted on April 3, 2017 by mariabulanova

I believe that everyone knows that our planet’s climate is changing, and everyone has heard about terms such as “climate change” and “global warming”. Although it a very well known topic, I am not sure that most people are aware of why and what is happening, and how it affects our society. In this blog post I will try to talk about closely, and, hopefully, convince you to be careful and help the Earth.

According to NASA, most scientists agree that the cause of global warming is the “greenhouse effect“. What happens is certain gases in our atmosphere block heat from escaping. Gases, such as water vapor (H2O), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), and carbon dioxide (CO2), contribute to the greenhouse effect. An example of human’s activity that changes the natural greenhouse is burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil, which increase the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere.

So what are the consequences of climate change and global warming? We have already noticed some things: “glaciers have shrunk, ice on rivers and lakes breaks up earlier, plant and animal ranges have shifted and trees are flowering sooner,” – NASA. In the future global warming will result in more frequent hot days and fewer cold days, natural hazards will be happening much more often, water will cover a lot of land, and some animals and plants will extinct.

Nowadays scientists are working on ways to reduce the amount of waste and gases we produce. They have invented new ways of getting energy from natural sources (alternative energy), new bulbs that use less energy, working on cars that would be working on something other than gas.

We are in the same boat, so helping the Earth would benefit all of us. Simply taking in consideration tips ecologists give us might make a huge impact in our and Earth’s future!

 

 

 


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Miraculous Arts in Space

Posted on April 3, 2017 by nazshaiful

I have a thing for picturesque, unique space landscape and pattern and there are two nebulae that has always been my favorite. Ever since I was in elementary school (that was when I learned about space), I found out that there are MANY beautiful and spectacular shapes of nebulae. Since then, I was hooked. Two of my favorites are Pillars of Creation and The Unicorn.

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Pillars of Creation as taken from Hubble Space Telescope. SOURCE

Pillars of Creation, situated in Eagle Nebula, was a photograph taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995. It shows three massive columns of cold gas surrounded with hot ultraviolet light emitted from the young stars around them. Some says that they look like elephant trunks of gases and dust with some newborn hot stars. Why are they called Pillars of Creation? They are named so because the gases and dust in it are actually in the process of creating new stars. Therefore, they are as if the pillars which are birthing to newborn stars. The end of each gigantic pillar shadows the cold gas below them, thus creating long structure that looked like columns.  The photo taken by the telescope was awarded one of the top ten photographs by Hubble. The Pillars of Creation, to me, look so majestic and magical. I think it is so amazing and the space sure knows how to flaunt its beauty!

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Part of Trifid Nebula that looked like the horn of a unicorn. SOURCE

The Unicorn is also one of the spectacular arts the space has to offer us. It is actually a part of Trifid Nebula which looked like the horn of a unicorn. Trifid Nebula is quite easy to find using a small telescope and it is also located in Sagittarius. The nebula also acts as a nursery of embryonic stars and new born stars. The horn is actually a ‘finger’ protruding from the dense cloud of gases pointing directly towards the star in the middle of Trifid. Trifid, which means ‘divided into three’ is a quite direct representation of three parts it hosts. A dark nebula, the emission nebula, and also the reflection nebula and they can be seen as a bright object through the small telescope. The bright and distinctive features make Trifid Nebula a favorite subject to amateur astronomers.

There are so many amazing arts out there in space that would absolutely blow our mind, and definitely more coming. Now that I have told you my favorites, what are some of yours?


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The Epic Exploration of Voyager 2

Posted on April 3, 2017 by xiangyunastr2110

Voyager 2 space probe was launched by NASA to study the outer solar. It was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida on August 20, 1977.

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Launch of Voyager 2. Picture from JPL of NASA

The primary mission of Voyager 2 is to make flybys of the four Jovian planets in our solar system. Having visited the Jovian system in 1979, the Saturnian system in 1981, the Uranian system in 1986 and the Neptunian system in 1989, Voyager 2 is now in its extended mission to study the outer reaches of the Solar System.

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Trajectory of the Voyager. Picture from NASA

NASA takes advantage of the then-new technique of gravity assist, enabling Voyager 2, a single probe to flyby multiple planets before continuing on its way out of our solar system. The trajectory of Voyager 2 allowed additional fuel savings by using the gravity of each planet along the spacecraft’s path to help boost in onward to the next planet.

There are currently five science investigation teams participating in the Interstellar Mission. And 5 instruments onboard the Voyagers directly support those science investigations. The 5 investigations are: Magnetic field investigation, Low energy charged particle investigation, Cosmic ray investigation, Plasma investigation and Plasma wave investigation.

The epic exploration of Voyager 2 marked another great achievement in our journey of discovering the Universe. Here are some of the best pictures taken by Voyager 2.

 

 

 


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Blog 6: Orion and the Space Launch System

Posted on April 3, 2017 by lillyastro2110

NASA is building a new human spacecraft. The Orion spacecraft will carry humans farther than we’ve gone before. In 2014, Orion completed a two-orbit, four-hour flight to test its systems. Looking forward, Orion will launch from the Space Launch System.

The Space Launch System (SLS) is the world’s most powerful rocket. Wow!

In a series of missions (the first of which without astronauts), the Orion spacecraft will go thousands of miles beyond our moon. These missions will take astronauts days away from Earth, a stepping stone to deeper space travel. These missions will function as tests to lead to further exploration.

Where is this further exploration headed? Mars! The Orion spacecraft and its missions will be an important component of NASA goal of sending humans to the Red Planet in the 2030s.

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Sources:

https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/orion/about/index.html

https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/overview.html

https://www.nasa.gov/content/journey-to-mars-overview

 


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Blog 5: Enceladus’ Ocean

Posted on April 3, 2017 by lillyastro2110

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One of Saturn’s moons, we discussed in class interesting details of Enceladus. The most notable of these is the geysers of water and the potential subsurface ocean. Methane found among other particles in the water vapor plume have led researchers to consider a subsurface ocean as the origin of this methane.

Because of the high pressure expected of the subsurface ocean, icy materials (clathrates) could trap methane molecules. Two scenarios were proposed to explain the presence of the methane in the plume. The first is that methane is produced faster than it can be trapped. The second is that the methane trapped in clathrates rising through the plumes like bubbles in a carbonated drink.

Source: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/galleries/trapping-of-methane-in-enceladus-ocean


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Blog 4: Experience Curiosity

Posted on April 3, 2017 by lillyastro2110

NASA’s Experience Curiosity web application allows viewers to go inside the Curiosity Rover’s mission. Viewers can explore Mars by leading the rover around or learn more about the rover and the mission on guided tours.

Experience Curiosity gives highlights of Curiosity’s exploration of the Pahrump Hills region on Mars. You can examine the Pink Cliffs or Whale Rock or Garden City. The rock at Pink Cliffs is “finely layered and is full of pink crystals.” Whale Rock’s layers were caused by the flow of water. Garden City shows veins of minerals left behind by flowing water.

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Experience Curiosity not only gives detail and images on Mars, but it also allows viewers to understand what makes up the rover. You can look into the multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator that powers the rover or the wheels designed for traction and support. By learning about the components of the Curiosity Rover, you can start to understand the conditions of Mars in a new light.

 

Source: http://eyes.nasa.gov/curiosity/


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The Trojans and Greeks

Posted on April 3, 2017 by pkunetz97
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The locations of Trojans and Greeks compared to Jupiter

As was recently discussed in class, there are two clusters of asteroids ahead of and behind Jupiter known as the “Trojans” and the “Greeks”. The first one to be discovered was an asteroid now known as “Achilles”, a hero who fought on the Greek side of the Trojan War. The Greeks are all slightly ahead of Jupiter, whereas the Trojans are all slightly behind. The reason there are so many asteroids captured in these two locations is because these are the “Lagrange Points” of the Jupiter-Sun system. Any system of one mass orbiting another has these Lagrange points. In fact, there are 5 Lagrange points. One is ahead of the planet (the location of the “Greeks”), one is behind the planet (the location of the “Trojans”), one is between the planet and the sun, one slightly farther out than the planet, and one on the opposite side of the sun as the planet. Since every planet has these points, every planet (with the exceptions of Saturn and Mercury) has asteroids captured in at least one of these areas. Earth has one, known as “2010 TK7”. Since Jupiter is the largest of the planets, accounting for around 2/3 of the mass of the planets, it has over 6,000 Trojan asteroids. Since the asteroids are known as “Trojans” and “Greeks”, they are all named after famous heroes from the Iliad, the epic poem about the Trojan war. If you were to name these clusters today, what would you name them after? Would you draw from Greek mythology or get ideas from elsewhere?


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Blog #6: New Life?

Posted on April 3, 2017 by zhengastronomy

In February 2017, NASA released what could potentially be the most important astronomical discovery ever made. Using the  Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope or Trappist for short, NASA discovered a small red dwarf star 39 light years away with three planets positioned similarly to Earth and sun in a fashion that was conducive to supporting liquid water and water based life.

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A New World

This phenomenon is called the Goldilocks zone. Named TRAPPIST-1 after the telescope that discovered it, the star itself is barely the size of Jupiter and the seven planets orbiting it do so at similar distances to Jupiter’s moons. However the planets themselves are quite close to each other, being so close that it is speculated that standing on one of them would allow one to see features of neighboring planets in the sky. Should any life exist on any of these planets or not, one thing is certain. They are sure to have an amazing view of the sky, and who knows maybe the life forms living on these planets might even be able to see or communicate with each other as they develop. The possibilities and excitement surrounding the announcement are endless.

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Comparison to Jupiter

Sources:http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a25336/seven-earth-like-planets-trappist-1/


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Blog #5: Pluto’s Demotion

Posted on April 3, 2017 by zhengastronomy

As of August 24th  2006, the international astronomical union voted to demote Pluto to a dwarf planet, ending the nine planet era, redefining the definition of a planet, and rendering many, many astronomy books obsolete. But why was Pluto demoted? What happened to make astronomers cut away a part of so many people’s worldview? Will the International Flora Union demote the Potato from being a vegetable? While I can’t answer that one, we can take a look at why astronomers deem Pluto to be unfit to be a full-fledged planet like the others. In order to be a planet, it has to meet three criteria:

1.It is in orbit around the Sun.

2.It has sufficient mass to assume hydrostatic equilibrium (a nearly round shape).

3.It has “cleared the neighborhood” around its orbit.

Pluto fits the first two criteria by being round and orbiting the sun, but recent developments has caused the third criteria to come into question. In order to qualify, it must be the largest object in the area and have no large objects around it compared to the planet. When Pluto and Charon were first discovered in the 1930s, the technology didn’t exist to detect many of the objects in the Kuiper belt and with more modern telescopes scientists were able to identify more and more bodies in the neighborhood which renders the 3rd criteria false and thusly demotes Pluto as a full planet.

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Poor Pluto

Sources:

https://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/pluto.html


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