The Andromeda Galaxy

Posted on March 16, 2022 by Lindsey
Britannica

The Andromeda Galaxy is one of the only galaxies visible without the aid of a telescope on Earth. It is a spiral galaxy, and it got its name because it is located in the constellation Andromeda. It is approximately 2,480,000 light years from Earth and has a diameter of approximately 200,000 light years. The first documented account of the Andromeda Galaxy was in 965 CE in the Book of Fixed Stars, written by al-Sufi, ancient Islamic astronomer.

Current astronomers believe that the Andromeda Galaxy has a history of collisions with other galaxies. Huge structures of stars and gas located on the outermost part of this galaxy suggest that this galaxy had collided with and “integrated” smaller galaxies. Additionally, based on observations made by the Spitzer Space Telescope, Andromeda is suspected to contain nearly twice the number of stars that are found in our own galaxy.

One of the most alarming aspects of the Andromeda Galaxy is that when we observe its emission spectrum, it appears to be blue-shifted, meaning it is moving towards us. The Milky Way and Andromeda are moving towards each other at a rate of about 120 km/s. However, this is not a cause for concern (at least for us ) because this means these two galaxies are predicted to collide in about 4 billion years, which will be quite a long time after our lifetimes.

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The Apollo Missions: Fun Facts

Posted on March 16, 2022 by Lindsey
AstronomyTrek

Almost everyone has heard about the apollo missions to space and the valuable information obtained about our solar system. Here are some interesting facts about the apollo program:

One crazy statistic is that the Saturn V launch vehicle was taller than the Statue of Liberty. This rocket was a huge engineering feat, reaching 316 feet into the air. It ended up being able to successfully support a load of 310,000 pounds and maintain a low orbit around Earth.

Another shocking fact is that all of endeavors of the Apollo program cost a total of 109 billion dollars. The Apollo spacecrafts costed a total of $7,945 million and the Saturn V launch vehicles costed $6,871.10 million in total.

Another interesting fact about the Apollo program is that their research led to the development of portable, cordless vacuum cleaners. NASA created a program to design the electric motor of an energy-conservative drill intended to extract core samples from the surface of the moon. This same program was used to design a small, portable vacuum cleaner, called the Dust Buster, in 1979. The Dust Buster soon became a popular household appliance.

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blog post 02

Posted on February 21, 2022 by graceward02

NASA’s James Webb Telescope was launched on December 25, 2021. It is a collaborative effort between NASA (United States), The European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency. This telescope has four main areas where its data will be used: considering the first light in the universe, early assembly of galaxies in the universe, birth of cosmic objects (stars, protoplanetary systems, etc.), and the origins of life on planets.

James Webb Telescope

While it will take about a month for the telescope to reach its observing spot, it will also take around 6 months for all of its instruments to be fine tuned for the best images to be produced. Once this occurs, the telescopes images will help astronomers determine what happened after the first stars formed, the evolution of galaxies, the sources of heat inside the clouds of gas that form stars, and look at exoplanets (and their atmospheres) to better determine if they would be suitable for life.

The James Webb Telescope is considered to be the Hubble Space Telescope’s replacement. It is the most advanced telescope to ever be launched into space. It has taken developers 30 years to build, with countless engineering and political setbacks.

Personally, I can’t wait to see what discoveries or concepts are figured out because of this telescope’s findings. This telescope could truly change our understanding of the universe. It also will allow us better insight into how the universe formed and how it continues to evolve.

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How Tides Actually Work

Posted on February 21, 2022 by Sheila Chau

When I was younger, I thought that mermaids were the reason why the tides moved. I thought that mermaids were pulling the ocean back and forth. I later learned the actual origins of the tides in school, but I would still like to think that mermaids were the reason.

Graphic of how tides work

Instead of mermaids, tides are actually due to the difference of the force of attraction between the Moon and the Earth. The first point to understand about tides is that gravity impacts different parts of Earth differently. Gravity’s strength declines with distance, so the gravitational attraction between the Earth and Moon becomes weaker as we look from the side that faces the Moon to the side that doesn’t. This difference in gravitational attraction causes for a tidal force. This creates two tidal bulges.

A part of me wishes that mermaids were actually the reason behind tides moving, but the actual explanation is still interesting to learn.

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How the Moon Affects the Earth’s Tides

Posted on February 21, 2022 by McKenzieKing
A Visual of the Moon’s Tidal Force

It is a common misconception that the tides on Earth are caused because the Moon’s gravitational pull is just pulling the ocean towards it. However, if this were the case then there would only be one tidal change every day and we experience two! So, what else could be causing the oceans to rise and fall. Well, it is still the Moon! What is really happening is the Moon’s gravity is “stretching” around the Earth which creates a “tidal force” that affects opposite sides of the planet. This is similar to when you pull a rubber band and both the side you pull and the side you hold still stretch and it creates an oval or oblong shape. Now, imagine that there is a rubber band around the Earth and the Moon is at one end of it. The other end of the rubber band should also be stretched out. This is the effect of the Moon’s gravity on the Earth and what causes the tides to rise and fall twice a day, once when the Moon is directly pulling on the ocean and again when the Moon is on the opposite side of the planet and that area is experiencing the stretching force. So, it is the Moon’s gravity that causes the high and low tides, but it is not just when the Moon is directly above that area but it happens on both sides of the Earth at the same time.

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Gyroscopes in Space – Angular momentum

Posted on February 21, 2022 by Jack Walton

In this 2016 demonstration aboard the ISS, the ESA astronaut Tim Peake demonstrates how a gyroscope spinning in space maintains its orientation even when a rotational force is applied.

A Video from the ESA Youtube Channel

While, this video was published in 2016, the physics of rotation have not changed since then! In the video, Peake demonstrates how once a gyroscope gets up to speed, the axis of rotation is very resistant to changes in direction. He shows this by letting the spinning gyroscope float in place, then giving it a nudge. If the gyroscope was not spinning, then the nudge would cause the object to spin with the force of the nudge. When the gyroscope is spinning, the nudge instead causes the gyroscope to move laterally away from the direction of the nudge, while not adding a rotation.

The ISS has 4 huge gyroscopes used for stabilization. These are used to keep the ISS pointed in the right direction even when it faces forces that could disturb it’s stability like “gravity gradient, atmospheric drag, solar pressure, and geomagnetic interactions,” according to Wikipedia.

I think it gyroscopes are so interesting because they work in ways that often seem counterintuitive. I hope in a future class, we will take a closer look at the physics behind their motion.

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Historical Vanderbilt Astronomer

Posted on February 20, 2022 by AndreaS
Edward Emerson Barnard

If you have spent much time in E. Bronson Ingram residential college on Vanderbilt’s campus, you may have noticed that part of the dorm is named after one Edward Emerson Barnard. As it turns out, Barnard was an astronomer who attended the university from 1883-1887. His research focused on observation and photography of stars and other celestial objects in the night sky and he is credited for a number of comets, among other things.

In 1892, Barnard discovered Jupiter’s fifth satellite moon, Amalthea. This was the first of Jupiter’s satellites to be discovered since time of Galileo, which is pretty remarkable. Barnard also discovered a star displaying considerable proper motion (its one of the closest stars to us) in 1916 which is named after him. Combining his interest in photography with astronomical observation, Barnard helped to progress our knowledge of the Milky Way and our solar system within it.

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Reversing Falls

Posted on February 20, 2022 by gcomartin
Via Wikipedia

In Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, 100 billion tons of water flow in and out of the Bay of Fundy each day by way of the Saint John River. Yes, in and out of the same river. The water level of the Bay of Fundy changes a dramatic 28 feet between low and high tide. This nearly 10 meter change results in a “reverse falls:” the rapids run towards the bay at low tide, but move back up the rapids at high tide. As we know, tides are caused by the gravitational force of the sun and moon on Earth’s bodies of water. As such, we can deduce that the high tides on the rapids coincide with periods where Earth rotation positions New Brunswicks is towards the moon, while low tide coincides with when the moon is on the opposite side of Earth as New Brunswick. The bay reaches extremely high tides when the moon is in full or new moon. This leads the rate of water backflow in the river to exceed 100 billions tons of water, greater than the volume of every river on earth.

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Light: Wavelength, Frequency, and Energy

Posted on February 20, 2022 by solarelizabeth
The relationship between color, energy, frequency, and wavelength!

A prism splits white light into a spectrum of colors ranging from red to violet. These colors correspond to different wavelengths, frequencies, and energy levels. Light with a longer wavelength has a lower frequency and lower energy level, and light with a shorter wavelength has a higher frequency and higher energy level. Violet light has a relatively shorter wavelength and higher frequency compared to other types of visible light. Red light has a relatively longer wavelength and lower frequency, so it is lower energy than violet light.

Wavelength and frequency correspond to energy level and are meaningful in understanding how photons are emitted from and absorbed by atoms. If an atom absorbed violet light photons, it would gain a relatively large amount of energy and its electrons would move to higher energy levels. On a spectrum, we would see black absorption lines where violet would be. If an atom released violet light photons, its electrons would fall to lower energy levels. If an atom absorbed red light photons, it would gain less energy than if it absorbed violet. The electrons of the atom absorbing red light would not be able to move up as many energy levels compared to the electrons in the atom absorbing violet light.

Do you all think radio waves or x rays have more energy? Why?

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Hypatia of Alexandria

Posted on February 20, 2022 by jordanekstein

Hypatia of Alexandria (335 CE – 415 CE) was an important mathematician and astronomer often credited as the first female astronomer and the last head librarian of the Library of Alexandria. Her father, Theos, was also an astronomer and mathematician and was the last official member of the Library of Alexandria. He also played a part in the preservation of Euclid’s Elements. Hypatia was sent away to study in Athens and came back to Egypt to become the head of the Platonist school of Alexandria with many dedicated pupils. She is also associated with the early development of scientific instruments such as the hydrometer and astrolabe. Sadly, due to the religious tensions in the city and her association with Paganism, she was brutally murdered by a Christian mob. Many cite her death as the end of the classical world and the nail in the coffin for the Library of Alexandria.

Drawing of Hypatia of Alexandria
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