moon
Tag archives for moon
The Physics of Sunsets
Posted by Ethan on February 13, 2013 
“It does no harm to the romance of the sunset to know a little bit about it.” -Carl Sagan I would argue the exact opposite, in fact: the beauty of a sunset, in all of its varieties and variations, is only enhanced the more you know about it. The next time you watch the Sun…
There’s Water on Mercury, and EVERY World Like it!
Posted by Ethan on November 30, 2012 
“You don’t drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there.” -Edwin Louis Cole Our Solar System is — at least from our perspective — the most well-studied system of planets, moons, asteroids and comets in the entire Universe. And in this system, the closest planet to our Sun, Mercury, was also one…
Why you must NEVER hug the Moon!
Posted by Ethan on November 28, 2012 
“Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night.” -Hal Borland Of course you know the danger that would befall us if the Earth ever got too close to the Sun, as the Perry Bible Fellowship shows, atop. But have you…
How the Earth moves, and how do we know?
Posted by Ethan on September 18, 2012 
“Nature is relentless and unchangeable, and it is indifferent as to whether its hidden reasons and actions are understandable to man or not.” -Galileo Galilei All of science is rooted in the idea that natural phenomena can be explained naturally, and that if we want to know how anything in the Universe works, all we…
Rocks remember, and so do we
Posted by Ethan on August 25, 2012 
“Geologists have a saying: rocks remember.” -Neil Armstrong Looming up above us, hundreds of thousands of miles away, is the largest moon in the inner solar system: our Moon. One of the greatest achievements in the history of our planet culminated on July 20th, 1969, when the first creatures from our world set foot on…
It’s NEVER Night on the Moon!
Posted by Ethan on August 2, 2012 
“Ignignokt: Well well, I know that. I said that, but it’s his nap time now. Err: ’Cause he like, sleeps during the day. Ignignokt: But at night he feeds. Err: And it’s always night on the Moon! Ignignokt: Don’t f*** with me, Err.” -Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Moon Master Ahh, the Moon. The brightest object in our night sky is…
43 years later, we’re seven minutes away from a second giant leap forward.
Posted by Ethan on July 20, 2012 
“The achievements of Apollo were so bold and our subsequent efforts so timid that the energy of those years seems like a youthful dream.” -Buzz Aldrin 43 years ago today, humanity took our first steps on another world, venturing nearly 400,000 kilometers from home and walking on the surface of the Moon. Of course, what…
The Biggest Storm Ever on a Small, Small World
Posted by Ethan on July 13, 2012 
“For most of the history of our species we were helpless to understand how nature works. We took every storm, drought, illness and comet personally. We created myths and spirits in an attempt to explain the patterns of nature.” -Ann Druyan Here on Earth, we are well aware of how devastating storms can be. From…
Incredible Star Trails, from Earth and Beyond
Posted by Ethan on June 8, 2012 
“Building one space station for everyone was and is insane: we should have built a dozen.” -Larry Niven Here on the solid ground of the Earth, the Sun and Moon rise and set on a daily basis. During the hours where the Sun is invisible, blocked by the solid Earth, the stars twirl overhead in…
How long does a Solar Eclipse last?
Posted by Ethan on June 1, 2012 
“The moon shuts off the beams of the sun as it passes across it, and darkens so much of the earth as the breadth of the blue-eyed moon amounts to.” -Empedocles, ~450 B.C. Less than two weeks ago, I saw my first annular eclipse, with some spectacular results at the moment of maximum eclipse. This…
