APOD 2.1

October 27, 2010
Ultraviolet Andromeda

I chose this picture because I think it's beautiful. It's cool to think that there are so many other galaxies like ours out in space. And to think that our galaxy is only one of hundreds of thousands of galaxies. The Andromeda galaxy lies approx. 2.5 million ly away but is the closest galaxy to ours! The Swift telescope has taken pictures of it in optical and UV wavelengths.  I love the UV picture because of the blue colors and because you can see the spirals of stellar dust and stars better. The pictures show that there are more then 20,000 stars surround the galaxy.   What if each of those has a "solar system" around it? It's just sad that the human race will probably never be able to find out what lies within the Andromeda Galaxy. There could be life. There could be water or another life form that is thinking about the our galaxy. Space is so vast and filled with things waiting to be discovered.

APOD 1.8

It Came From the Sun
October 18, 2010

This picture of the Sun amazes me. The sun produces what are called prominences. These prominences are solar flares from the Sun that are held close to the Sun be the magnetic field surrounding the Sun. The Sun is so huge that the Earth could fit into the flare easily! That's huge! The Sun provides 99.8% of the ENTIRE mass of the solar system. Jupiter makes up most of the rest. Also, the core of the Sun is approx. 16 million degrees K! The sun is so impressive! Another interesting fact that I found as I was wondering through the hyperlinks, was that the density of the core of the Sun is 105 times heavier then water! The sun is so cool, well actually it's really is hot. The reason for such large prominences is caused by the fact that the Sun is coming up to its most active part of its "life". This is called the solar maximum. Other clues to that the Solar maximum is coming is the sight of many sun spots and prominences. Some of the prominences last for months while others are erratic and last for only a couple of days. The Sun is amazing and powers our lives!

APOD 1.7

Globular Star Cluster NGC 6934
October 9, 2010


I really like this picture, which is why I chose it. The stars a brilliant array of blues and make the scene look very magical. I never knew that there could be so many stars concentrated in one place. The reason for the high concentration of the stars is caused by the gravitational pull toward the center of the stars. The stars are actually acting as satellites orbiting around a galactic core. Normally, the globular star clusters have stars that range in age. Different bands of the stars have been there longer then others. The stars pictured are actually older then the disk that they orbit.This globular star cluster has been known to man since 1785 founded by William Herschel. The cluster is found in Delphinus the Dolphin. Although the cluster lies 50,000 light years away :O the Hubble Telescope has no problem seeing it from it's Advanced Camera for Surveying. The picture spans 50 light years across! That means if something wee going at the speed of light (pretending that mankind can make something that actually travels that fast) it would still take 50 years to reach the destination! That's incredible!

Quarter 1 Biography: Gian Cassini

Quarter One Biography: Gian Cassini

Gian Cassini was a fundamental astronomer of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Born in France during June of 1625, Cassini was born into a family that was very interested in astronomy. He was raised by his mother’s brother and studied at a Jesuit College in Genoa in addition to an abbey located in San Fruttuoso. Cassini showed an interest in the heavens right away. Because of this Marquis Cornelio Malvasia, the senator of Bologna and an astronomer, invited Cassini to work with him in his observatory. For 21 years Cassini worked with the Marquis while still learning the tools of the trade. One of Cassini’s other tutors was Francesco Maria Grimaldi, the man responsible for discovering the phenomenon of diffraction. Although Gian had excellent teachers, many people say that these teachers taught Cassini the Geocentric view of the universe that Gian upheld throughout his lifetime. Cassini soon became fairly popular and was later given the Principle Chair of Astronomy at the university in Bologna. Three years later, Cassini proved himself again as an elite astronomer. He did this by successfully constructing an accurate meridian; a measuring device like a sundial, after the previous obsolete meridian was no longer usable. Once the meridian was built Cassini was able to take precise measurements of the exact positions of solstices and equinoxes.

During the next nine years, Cassini took a break from solely studying the heavens. Gian wrote several memoirs about the flooding of the Po River, and even instituted some experiments involving hydraulics. He was also appointed superintendent of the rivers when the cities of Bologna and Ferrara were in dispute over the path of the rivers. This basically meant that is was Cassini’s duty to defend the papal view of controlling and regulating the Chiana River.  He also participated in studying blood transfusions and insects. Even though Cassini diverged from astronomy, the passion for the skies came back. During the beginning of the 1660’s Cassini published observations of solar eclipses and comets. In addition to making publications with the naked eye, Cassini’s relations with the lens makers Giuseppe Campani and Eustachio Divini allowed him to obtain a telescope. Using this telescope, Gian was able to make very precise and accurate observations that soon added up to an extensive collection worthy of Tycho Brahe. Cassini was able to see Jupiter with its moons and estimate the approximate length of rotation for the satellites. Not only did Gian observe that Jupiter itself was flattening, but also that Jupiter had spots and bands. Cassini was able to complete the Jovian tables of movement that Galileo could not. In 1668, Jean Colbert, the finance minister of France, invited Gian Cassini to the newly established Académic Royale des Sciences Academy. Cassini would be the head of the Royal Observatory. By using telescopes that had focal lengths between 17-136 feet, Cassini was able to identify three more moons around Saturn and the dark circle in the rings of Saturn. This divide in the rings is now referred to as the Cassini Divide. Gian was also able to map out an extensive portion of the lunar surface. Later in 1672, Cassini and fellow astronomers were able to estimate the length of the astronomical unit, or the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Jean Richer and Gian Cassini were able to determine the distance by using measurements associated with Mars’ opposition. This was quite achievement because astronomers were now able to approximate the size of the universe. While in France, Gian met his wife during 1674, and had two boys. The youngest of the sons followed in the footsteps of his father and became an astronomer.

Throughout Gian Cassini’s life he renounced the heliocentric view of the universe and the laws of gravitation proposed by Sir Isaac Newton. Even though Cassini did not agree with these theories, he was able to accomplish many things in the field of astronomy. Toward the end of Cassini’s life, in 1710, he went completely blind. Cassini eventually died in 1712 at the age of 87. Cassini leaves a legacy and for that reason, NASA launched a satellite named after Cassini, whose mission is to investigate Saturn. A crater on The Moon and a crater on Mars are named in honor of Gian Cassini as well. All in all, Cassini made essential contributions during his lifetime that has a lasting effect.

APOD 1.6

Io in True Color
October 3, 2010

This picture was taken by the spacecraft Galileo in 1999. It truly astounds me that we can see what lies millions of miles away. The interesting part of the picture is that NASA has reconstructed the image of Io so the image resembles that of what the moon would really look like to the human eye. The yellow coloring is due to the sulfur and the silica in the moon. The amount of sulfur must be amazing because sulfur is abundant in volcanoes. And since the entire moon is a giant volcano it would make sense as to why the moon is yellow. The weird holes are actually volcanoes. Each one is a separate volcano! NASA stated that there are so many volcanoes actively pumping out lava, that the moon is literally turning itself inside out! How could the human race obtain such pictures? The Galileo spacecraft has orbited Jupiter for 8 years collecting data and sending it back to Earth. The probe was dropped into the atmosphere of Jupiter to get readings. The probe had to withstand extremely hot temperatures and pressure. It's amazing how man can make something  like this and have trust that it will work.

Observation 10-5-10

My dad and I went to go walk the dog and see the Iridium flare tonight. We stood in our neighbor's driveway and looked up at about 8:03 pm. The scheduled time for the flare was at 8:05. While waiting I saw Jupiter about 30 degrees North and in the East direction. Jupiter continues to move south in the sky as the weeks pass by. I also found the Summer Triangle and was able to locate Vega and Altair. Right on schedule the Iridium satellite showed itself in the North sky almost 70 degrees North until I was able to see it. The flare couldn't have lasted for more then 10 seconds from the glance that I saw it at. It was pretty cool to see a satellite 300 miles above where I was though. :)

APOD 1.5

Arp 188 and the Tadpole's  Tidal Tail
Sept. 26 2010

The HUbble Telescope has reciently recieved new cameras. The new cameras are able to take ictures of thing never seen befoare. The camera can take pictures ranging from ultraviolet waves and infrared waves. The picture of this galaxy is amazing becuase of the lengthy tail trailing behind it. The tail was caused by an impact of another celestial body. In this case, scientist belive that the impact was created by yet another galaxy. The galaxy has blown by and now lies 300 thousand light years behind the Tadpole!! That emkans that the galaxy is now 300,000 * 6 trillion miles away!!! The fact that the galaxies can move so quickly amazes me. Also, the emornity of teh galaxies themselves is incredible. The tail alone is 280  thousand light years long! How is that even possible? The end of teh tail is held together by the gravity of the galaxy! The gravity of the galaxy can reach out to 280 thousand light years!! These galaxies are HUGE! And, if you look in the picture there are thousands more really really far away, that human kind will probably never even know about! Each of those tiny little dots is yet another huge galaxy that is waiting for man to discover. What lies in those untouched galaxies? Is there life else where that we have no idea baout? Will we ever get to know?