I love questions from my readers! So far I have received two, and I will answer one in this post. The other will have to wait a bit, it was pretty complicated. (It has to do with the space time continuum, in case you're curious.) But before I go on, I would like to reiterate that I love love love questions from readers. So ask away!
Flem in Santa Barbara, CA asks: "I need to know if it is possible that I saw a comet last weekend or if it was just an amazing shooting star that lasted for a couple of seconds."
Short answer: a meteor, not a comet.
Long answer: Comets are big balls of ice and dust (imagine a dirty snowball a few miles across) that orbit the sun in elliptical (oval-shaped) paths. As they orbit the sun, sometimes they are in a location where we can view them from Earth. When we see a comet in the sky, it looks like a kind of dim star with a faint tail behind it. Comets appear in the sky for weeks or even months, in pretty much the same spot night to night. Meteors are flashes of light created when specks of dust, most around the size of a grain of sand, enter the earth's atmosphere and the friction between air and the dust causes a tunnel of flames. (Contrary to the popular misnomer, meteors are not shooting stars at all; meteors=light from a speck of dust, stars=huge burning balls of gas a million miles across.)
So if you saw something bright flash across the sky and then disappear in a matter of minutes, I'm going to say it was a meteor and not a comet. It may have even been a stray Quadrantid.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Spotting Venus
Venus is a prominent part of the night sky lately. You may have seen it in the west after sunset, shining brighter than any of the stars. Because it is the closest planet to Earth and is covered in reflective clouds, it is really bright. In fact, in my former life, I used to get voice mails from people claiming they saw a UFO, describing in perfect detail the location, brightness and appearance of the planet Venus. And I was 100% unsuccessful in my endeavors to persuade them to consider they were looking at Venus, not cosmic messengers from another dimension. Oh well.
If you want to make sure you're seeing Venus and spare your poor local astronomer some "I just got another call from a UFO kook" grief, use this chart to go out and find it tonight. Or any other night for the next month or two; it'll be around for the next couple of months. As a special bonus for being timely, if you go out in the next night or two, Venus will be near the crescent moon.
Image and credit: Roen Kelly, Astronomy.com
If you want to make sure you're seeing Venus and spare your poor local astronomer some "I just got another call from a UFO kook" grief, use this chart to go out and find it tonight. Or any other night for the next month or two; it'll be around for the next couple of months. As a special bonus for being timely, if you go out in the next night or two, Venus will be near the crescent moon.
Image and credit: Roen Kelly, Astronomy.comThursday, January 29, 2009
Where Would You Point Hubble?
I remember working in the Space Lab at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History as an exhibit interpreter when I was a teenager. We had one exhibit labeled "Where Is Hubble Now?" People would always be really surprised to see that the display was a spherical model of Earth viewed from a bit out in space with a dot labeled "HST" near it. For some reason, far too many people think that the Hubble Space Telescope has actually traveled hundreds, thousands or even billions of lightyears through space to take the images it sends back to Earth. Of course you and I both know that's not true; HST is in low Earth orbit at a distance of 559 km above the earth.
HST takes great images because it's out of Earth's atmosphere. Trying to do astrophotography on the surface of the earth is like taking a picture from the bottom of a swimming pool; our turbulent atmosphere is always moving and flowing, which wreaks havoc on all those photons we're trying to capture. HST doesn't have that problem and, as a result, it takes some of the best images ever recorded of our universe.
If you were in charge of the Hubble Space Telescope for a day, where would you point it? NASA is giving you a chance to decide! In honor of IYA (see, I'm not the only one excited about it!), the folks at HubbleSite are offering us the people the chance to decide on what Hubble will study next. You can vote online here. If you're an educator, you can also register to receive a free Hubble Education Package. I won't tell you what I voted for, but I'll give you a hint: I voted for a "peculiar" target which gravity has distorted.
HST takes great images because it's out of Earth's atmosphere. Trying to do astrophotography on the surface of the earth is like taking a picture from the bottom of a swimming pool; our turbulent atmosphere is always moving and flowing, which wreaks havoc on all those photons we're trying to capture. HST doesn't have that problem and, as a result, it takes some of the best images ever recorded of our universe.
If you were in charge of the Hubble Space Telescope for a day, where would you point it? NASA is giving you a chance to decide! In honor of IYA (see, I'm not the only one excited about it!), the folks at HubbleSite are offering us the people the chance to decide on what Hubble will study next. You can vote online here. If you're an educator, you can also register to receive a free Hubble Education Package. I won't tell you what I voted for, but I'll give you a hint: I voted for a "peculiar" target which gravity has distorted.
Friday, January 23, 2009
What Good Is a Telescope? Part 3
As we celebrate IYA and Galileo's use of the astronomical telescope, it's time for some clarification. Galileo was not the first person to use a telescope. He wasn't even the first person to use a telescope for astronomical purposes. That honor goes to Thomas Harriot, an English astronomer who drew maps of the moon several months before Galileo. In fact, his very detailed diagrams were some of the best of the period. Unfortunately, he never published those maps or anything else related to his astronomical observations. He was well off and didn't need the income; it seems he pursued astronomy as a hobby and was content to keep his drawings to himself.
So as we honor Galileo for his discoveries and contributions, let's give a shout out to Thomas Harriot, who proved that if you don't publish, you just may perish (historically speaking). To hear more, you can check out this podcast from 365 Days of Astronomy, although it's a bit dry.
Thanks for joining me for this three part series. Check back next week for information on how and where you can see Venus!
So as we honor Galileo for his discoveries and contributions, let's give a shout out to Thomas Harriot, who proved that if you don't publish, you just may perish (historically speaking). To hear more, you can check out this podcast from 365 Days of Astronomy, although it's a bit dry.
Thanks for joining me for this three part series. Check back next week for information on how and where you can see Venus!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
What Good Is a Telescope? Part 2
Yesterday we left off with the geocentric view of our universe (with Earth at the center and everything else orbiting it), as propounded by The Church. Since this model could help predict the future positions of the planets, this meant power.
But of course, this couldn't last forever; absolute power and all that. The guy who changed everything forever was Galileo, and he did it with a telescope.
Galileo was an Italian scientist who became a student of Copernicanism upon reading works of Nicolaus Copernicus, an astronomer who died 21 years before Galileo was born. Copernicus maintained that the sun, not the earth, was the center of the universe (I'm using the term 'universe' as it would have been described at that time, not in our time). This model explained retrograde motion more clearly and simply that the geocentric model did, and thus provided more accurate predictions.
In the early 17th century, Galileo heard of a device called a spyglass and adapted a similar device to study the heavens. It was a simple device, a tube with a concave lens at one end and a convex lens at the other. It wasn't like a telescope you would use today; in fact, its power and quality were probably a bit less than a decent pair of binoculars today. To his credit, Galileo made vast improvements in the design of telescopes, eventually grinding his own mirrors and thereby drastically bettering his view of the universe.
Once he applied this new technology to the study of the stars, Galileo stumbled upon a cosmic quandry that would resolve the geocentric/heliocentric debate: the phases of Venus. If the geocentric view were to be correct, Galileo would never see Venus as more than a crescent in his telescope; if the heliocentric view were correct, Venus would grow from crescent to nearly full as viewed from the earth. Below are two animations demonstrating what each of these models would look like respectively.
Ptolemy's Model
Copernicus' Model
You guessed it; as Galileo studied Venus' phases through his telescope, he saw not just a crescent Venus but as time passed, all the way to a gibbous Venus in his field of view. And as quick as that, thousands of years worth of cosmological thinking were made obsolete.
You probably know the rest of the story. I won't go into details, but The Church wasn't particularly gracious about this new information (remember, astronomical knowledge = power); nor was Galileo gracious in his response. Nonetheless, the Scientific Revolution had begun and our understanding of the universe changed forever.
One last note: if you would like to listen to a fascinating account of all this, I highly recommend you give my fellow former planetarian Davin Flateau a listen. His podcast (part 365 Days of Astronomy podcast series) is available here. It's definitely worth nine minutes of your time. And the theme song is awesome!
Check back tomorrow for the exciting conclusion of our telescope tale.
But of course, this couldn't last forever; absolute power and all that. The guy who changed everything forever was Galileo, and he did it with a telescope.
Galileo was an Italian scientist who became a student of Copernicanism upon reading works of Nicolaus Copernicus, an astronomer who died 21 years before Galileo was born. Copernicus maintained that the sun, not the earth, was the center of the universe (I'm using the term 'universe' as it would have been described at that time, not in our time). This model explained retrograde motion more clearly and simply that the geocentric model did, and thus provided more accurate predictions.
In the early 17th century, Galileo heard of a device called a spyglass and adapted a similar device to study the heavens. It was a simple device, a tube with a concave lens at one end and a convex lens at the other. It wasn't like a telescope you would use today; in fact, its power and quality were probably a bit less than a decent pair of binoculars today. To his credit, Galileo made vast improvements in the design of telescopes, eventually grinding his own mirrors and thereby drastically bettering his view of the universe.
Once he applied this new technology to the study of the stars, Galileo stumbled upon a cosmic quandry that would resolve the geocentric/heliocentric debate: the phases of Venus. If the geocentric view were to be correct, Galileo would never see Venus as more than a crescent in his telescope; if the heliocentric view were correct, Venus would grow from crescent to nearly full as viewed from the earth. Below are two animations demonstrating what each of these models would look like respectively.
Ptolemy's Model
Copernicus' Model
You guessed it; as Galileo studied Venus' phases through his telescope, he saw not just a crescent Venus but as time passed, all the way to a gibbous Venus in his field of view. And as quick as that, thousands of years worth of cosmological thinking were made obsolete.
You probably know the rest of the story. I won't go into details, but The Church wasn't particularly gracious about this new information (remember, astronomical knowledge = power); nor was Galileo gracious in his response. Nonetheless, the Scientific Revolution had begun and our understanding of the universe changed forever.
One last note: if you would like to listen to a fascinating account of all this, I highly recommend you give my fellow former planetarian Davin Flateau a listen. His podcast (part 365 Days of Astronomy podcast series) is available here. It's definitely worth nine minutes of your time. And the theme song is awesome!
Check back tomorrow for the exciting conclusion of our telescope tale.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
What Good Is a Telescope?
This month's IYA theme is telescopes. In fact, the reason this year is IYA is that 2009 marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo's first use of the astronomical telescope. So what? Why should you care?
I'm going to answer that question in three parts, each of which will go live in three consecutive days. So consider this the first part, but by no means the entire story. Check back for more tomorrow and the day after.
The first part of this story centers around the power of astronomy. The power of astronomy is the power to predict the future. That is to say, we all have enough astronomical knowledge to know that the sun will rise and set each day. We can plan around this and it gives us power. If we didn't have that knowledge, we wouldn't have the power to set our own schedules or even know when the best times to sleep or work would be. In earlier times, the power to predict the future was just as important. And that future was laid out in the stars. If you could know where the planet Venus would be 5 months in the future, that meant power. And if you predicted it incorrectly, that was even worse.
To understand the importance of telescopes, let's take a journey back in time to the early 17th century. At that time, the ruling view of the universe was the geocentric model articulated by Ptolemy and Aristotle before him. From this point of view, the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars all orbited Earth in perfect spheres. This was the "onion" universe: the earth was at the center; the moon orbited in the sphere closest to the earth (like the layer of onion closest the center); Mercury and Venus orbited the earth just past the moon, each in their own layer; the sun was in the next layer out; followed by Mars; Jupiter; Saturn; and then the stars were the outside layer, all being part of one sphere that encircled all other spheres of orbit. In this model, the movement of celestial bodies was perfect and circular.
There was a bit of problem with this model; as all keen sky observers know, the planets don't follow a straight path in a single direction across the sky; occasionally, they seem to go backward in their path and then forward again, making a loop. How could this be explained in a model of spheres? The idea of epicycles sprung forth. Epicycles were orbits within orbits; that is to say, a planet like Mars would be moving in its own circular path while circling Earth.
This model of the universe was mostly accurate and allowed early astronomers to predict the positions of the planets más o menos (more or less, as we say in Spanish). Since the Catholic Church was one of the great powers of the day, The Church made sure that this perfect model was the one that people understood. God put Earth at the center of the universe (and by extension, man), and all other celestial bodies orbited in their perfect spheres. The Church could predict the future through this model of the universe and that gave The Church power.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of our telescope talk!
I'm going to answer that question in three parts, each of which will go live in three consecutive days. So consider this the first part, but by no means the entire story. Check back for more tomorrow and the day after.
The first part of this story centers around the power of astronomy. The power of astronomy is the power to predict the future. That is to say, we all have enough astronomical knowledge to know that the sun will rise and set each day. We can plan around this and it gives us power. If we didn't have that knowledge, we wouldn't have the power to set our own schedules or even know when the best times to sleep or work would be. In earlier times, the power to predict the future was just as important. And that future was laid out in the stars. If you could know where the planet Venus would be 5 months in the future, that meant power. And if you predicted it incorrectly, that was even worse.
To understand the importance of telescopes, let's take a journey back in time to the early 17th century. At that time, the ruling view of the universe was the geocentric model articulated by Ptolemy and Aristotle before him. From this point of view, the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars all orbited Earth in perfect spheres. This was the "onion" universe: the earth was at the center; the moon orbited in the sphere closest to the earth (like the layer of onion closest the center); Mercury and Venus orbited the earth just past the moon, each in their own layer; the sun was in the next layer out; followed by Mars; Jupiter; Saturn; and then the stars were the outside layer, all being part of one sphere that encircled all other spheres of orbit. In this model, the movement of celestial bodies was perfect and circular.
There was a bit of problem with this model; as all keen sky observers know, the planets don't follow a straight path in a single direction across the sky; occasionally, they seem to go backward in their path and then forward again, making a loop. How could this be explained in a model of spheres? The idea of epicycles sprung forth. Epicycles were orbits within orbits; that is to say, a planet like Mars would be moving in its own circular path while circling Earth.
This model of the universe was mostly accurate and allowed early astronomers to predict the positions of the planets más o menos (more or less, as we say in Spanish). Since the Catholic Church was one of the great powers of the day, The Church made sure that this perfect model was the one that people understood. God put Earth at the center of the universe (and by extension, man), and all other celestial bodies orbited in their perfect spheres. The Church could predict the future through this model of the universe and that gave The Church power.Stay tuned for Part 2 of our telescope talk!
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Methane on Mars
Maybe Marvin the Martian is a cow.
NASA held a press conference today to announce that data from orbiting spacecraft picked shows plumes of methane on Mars. Not just a singular event, but various plume events over the last 5 years.
Before you go and get all ALH 84001-style excited about life on Mars, please remember that methane can be produced both biologically and geologically. For example, both bovine digestive processes and volcanic processes create methane on Earth. No one is sure where the methane on Mars is coming from. However, the fact that plumes have been seen over this extended period of time leads planetary geologists to think there is some sort of active process on Mars they had not considered before.
So the long and the short of the story is that there is no direct evidence of life on Mars, no matter what the crazies tell you. Instead, just another answer that just leads to more questions. Oh, how I love science!
Follow this link to a video from NASA about these results.
NASA held a press conference today to announce that data from orbiting spacecraft picked shows plumes of methane on Mars. Not just a singular event, but various plume events over the last 5 years.
Before you go and get all ALH 84001-style excited about life on Mars, please remember that methane can be produced both biologically and geologically. For example, both bovine digestive processes and volcanic processes create methane on Earth. No one is sure where the methane on Mars is coming from. However, the fact that plumes have been seen over this extended period of time leads planetary geologists to think there is some sort of active process on Mars they had not considered before.
So the long and the short of the story is that there is no direct evidence of life on Mars, no matter what the crazies tell you. Instead, just another answer that just leads to more questions. Oh, how I love science!
Follow this link to a video from NASA about these results.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
More MER Anniversary Fun
Got this in my inbox today:
The Mars Exploration Rover team invites you all to watch the rovers' fifth anniversary celebration programming that will be broadcast from JPL on January 15. You are welcome to share this information with anyone you know...
Mars Exploration Rover fans:
Tune in to the public channel on NASA TV on Thursday, January 15 at 3:00 PM PST (6:00 PM EST) for a special live broadcast from JPL celebrating the twin rovers' 5th anniversary.
JPL will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Mars Exploration Rover mission with a program scheduled to include former CNN chief technology and environment correspondent Miles O'Brien on Thursday, Jan. 15 from 3 to 4 p.m. PST.
O¹Brien will give the event¹s keynote address following remarks by JPL Director Charles Elachi, Project Manager John Callas and Principal Investigator Steve Squyres. The presentation will also include video highlights and guest commentary on the rover mission.
To watch the show online, go to http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html?param=public .
Mars Exploration Rover fans:
Tune in to the public channel on NASA TV on Thursday, January 15 at 3:00 PM PST (6:00 PM EST) for a special live broadcast from JPL celebrating the twin rovers' 5th anniversary.
JPL will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Mars Exploration Rover mission with a program scheduled to include former CNN chief technology and environment correspondent Miles O'Brien on Thursday, Jan. 15 from 3 to 4 p.m. PST.
O¹Brien will give the event¹s keynote address following remarks by JPL Director Charles Elachi, Project Manager John Callas and Principal Investigator Steve Squyres. The presentation will also include video highlights and guest commentary on the rover mission.
To watch the show online, go to http://www.nasa.gov/
Holla For Huygens
The spacecraft and the the 17th century astronomer, but mostly to the spacecraft as we commemorate 4 years since its successful landing on Titan, Saturn's largest moon. Huygens got to Saturn by hitching a ride on the Cassini spacecraft, so for the first 7+ years of the mission, the two were bound in hyphenated harmony as Cassini-Huygens. By 2005, Huygens detached from Cassini while in Saturnian orbit and eventually landed on Titan. To truly appreciate this achievement, here's a review of the timeline:
10/15/1997 - The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft launches
4/26/1998 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Venus (that's when the spacecraft saves fuel by using the gravity of Venus to slingshot its way towards Saturn)
6/24/1999 - Another gravity-assisted flyby of Venus
8/18/1999 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Earth
12/30/2000 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Jupiter
[Various correctional burns over the next three and half years ensure that Cassini-Huygens stays on course.]
5/18/2004 - Cassini-Huygens enters the Saturn system
7/1/2004 - SOI (Saturn Orbit Insertion); again, to make the magnitude of this clear, after 7 years of space flight, Cassini-Huygens managed to reduce its speed by 1,400 mph in only 96 minutes. Cassini has arrived at its final destination - Saturnian orbit, but Huygens still has one last leg of the journey.
12/25/2004 - Huygens separates from Cassini
1/14/2005 - Huygens descends into Titan's atmosphere at 13,500 mph, slows itself down by aerobraking and parachuting; sends its first image back to Earth at 19:45 UTC, confirming that it landed on Titan and is functioning!
This is a really big deal; it's the farthest we've ever sent a lander, and it worked. It sent data for 90 minutes and then signals stopped. Data included images and loads of information about Titan's atmosphere, gleaned from Huygen's descent. It continued to send data from its landing spot in the Xanadu region of Titan. Good work, job well done and all that.
By the way, it's generally pronouced "HOY-ghens" by most English-speakers, which does vary slightly from the original Dutch pronunciation; but unless you're Dutch, you're better off sticking with the American way.
10/15/1997 - The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft launches
4/26/1998 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Venus (that's when the spacecraft saves fuel by using the gravity of Venus to slingshot its way towards Saturn)
6/24/1999 - Another gravity-assisted flyby of Venus
8/18/1999 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Earth
12/30/2000 - Gravity-assisted flyby of Jupiter
[Various correctional burns over the next three and half years ensure that Cassini-Huygens stays on course.]
5/18/2004 - Cassini-Huygens enters the Saturn system
7/1/2004 - SOI (Saturn Orbit Insertion); again, to make the magnitude of this clear, after 7 years of space flight, Cassini-Huygens managed to reduce its speed by 1,400 mph in only 96 minutes. Cassini has arrived at its final destination - Saturnian orbit, but Huygens still has one last leg of the journey.
12/25/2004 - Huygens separates from Cassini
1/14/2005 - Huygens descends into Titan's atmosphere at 13,500 mph, slows itself down by aerobraking and parachuting; sends its first image back to Earth at 19:45 UTC, confirming that it landed on Titan and is functioning!
This is a really big deal; it's the farthest we've ever sent a lander, and it worked. It sent data for 90 minutes and then signals stopped. Data included images and loads of information about Titan's atmosphere, gleaned from Huygen's descent. It continued to send data from its landing spot in the Xanadu region of Titan. Good work, job well done and all that.
By the way, it's generally pronouced "HOY-ghens" by most English-speakers, which does vary slightly from the original Dutch pronunciation; but unless you're Dutch, you're better off sticking with the American way.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Sing Along Time
Did you know that IYA has its own theme song? Yes, it's true; the renowned science-popsters AstroCapella have penned a theme song, Shoulders of Giants. Little Dudestronomer and I have been rocking out to this number all morning. It's available for free download here, and is also the subject of the Astronomy Music Video Contest. That's right, you can make your own music video and enter to win a fabulous prize. First prize is $500 and a telescope, and categories include middle school, high school, graduate and artist (artist category is for original song and video). The deadline is January 7, 2010, so get cracking!
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Biggest Full Moon of the Year?
Yes, if you read the headlines, you'll already know that tonight is the biggest full moon of 2009. What does that mean? That headline would lead you to believe that the moon actually shrinks and grows in physical size throughout the year. Is the moon larger tonight than it will be next month? Is the moon closer to Earth during full moon? What is going on? Since I love to debunk (don't even get me started on 2012), let's discuss.
The moon orbits Earth every 29.5 days. However, its orbit is not perfectly circular; it's a little oval shaped, or elliptical. (Impress your friends with that sometime.) That means that it's closer to Earth at some points of its orbit than at others. Tonight is that rare occasion when full moon and the moon's closest point in orbit (called perigee - another SAT word) coincide. This will not happen again during any full moons of 2009, so that makes this the closest (and therefore largest-appearing) full moon of the year.
And no, Mars will not appear as big as the full moon, the moon isn't larger when it rises and the full moon will not categorically make you crazy (or crazier than usual).
The moon orbits Earth every 29.5 days. However, its orbit is not perfectly circular; it's a little oval shaped, or elliptical. (Impress your friends with that sometime.) That means that it's closer to Earth at some points of its orbit than at others. Tonight is that rare occasion when full moon and the moon's closest point in orbit (called perigee - another SAT word) coincide. This will not happen again during any full moons of 2009, so that makes this the closest (and therefore largest-appearing) full moon of the year.
And no, Mars will not appear as big as the full moon, the moon isn't larger when it rises and the full moon will not categorically make you crazy (or crazier than usual).
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Edible Mars Rovers
As I mentioned, this is the month when we celebrate the 5th anniversary of the landing of the Mars Exploration Rovers on the Red Planet. In honor of this occasion, I've got a fun activity you can try. This is good for kids 3 and up (younger if you are really adventurous) and has been enjoyed by many adults as well. You can read one of many lesson plans at this link, or get adventurous and Google it yourself for lots of variations.
Ingredients (per rover):
Assemble the above ingredients to form something that looks like a robot. The frosting makes a good glue to hold all your constituent parts together. Remember that wrappers are just as important as the candies in them, especially the shiny ones. You can spend as much time as you like discussing what instruments you've created (maybe the bendy straw is the Rock Abrasion Tool or a Nilla wrapped in the Rolo foil is the high-gain antenna). You can keep the grahams whole or break them up. I like to keep one whole and then break one up into the little rectangles and use two of these as the solar panels. In case you aren't completely familiar with the Mars Exploration Rovers and their many parts, here's a diagram (click on it for larger image):
For healthier rovers:
Feel free to use alternate ingredients. You can use cream cheese as the glue, carrot wheels, celery sticks, banana slices, pretzel sticks, you name it. I personally prefer the candy one, but I would not intentionally allow my child to ingest that much sugar, so I won't tell you to either.
Photo credit Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History
Ingredients (per rover):
- 3 graham crackers
- 1 roll of Smarties
- 6 Nilla-style wafer cookies
- 3 big marshmallows
- 1 snack-size Kit Kat
- 2 snack-size peppermint patties
- 1 straw (preferably bendy)
- 1 knife
- 6 Rolos (wrapped individually if possible)
- Toothpicks
- 8 gumdrops
- Frosting
- Damp washcloth standing by
Assemble the above ingredients to form something that looks like a robot. The frosting makes a good glue to hold all your constituent parts together. Remember that wrappers are just as important as the candies in them, especially the shiny ones. You can spend as much time as you like discussing what instruments you've created (maybe the bendy straw is the Rock Abrasion Tool or a Nilla wrapped in the Rolo foil is the high-gain antenna). You can keep the grahams whole or break them up. I like to keep one whole and then break one up into the little rectangles and use two of these as the solar panels. In case you aren't completely familiar with the Mars Exploration Rovers and their many parts, here's a diagram (click on it for larger image):
For healthier rovers:
Feel free to use alternate ingredients. You can use cream cheese as the glue, carrot wheels, celery sticks, banana slices, pretzel sticks, you name it. I personally prefer the candy one, but I would not intentionally allow my child to ingest that much sugar, so I won't tell you to either.
Photo credit Santa Barbara Museum of Natural HistorySaturday, January 3, 2009
Happy Birthday!
[Insert sound of party blower here.] Today marks the 5th anniversary of the successful landing of the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit on the surface of the Red Planet. The other rover, Opportunity, landed on January 24th, 2004. More on this later in the month, but for now, here's a reminder of what happened five years ago.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Quadrantids Meteor Shower
January 3rd (that's tomorrow, people!) is the peak of the annual Quadrantids meteor shower. The estimated best time for viewing is 12:50 UT (7:50 EST, 4:50 PST) but of course you'll see plenty before and after. Best viewing is after midnight, doubly this year because of the moon.
Why do we have meteor showers? Meteor showers are caused by Earth moving through the debris left behind by a comet. As comets orbit the sun, they leave bits of dust behind. Since that dust stays in a (mostly) stationary spot in our orbit, we know we'll run into that patch at the same time each year.
Most meteor showers are known by the name of the constellation nearest the center (or "radiant") of the shower. The Geminids, for example have their radiant in the constellation Gemini. Interestingly, the Quandrantids were named for a now defunct constellation name, Quadrans Muralis. That constellation was near what we call the Big Dipper, so look in the north toward the Big Dipper for the radiant.
If you're going to try to see the shower, wait at least until moonset (just past midnight here in South Florida) and then look outside. No telescope necessary; some people mistakenly think they'll see more meteors with a telescope. In fact, it's just the opposite: you want to see as much of the sky as possible in order to see all meteors in your view. If you use a telescope, you'll see only a tiny part of the sky. To see more of the sky, find a nice clear spot (no buildings, lights or tall trees), lie down on a comfy sleeping bag and enjoy!
If you can't make it out on the 3rd (or if weather doesn't permit), don't worry; meteor showers last days or sometimes weeks. Just keep your eyes open when you're outside at night for the next week or two and you'll probably see a meteor or two.
Happy meteor hunting!
Why do we have meteor showers? Meteor showers are caused by Earth moving through the debris left behind by a comet. As comets orbit the sun, they leave bits of dust behind. Since that dust stays in a (mostly) stationary spot in our orbit, we know we'll run into that patch at the same time each year.
Most meteor showers are known by the name of the constellation nearest the center (or "radiant") of the shower. The Geminids, for example have their radiant in the constellation Gemini. Interestingly, the Quandrantids were named for a now defunct constellation name, Quadrans Muralis. That constellation was near what we call the Big Dipper, so look in the north toward the Big Dipper for the radiant.
If you're going to try to see the shower, wait at least until moonset (just past midnight here in South Florida) and then look outside. No telescope necessary; some people mistakenly think they'll see more meteors with a telescope. In fact, it's just the opposite: you want to see as much of the sky as possible in order to see all meteors in your view. If you use a telescope, you'll see only a tiny part of the sky. To see more of the sky, find a nice clear spot (no buildings, lights or tall trees), lie down on a comfy sleeping bag and enjoy!
If you can't make it out on the 3rd (or if weather doesn't permit), don't worry; meteor showers last days or sometimes weeks. Just keep your eyes open when you're outside at night for the next week or two and you'll probably see a meteor or two.
Happy meteor hunting!
Thursday, January 1, 2009
By Way Of Introduction
Welcome to the Stay-At-Home Momstronomer! I'm your humble host, the aforementioned Momstronomer. You see, I spent 13 years working at a natural history museum teaching astronomy to people. Around year 12, I spawned a baby dudestronomer. A year later, my husband's schooling shuttled us away from my home-away-from-home, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, and dropped us off in the foreign land of South Florida. One of the perks of this deal was that I went from full-time mom and full-time astronomy programs manager to extra-full-time mom.
It took me about 30 seconds to realize that even if no one was paying me for it, I couldn't say away from astronomy. Little Dudestronomer (as he shall henceforth be known on this blog) is a few days away from 18 months now, and he has no idea how ferociously I'm going to cram his noggin full of astrostuff. It's a tricky thing teaching these upper level concepts to little people (and to grown people as well), so I thought I'd share some of my tactics and experiences with you.
This is the right blog for you if you like astronomy, but don't know as much you'd like to about it. Also, if you know something about astronomy, but you're too lazy to follow all the headlines yourself, welcome aboard. Finally, if you find yourself in a similar situation to mine (you are charged with the education of young and fertile minds), please stay tuned.
One final word about IYA: 2009 is the official International Year of Astronomy. All over the world, people will be celebrating the 400th anniversary of Galileo's first use of the astronomical telescope with events and activities throughout the year. This blog is my contribution (as well as a lof of build-up work at my former place of employ, now taken over by my successor) to the cause. I will not be posting every day, but I will post regularly - a 2-3 times a week. My posts will not be novels; computer time is at a permium with the Little Dudestronomer in my care. So check back early and often for news, current sky events, activities and all the fun I can stuff into this blog.
Happy IYA!
It took me about 30 seconds to realize that even if no one was paying me for it, I couldn't say away from astronomy. Little Dudestronomer (as he shall henceforth be known on this blog) is a few days away from 18 months now, and he has no idea how ferociously I'm going to cram his noggin full of astrostuff. It's a tricky thing teaching these upper level concepts to little people (and to grown people as well), so I thought I'd share some of my tactics and experiences with you.
This is the right blog for you if you like astronomy, but don't know as much you'd like to about it. Also, if you know something about astronomy, but you're too lazy to follow all the headlines yourself, welcome aboard. Finally, if you find yourself in a similar situation to mine (you are charged with the education of young and fertile minds), please stay tuned.
One final word about IYA: 2009 is the official International Year of Astronomy. All over the world, people will be celebrating the 400th anniversary of Galileo's first use of the astronomical telescope with events and activities throughout the year. This blog is my contribution (as well as a lof of build-up work at my former place of employ, now taken over by my successor) to the cause. I will not be posting every day, but I will post regularly - a 2-3 times a week. My posts will not be novels; computer time is at a permium with the Little Dudestronomer in my care. So check back early and often for news, current sky events, activities and all the fun I can stuff into this blog.
Happy IYA!
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