Eclipses can create some amazing sights. An eclipse occurs when the moon, earth, and sun fall into a straight line. Though we are most excited with the phase of a total lunar eclipse which causes the moon to have a reddish tent, it should be noted that there are other phases of an eclipse as well. We often have two main categories of eclipses which are lunar and solar. In a lunar eclipse the earth is in the middle position between the sun and the moon causing the earths shadow to fall upon the moon. In a solar eclipse the moon is in the middle position between the earth and sun causing the moon’s shadow to fall upon the earth. The different phases of a lunar eclipse are total, partial, and penumbral. For a solar eclipse the phases are total, partial, and annular.
Throughout the year the Northern Hemisphere as well as the Southern Hemisphere experience changes. These changes influence the amount of daylight and temperature that impact that particular region. In Nebraska, which lies in the Northern Hemisphere we have 4 distinguished seasons which are Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. In the dead heat of summer temperatures can reach over 100 degrees and in the cold of winter we can experience negative degrees. Why is this so? It is the tilt of the axis that makes this possible. In other words, Earth has an axis tilt of 23.5 degrees and as it rotates day by day throughout the yearly orbit, the suns rays impact a particular region more during some months compared to other months. The sun hits the Northern Hemisphere more during the months of May, June, July, and August causing it to be summer giving us longer days as well. To further explain this, I’ve added a short video clip in which Bill Nye the science guy shows a visual perspective of how this happens.
Now that we know the reasons for the seasons, I’d like to tell you my favorite season and why. My favorite season is Fall because the mornings and evenings get a little colder. This is also a time when Football is in the air and hunting seasons start up. Nebraska is widely known for it’s great agricultural and beef production, but it should also be brought up that it offers some of the best hunting that can fill a families freezer as well. Now that you know mine, what is yours?
Reference
H. (2014). Bill Nye explains Seasons. Retrieved September 11, 2016, fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUU7IyfR34o
Is Earth the only planet sustainable for life? We are often exploring the boundaries of the universe to find a planet that could potentially be livable for the human species. In order for this to happen, two elements need to be available which are water (h2o) and oxygen (o). Some scientists believe they might have just came across this very earth-like planet they’ve been searching for many years.
One thing that I find astonishing is that Proxima b is located to our closest star which is just over 4 light years away. What we see of the planet now is how the planet looked 4 years ago. In other words since it takes light to travel that far for it to reflect off the surface of the planet and since we can now see it through a telescope in which scientist have calculated it being over 4 light years away, we are looking back at the planet as it looked 4 years ago. We are looking back in the past at this planet and in order for us to see how it looks today ,September 4th, 2016, it will take another 4 years. This discover gives us great hope that life could be sustainable elsewhere in our universe.
Reference
Could the Nearest Earth-Like Planet Be Right Next Door– Youtube.com, Published on August 25th, 2016; Scientific American
My name is Cameron Klingelhoefer and I have an extreme passion for the outdoors. I love to hunt and fish which is one reason I have become interested in learning more about our universe because of the navigation tool it is able to offer. My only experience with astronomy is locating the northern star which has personally become very useful during some hunting trips in the Colorado mountains. I am attending the University of Nebraska at Kearney in which I will major in Criminal Justice with a minor in Biology. I chose this field of study to teach,explore, and enforce the valuable resources that often get overlooked daily.
What I hope to get out of Astronomy 210 is a better understanding of why certain events happen as they do. What causes a black hole? Why do the northern lights produce the colors they do? How does a meteor shower occur? Our universe is so complex but yet these simple questions are unknown to an “Average Joe” as myself.
There are two things that have particularly fascinated me and they are shooting stars and northern lights. I have spent numerous hours looking into the night sky to catch a glimpse of a shooting star. I’ve been told they can be as small as a gran of sand but yet can produce a light visible thousands, possible millions?, of miles away. Next is the northern lights which I have been able to experience from Nebraska. It is a surreal image that will be forever embedded into my memory.
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Astronomy 