Category Archives: Planet

ⓜ Curiosity and the Exploration of Mars, I

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This entry is part 1 of 55 in the series And Then I Wrote

And then I wrote… On January 12, 2021, the NASA Mars rover Curiosity marked 3000 Martian days on the surface of Mars. In 2012 I was invited to write an article about the exploration of Mars; “Curiosity e l’esplorazione di Marte” appeared in the Jesuit journal La Civiltà Cattolica on November 17,2012. Here is the original English version that I submitted to them. As it is more than 5000 words long, I will publish it over two weeks. One cannot make an observation of anything in nature without, in some way, altering the very object we are trying to observe. In quantum physics, we know that if we shine even the tiniest bit of light, a massless photon, onto a particle to determine its position or momentum, the impact of that photon will nudge the particle into a different position with a changed momentum. What we thought we were observing will have become changed by the very fact of us looking at … Continue reading →

ⓜ Pluto and the priesthood of science

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This entry is part 17 of 55 in the series And Then I Wrote

And then I wrote… In place of the weekly columns originally published in The Tablet I am running odd articles that I have written and published over the years. This one came from a blog I used to write, and it covers a topic of occasional interest even today. I first posted it in 2009. I suspect I am letting myself in for it by posting this, but someone has to say it… Before the IAU meeting this past month in Rio [this was written in 2009; it was the previous IAU General Assembly in 2006 that had redefined the status of Pluto], I received several emails from impassioned folks offering petitions to try to get Pluto “reinstated” as a planet. Needless to say, that was the farthest from anyone’s mind at the IAU. As these petitions reveal a deep misunderstanding of what science is in general, I thought I would pass on a few comments here.  I have written at … Continue reading →

Asteroids and Balloons at Dunsink Observatory

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  Our planet being hit by an asteroid is a worrying thought and not much fun. However, this week I was reminded of the night I brought about 30 asteroids to Dunsink Observatory in Dublin.  A family audience packed the meridian room for my workshop Balloon Planets. Which partly involved learning about the asteroids between Mars and Jupiter. Asteroid Day On June 30th this week we had Asteroid day. This is an annual reminder of the threat that asteroids hold for our home in space. We know that organisations are working on methods to deflect asteroids heading in our direction. We know that there are organisations on constant watch for these objects. The treat is real, the possibilities of a hit are real. Hopefully, more resources will be put into  research and defence activities to avert the nightmare scenario of a direct hit. Dunsink Observatory I’ve spent almost 14 years or so doing talks and workshops for various groups at … Continue reading →

Back Yard Meteor Crater: Jeptha Knob

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There is a meteor crater in my back yard! Despite having lived in the Louisville, Kentucky area for thirty years, I only learned about the crater this year, when I took part in the AAS Kentucky Area Meeting 2020 on March 7. One presenter mentioned impact sites in Kentucky, including Jeptha Knob. Jeptha Knob is located half an hour due east of my house. It is just a few miles from Shelbyville, Kentucky, home of one of my college’s campuses. A few years ago, I taught Astronomy 101 at that campus for two semesters, wholly unaware of any nearby crater. However, while I did not know of Jeptha Knob until this year, I did know the name because of the Jeptha Creed distillery in Shelbyville (we make a lot of bourbon here in Kentucky, you know). Last month my wife and I decided to go check out Jeptha Knob—a good “no social contact”, enjoyable, yet professionally constructive thing to do … Continue reading →

Venus M45 Conjunction

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A truly beautiful conjunction of the planet Venus and the star cluster know n as The Pleiades occurred on the evenings of April 3rd and 4th. This was a line of sight phenomenon because Venus and the Pleiades are many light years away from each other. To the eye, it looked like the planet had joined the cluster but it was a temporary visit. The star cluster is also known as the seven sisters and Messier 45 or M45. Mixed weather on April 3rd was not very inviting however I tried for a sketch (see below). I managed one partial sketch that evening. In my efforts of the 3rd and 4th, I noticed that M45 had many more stars than seven. Venus to the naked eye was sparkling but viewed in my wide eyepiece,  it was just a bigger off white blob among the stars. On April 3rd the planet was low in the western sky, therefore it appeared to … Continue reading →

Heading south

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This entry is part 21 of 39 in the series Lunarcy

A night with the Dynamax6 I just  bought as I continue to “shelter in place” during the Coronavirus outbreak. Here we have one of the more identifiable craters on the moon, Clavius (225km diameter) just above center here, containing its impressive arc of smaller craters starting with Rutherfurd (56km) on the southwest rim (lower right) of Clavius and then going through a series of the Clavius satellite craters decreasing in size while curving to the north and east. On the north rim is a crater similar to Rutherfurd. This is Porter (54km). Just outside the wall to the southwest are two similar sized craters. The southernmost one with the relatively smooth floor is Blancanus (109km) and just north and west of it is Scheiner (114km). South of Blancanus is a very flat floored crater, Klaproth (122km) and further south is Casatus (114km). To the left are two more similar craters mostly filled with shadow. The lower one is Kircher (75km) … Continue reading →

Space Camp Joy

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This blog was  originaly posted shortly after Easter 2019 –  This year sadly my Easter Space Camp for children can not take place due to COVID 19.  Ironicly the children are not in school for the same reason and Space Camp would have been a very useful event for both kids and parents struggling in this crisis. Stay safe, hope you enjoy this rerun. Children spinning their little handmade Saturn models with joy !! At Easter  I ran a small space camp for children. It was over three mornings in Louisburgh Co Mayo.The venue was Books at One, the local community bookshop.  We packed a lot of things into the three mornings, in fact, I had too much planned. Better too much than too little in my experience. Space Camp joy abounded ! Day 1 Space Camp We built paper rockets that we blew into space (in the room). I have a  box of interesting forever goodies. These are intended … Continue reading →

On Solar Spectrum and Humans

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On Solar Spectrum and Humans I’ve always been fascinated by the links between the solar spectrum and humans. It is a visual thing coupled with some interesting interactions. The elements found in our sun are also found in us and all living things, Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Sulfur and Phosphorus. We eat the food produced by the sun and the Earth working together. Phototropism  pulls plants up towards the sunlight, likewise, geotropism pulls the roots into the ground via gravity. We, humans, are ultimately bound by the suns energy. Therefore we are wrapped up in it for all our lives in many ways. This idea has informed several paintings of which the above is one. Human Spectrum Painting I wanted to do a painting that expressed that interaction in some way. The spectra of our sun and other stars tells us what those stars are made from. The ingredients being different for each star, as are fingerprints and DNA in … Continue reading →

Venus and the Moon Danced at the Vatican Observatory Summer School

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It is time for another guest post from Fernando Comerón.  Fernando is an astronomer with the European Southern Observatory.  His previous guest postings have been about using one of the world’s best telescopes at ESO in Chile (click here for that post) and about discovering the source of illumination of the North America Nebula (click here for that one) . About this new post, he writes “it is not about professional astronomy and large telescopes, but the subject has a much closer connection with the Vatican Observatory and I thought that readers of the blog may like to read the story”.  Muchas gracias, Dr. Comerón.  ¡Que los cielos sobre Chile estén despejados siempre que observes! Fernando Comerón, 25 Nov 2019 This story is not about observing with large professional telescopes on remote mountaintops, but about an observation done with one of the telescopes that some of the readers of Sacred Space Astronomy, perhaps yourself, support through the Vatican Observatory Foundation. … Continue reading →

On Peace Stars and Rainbows

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Recently I came across this beautiful poem by Wendell Berry. Mr Berry is an award-winning American writer and poet. I found his poem inspiring and uplifting in these dark days. One line, in particular, stood out to me hence this blog on peace, stars and rainbows. “And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light” Stars In the daytime, the sun-facing side of our planet is saturated in light from our nearest star. Meanwhile, the night facing side is subject to the distant light of billions of stars. These stars of the night are invisible to us when the sun dominates our daytime lives. They become day-blind to us while they wait for the planet to rotate and bring their light in waiting to our eyes. Our day eliminates them from our vision and our minds. ( unless one of them goes supernova or there is a total solar eclipse available to us )   Rainbows Our sun … Continue reading →

Religious Scientists: Canon Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543); Heliocentricism

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This entry is part 13 of 15 in the series Religious Scientists of the Catholic Church

When the name Copernicus is mentioned, what often comes to mind is the role that his heliocentric theory played in the Galileo affair. This creates the false impression of Copernicus as a controversial figure at loggerheads with Church authority. In reality, Copernicus was himself a Church figure. He was a canon (a church administrative role that at the time required ordination to minor orders) at his uncle’s diocese in Warmia. He held a doctorate in canon law. When his heliocentric system was presented to Pope Clement VII in 1533, it was favorably and enthusiastically received. Cardinal von Schoenberg of Capua encouraged him in a letter to promulgate the theory widely. In the seventy years after the publication of De Revolutionibus (until Galileo published his Siderius Nuncius) Copernicus’ work saw almost no objections on theological grounds. Biographical Sketch: Mikołaj Kopernik was born in Toruń in modern-day Poland on (it is believed) February 19, 1473. His father was a copper merchant, and … Continue reading →

Transit of Mercury CHEOPS and Exoplanets

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Drawing Yes, indeed I felt lucky to see the transit of mercury on November 11th. Black clouds full of heavy rain were in constant supply all morning. My PST telescope and drawing materials were in and out in the hope of a break in the weather. It was my intention to use the drawing to help explain the transit of Mercury, CHEOPS and Exoplanets. As you can see from the drawing above (which is not rotated) I got my first view of the tiny planet at 12:51. I sketched one black dot on top of my previously drawn solar disc. Then the rain bucketed down like rods with a big wind attached. Next chance came at 13:33 a second black dot added to the effort. Then it rained cats and dogs till 14:26 when my final opportunity gave me a third mercury dot to add to the sketch.  Most Irish observers had a similar story and images of this unique … Continue reading →