Simple Sundays - 10/18/09

Black Holes.

Absorbing everything in its midst, the black hole is among the strongest forces in the known Universe.  Bending light and manipulating time, it's no surprise they are able to grab our attention as well.  How exactly do black holes come to be? 

Inside the core of a star, nuclear fusion generates the electromagnetic radiation that counters the force of the star's gravitational pull.  Gravity pulls in, the radiation pushes out.  As a star exhausts its fuel, the push force, generated by the radiation, weakens, and the star begins to collapse onto itself.  The star will persist nuclear fusion, and continue to rise in mass.  The critical point is when the star can no longer sustain the pressure from its own gravitational pull, and fully collapses.

If the final mass of the collapsed star is great enough, it will result in a black hole.  If not, the star will form into either a 'white dwarf' or a 'neutron' star.  This process can take millions of years.

More on black holes next Sunday!

NASA Blasts Moon

Just as the sun breached the horizon early Friday morning Oct. 9 EST, NASA launched what was essentially a missile into the Southern surface of the Moon. The mission: confirm the presence of water.

Exploding into the Moon’s surface at more than 5,000mph, the rocket (Centaur) was supposed to produce a dust cloud large enough to be seen from Earth with use of at least a 10” telescope. Unfortunately, the visual fireworks failed, but NASA officials still deemed the mission a success by the amount of data collected. The LCROSS, which launched Centaur into the Moon, was then sent in to collect data from the unsettled debris.

Controversy still surrounds NASA’s strategy-of-choice to confirm water on the Moon. Many claim that the method was much too violent, and NASA could have extracted the same amount of data using more conventional methods. It’s unclear whether the mission has had a significant impact, or will cause later issues, to the Moon itself. India’s Chandrayaan MIP (Moon Impact Probe) was actually the first to detect Hydrogen on the Moon’s surface in June 2009 using NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3). There is indeed presence of water on the Moon embedded in the rocks and minerals.

The long-term goal of the project is to determine if there is enough water available on the Moon to support a lunar outpost. Or maybe, if you’re a skeptic, there are ulterior motives to this ‘Moon bombing mission.’

Picture used from New.com.au

Deception

The iceberg: a protruding peak; a deceptive mass. Dependent upon one’s perspective, an iceberg can deceive our senses. While above water, the iceberg appears a small floating island, with perhaps a hint of the mass that lies beneath. Below water, however, we experience a completely different object. An immense chunk of ice hovers around the ocean’s surface, its protruding peak distorted by ripples in the waves.

Our sense knowledge, also known as a posteriori knowledge, has not always been 100% accurate. The iceberg is a prime example of the deception that occurs when we rely solely on our senses for knowledge of our surroundings. That is not to say that we should not trust them, but only to question them. This much history has taught us.

Is the World flat? Does the Universe revolve around the Earth? Surely it is obvious to see that the sun rises and sets each day as it journeys around the Earth. These were, at a point in time, widely held beliefs by a majority of people. Yet today we have, by analyzing and acquiring new sense knowledge, established beliefs contrary to these. But what foundation does our modern belief have that the former did not? I suppose technology would have to be the leading answer. Just as we can detect icebergs by use of sonar pulse, so we can map our solar system (soon most of our galaxy) by way of advanced technology.

Although I do enjoy the discoveries brought about by new technology, it does lead me to wonder: Is this the truth? Our raw senses themselves are prone to deception, and now we are inserting technology between them and the information we are receiving. It seems that only time will tell.

Why Astronomy?

I’ve always been interested in space—the stuff beyond the sky (hence the blog name). A year ago I was able to meet one of my graduation requirements with a course in astronomy. Having an interest, and needing the credits, it was a no brainer. From that point on my interest in astronomy has only heightened. I am now exploring on my own and learning about the mysteries of the Universe through journals, books, and even podcasts.

Astronomy is not a required subject in most high schools, and most do not even offer it as an option—this is unfortunate. Learning about astronomy has given me a greater appreciation for the direct world around me. It is a different perspective, and a refreshing one—a macroscopic view of our microscopic lives.

For this blog I plan to discuss the things that I am learning. Consider this a blog from a learner, to a learner. My hope is that together with my readers we can both learn more about astronomy, as well as spread the interest to others.

My Three Favorite Blogs

Universe Today - Informative articles about current events on a wide scale--the Universe. They cover a variety of topics, and it's kept up to date. The publisher of the blog also does a podcast entitled "Astronomy Cast," where they discuss random astronomical topics as well as answer user submitted questions.

Gigazine - Japanese. I'm currently studying Japanese, and while I'm far from being able to comprehend 90% of this, it's fun to pick out what I can.

Kottke - I've always enjoyed random interesting reading, and this is just that. The stories on here are usually very entertaining, and free from most of the everyday news drama. The site is actually known for not dwelling on political happenings.