Our dear planet Earth is the hotbed of cosmic activity this year. Let’s recap some recent news. A meteor explodes over Russia, an asteroid barely missed crashing into Earth, and later this year, we will see a comet in the skies that will shine brighter than the full Moon.
Asteroids, Comets, Meteors. Ever wonder about the difference among those 3 celestial bodies?
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minutephysics often tackles the big scientific issues. This episode tackles perhaps the biggest question out there — What is the Universe?
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Astronomers are beginning to unravel the secrets of Messier 106, a nearby galaxy marked by a ravenous black hole at its core and mysterious gaseous arms that spiral outward.
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Intelligent life barely exists on Earth. Can scientists ever find it beyond our planet?
The crew at the SETI Institute are certainly giving the search the old college try. SETI is shorthand for “Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence.” Headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., the institute does not receive any tax support, but relies exclusively on private contributions. Dr. Seth Shostak, senior astronomer, and Dr. Jill Tartar, the institute’s director, discuss their latest research initiatives.
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On January 28, 1986, NASA Challenger mission STS-51-L ended in tragedy when the shuttle exploded 73 seconds after takeoff. On board was physicist Ronald E. McNair, who was the second African American to enter space. But first, he was a kid with big dreams in Lake City, South Carolina. This moving animation, narrated by his brother, celebrates McNair’s dreams and legacy. H/T Kuriositas
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Iran might have sent a monkey into space, but if so, it never came home. The monkey appearing on national television after the space launch was a different monkey than the one sent up. Western critics of Iran believe the space-faring primate died in space.
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Conspiracy theorists still allege that astronauts never landed on the Moon, that NASA staged the spectacle in a TV studio. But, in reality, video technology was too primitive in the 1960s to orchestrate such an elaborate hoax. Watch and learn. H/T IMAO
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Astronaut Jerry Carr knows space. As commander of Skylab, he spent more than 2,000 hours in space, orbiting the Earth over 1,000 times. Recounting his life story, Carr remembers the enchanting years he spent at NASA in an animated video from TEDEducation.
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How many stars are there in the universe? This question leads Hank Green to a couple other questions. How many stars can we see from Earth? How many stars are there in our galaxy? He addresses these questions in SciShow, but the answer to the original question proves elusive.
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NASA has beamed a digitalized image of Leonardo Da Vinci’s painting Mona Lisa to the Moon and beyond into space. The transmission was used to test long-range laser communication systems, which could someday overtake radio and allow for HD streaming from deep space. But in the event aliens receive the broadcasts, should we be sending the docile and smiling Mona Lisa or perhaps a more fierce icon, say, Sheena Queen of the Jungle?
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