Ep. 25 Southern Stars

Not enough people in the real world listened to my stories about my recent stargazing adventure, so I distilled my process and plans so that the process of selecting a site and using a stargazing app seems more attainable for those who have never thought of stargazing. Short, sweet, and a story-based glimpse into amateur stargazing for fun!

There are over 3,500 comets that we know of, so this is just a brief overview of what comets are, and then a list of some Great Comets and a few well-known comets. I also discuss some of the missions that various organizations and nations (i.e., NASA, the Soviet Union, ESA, Japan) have undertaken to examine comets up close and personal.

I have mentioned black holes in previous episodes, but now feels like the right time to talk about them in their very own episode! I also discuss the new photos of the supermassive black hole in the galaxy Messier 87 and the telescope that was needed to acquire those photos.

There is a branch of study where rocks and space meet (sometimes to explosive effect, when asteroids and meteorites are concerned)... It can be called planetary geology, exogeology, or astrogeology. Listen to hear more about what the life of an astrogeologist entails, from identifying features from a distance to exploring craters. The Shoemakers' contributions to the field are also discussed in-depth to give you a sense of what astrogeology can involve.

The Coriolis force is a force in physics that has profound impact on us here on Earth. Listen to hear how this apparent force has influence over the weather, tides, and even some creatures. I refuse to talk about the formulas surrounding it but I will discuss Rossby numbers, Kelvin waves, Ekman transport, and the Eötvös effect, so get ready for a lot of scientist names!

From Bortle to Torino, from asteroids to aliens, scientists have been working to classify experiences in a useful way. Some of those experiences are very specific, unusual, speculative, or just bizarre. Hear about a selection of scales currently in use that astronomers made to quantify very strange phenomena.