The Naked Sun

Astronomy in Yosemite The Sun The sun is a star located at the center of the universe, and without it, there would be no life on Earth. It is the most important source of energy for humans as it provides us light, heat, and more. It can reach surface temperatures of about 5,276 degrees Celsius, and 10,340 degrees Fahrenheit. The composition of the Sun changes slowly as hydrogen is converted into helium in its core; however, it is currently made up of around 70% hydrogen, 28% helium, and less…

Solar flares occur as a result of the build-up of magnetic energy inside the solar atmosphere which is released through the process of a sudden flash of brightness on the sun’s surface. The magnetic energy built up is released from the corona of the sun in the form of radiation across the whole electromagnetic. [10] For a solar flare to take place it requires an incredible 6 × 1025 Joules which is over 25,000 times more energy than that released throughout the impact of the Shoemaker-Levy 9…

Laying on the fresh cut grass of your lawn, you watch the sun sink behind the mountains as day subtly fades into night. There is always a minute of darkness as the city holds its breath. No street lights. No cars. Just you and the sky and… the faint glow of a star. Seeing the first star that night, you make a wish and remember the first time you saw one. You still wonder what that speck of light is—How it got to be up there, why it sometimes is so bright and other times so faint, and how it…

ability to sustain life? In 1953, Hubertus Strughold proposed the idea of a habitable zone, which is a region outside of the sun that allows for atmospheric pressure and the ability to support liquid water. The distances of the regions from their sun can vary in different solar systems, but are based off of position in the solar system and the amount of radiation given off from the sun. The habitable…

Venus is also the only planet that is named for a female.” ("Venus, Second Planet from the Sun, Brightest Planet in Solar System." Space.com. Web. 30 Apr. 2014) Venus has fewer impact craters than any other planet. Also unlike most planets, Venus turns clockwise on its axis, as opposed to counter-clockwise. This is called retrograde rotation. It is said that this is because of their close position to the Sun. Appearing to be a nice golden color, the pictures we see of Venus is actually showing…

course covered with a thick mantle that contains water liquid ammonia and methane mixed with gases it is bitterly cold on Neptune with an average temperature of -210 degrees Celsius however it is warmer than expected for a planet's distance from the Sun since Neptune has an internal energy source like others Neptune is the fourth largest planet in terms of diameter making it the smallest and gas giants average distance from the center of the planet to the surface is 15299 Miles but like most…

Messenger, Galileo Galilei documents his astronomical findings. Galilei makes three discoveries based off his observations with his microscope; he finds the moon is physically similar to Earth, the existence of thousands of stars that are invisible to the naked eye, and Jupiter’s four moons. He proves that the moon’s surface is similar to Earth’s terrain through his sketches of his observations. Galilei’s illustrations display the moon’s shaded ridges and spots to show how the moon’s surface is…

umbral shadow can create three types of eclipses, a total solar eclipse, a total lunar eclipse, and a partial lunar eclipse. A total solar eclipse happens when a new moon moves in front of the sun and the viewer is within the Moon’s umbral…

accepted. I believe that when it comes down to how the public received their ideas, Galileo struggled more than Ptolemy. Based on the observations he could make using the naked eye, Ptolemy believed in a geocentric universe, a universe where the earth is in the center. Galileo believed in a heliocentric universe, a universe where the sun is the center, and was the first to provide significant proof to support his theory.…

but also a mathematician. He lived between 310–230 B.C. and belonged to the Pythagorean School of Thought (Heath). His mathematical knowledge helped him to discover great advances in the world of astronomy. His writing The Sizes and Distances of the Sun and Moon is his only surviving text (Aristarchus ‘16). Aristarchus’ description of the solar system was similar to our modern one and this was about 1500 years before Copernicus made his geocentric model (Hawley & Holcomb p.34). Aristarchus made…