May the Fourth… Be With You!

Today is Star Wars Day, for obvious reasons. [1] Here are a couple of Star Wars related photos that have tickled me over the past year or so. For me, Imperial Stormtroopers are a constant source of fun! I love nerd humour! Yoda is also good for a few laughs. We’ve all seen Star Wars [...]

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Where Is The Center of the Universe?

In the beginning, the universe was a single point. But where was that point exactly? What was its location? As explained in an article in the FYI section of PopSci.com, it was, and still is… everywhere. In other words, no matter where you are in the universe, you’re at the centre! [1] It’s answers like [...]

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Hubble’s Greatest Snapshots!

On April 24, 1990, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope was launched into space. In the 22 years since, it has sent back over a million observations. Here are just some of Hubble’s greatest images, year by year, courtesy of those wonderful space geeks at HubbleCast. ___________________________________________________________ Articles about ASTRONOMY: http://www.scoop.it/t/science-news?tag=astronomy (Speaking of milestones, my friendly neighbourhood blog [...]

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Dust Devils on Mars!

Dust devils occur on Earth as well as on Mars. They are spinning columns of air, made visible by the dust they pull off the ground. Unlike a tornado, a dust devil typically forms on a clear day when the ground is heated by the sun, warming the air just above the ground. As heated [...]

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The Most Astounding Fact (Neil DeGrasse Tyson)

Astrophysicist Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson was asked by a reader of TIME magazine, “What is the most astounding fact you can share with us about the Universe?” This is his answer. Truly inspiring. __________________________________________________________ Today, Friday April 6, at sundown is the beginning of Passover. It is by far my favourite holiday. I will be [...]

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Neil deGrasse Tyson (and why I love him!)

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson [1] is America’s nattiest nerd, its chicest geek! He’s a sharp-looking scientist. A trendy twerp. He looks great. He is handsome and well-spoken, funny, witty and charming. And he’s smart. Sweet Lord in heaven, is he ever smart! (America’s most dapper dweeb!) He’s the kind of smart that takes very complicated super-brainy [...]

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Ring Around the Moon

Earlier this month (February 7, to be exact), was the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat. Like some other Jewish holidays, it occurs on a full moon. But unlike Purim (the following full moon), Passover (the next full moon after that) or Succot (either a Harvest Moon or Hunter Moon), the Tu B’Shevat full moon happens [...]

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Hey, Who Ripped a Hole in the Universe??

Take a look at this photo, will you? (A hole in the universe??) Some months ago, the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) observed a classical dark globule, Barnard 68 (B68), in front of a dense star field in the Milky Way band. Yeah, I know… it’s a big black patch in the middle of a [...]

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Deep-Fried Planets!

You’ve heard of deep-fried Twinkies and deep-fried Mars bars? Well, that’s nothing. How about… Deep Fried Planets!? Once again, the geeks and nerdlings over at ScienceDaily.com have failed to disappoint. As they reported last month, “Two Earth-sized planets have been discovered around a dying star that has passed the red giant stage. Because of their [...]

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Could a ‘Death Star’ Really Destroy a Planet?

I have to confess to a question that has been much on my mind of late… one that has been weighing heavily upon my soul. Could a ‘Death Star’ really destroy a planet? Is it even physically and scientifically possible? Could a small moon-sized battle station generate enough energy to destroy an Earth-sized planet? I mean, [...]

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