Posts tagged earth

This past Saturday a Supermoon occured. Supermoons occur about 5 times a year and are about 12% brighter and larger than an average moon. Richard Nolle coined the term Supermoon and defined it as  ”a new or fill moon which occurs with the Moon at or near its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit. 

This is Jupiter. It is often described as a failed star. It has the right ingredients but needs to be about 80 times more massive to make it. It’s most famous feature, The Giant Red Spot, is massive in size; so massive it can engulf the Earth twice. It is approximately 44.5 light minutes from Earth. 

This is our Sun. Compared to the over 100 billion other stars in our galaxy, the sun is rather unremarkable. It is a middle aged yellow dwarf that orbits the galatic core every 225 million years. It is 864,000 miles across and contains 99.8 percent of the solar system’s mass. It is approximately 8.5 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is Mars. It’s summer temperatures reach only 80 degrees, making it the mildest climate of our neighboring planets. Without a spacesuit, you could survive on Mars for 10 seconds, which is ten seconds more than on Venus or Mercury. It is approximately 8.3 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is Venus. Its is wrapped a cloak of carbon dioxide that is laced with sulphuric acid. Its surface is over 750 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s atmospheric pressure is 90 times greater than that of our planet. A Venusian day lasts 243 Earth days. It is approximately 12.6 light minutes from Earth. 

This is Mercury. It has the widest temperature range of any planet in the solar system. It ranges from -274 degrees Fahrenheit at night to 662 degrees Fahrenheit during the day. It landscape is dominated by the Caloris Basin. It is approximately 8.1 light minutes from Earth. 

This is Earth. Over two thirds of the planet is covered in deep ocean. Because of this, the surface of Mars is actually better mapped than our own. What we consider true Earth-like conditions will exist for less than 10 percent of the planets overall lifespan. 

This is NGC 3603. It is one of the galaxy’s largest nebulas. Within the clouds are newborn stars, indicated by the glowing pillars of hydrogen and mature blue giant stars. It is approximately 20 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is the Little Ghost Nebula. It is a star in its final act. It is a planetary nebula located in the Ophiuchus constellation. It is about one light year across and glows from ionized hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. It is approximately 2 thousand light years from Earth.