Zooniverse

Although I initially attempted the "studying explosions on the sun" activity, I quickly moved on to the "How do galaxies form" activity. I have been identifying and classifying dozens of galaxies; to do this, I (the participant) is presented with an image of an unclassified galaxy, and is then given a series of questions to answer about it (such as it's shape or regularity).

Observation 4.4: Astronomy Cast Episode 190

This episode discussed the Kepler Mission. Launched in May of 2009, the Kepler Mission had an expected minimum lifespan of 3 and a half years, and was launched with the intention of finding other earth like planets and, if possible, to discover planets bearing life. Almost immediately the mission made several notable discoveries. Within six weeks of the mission's launch, for example, five previously unknown planets were discovered, as well as the least dense planet yet discovered. Most importantly, however, as of February the Kepler Mission has discovered 54 planets which lay within the habitable zone of their star, a very exciting prospect.

Observation 4.3: Astronomy Cast Episode 163

The topic of this episode was the Aurora. The first topic of discussion was the visual aspect of the aurora. The reason we see the aurora is because of Earth's magnetic field. They expressed Earth as basically a bar magnet with looping magnetic field lines. Atomic oxygen is found in the upper atmosphere where it is closer to the suns radiation. This makes the atmosphere extremely radioactive, giving the ability to corrode most metals. Because of the way they are created, we are now able to predict these aurora with greater and greater accuracy. 

Observation 4.2: Astronomy Cast Episode 156

This episode spoke largely about the impact of foreign stars. An interesting idea which was presented was that the explosions of any star will have some effect on our planet, no matter the distance of the star itself. This is through the influence of effects such as Gamma rays. Additionally, this episode went into the great variation which can be found in stars, from a white dwarf as small as our moon to a star as gargantuan as VY Canis Minoris.

Observation 4.1: Astronomy Cast Episode 98

The topic of this episode of the Astronomy Cast is Quasars. Quasars were first discovered in the 1950's using radio telescopes, and 30 years later it was determined that Quasars were located in the center of galaxies. Because of this, and the knowledge that Quasars matched with stars, the existence of super massive black holes in galaxies was theorized. Upon their initial discovery, however, the existence of quasars was not widely accepted; it took many years and additional findings before most astronomers came to understand the role they played.

APOD 4.8

This image depicts the Tarantula Nebula, the largest star forming region in the Local Group. Located in the nearby galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Tarantula Nebula contains Emission Nebulae, dark nebulae and supernova remnants.

APOD 4.6

This image shows the Herschel Space Observatory's view of Cygnus X. Captured using infrared imaging, this image spans 6x2 degrees across the massive stellar nursery. Indeed, Cygnus X constitutes one of the closest, most massive star forming regions in our plane of the Milky Way.

APOD 4.5

In this image the fantastic sunset sky is seen from Stuttgart, Germany. Included in the sky are a few of the Earth’s multiple moons, including the artificial ISS, or International Space Station. Also visible is the large planet Jupiter, along with several of its satellites, known as Galilean Moons. Finally, in its new moon phase, the Moon itself comprises the largest and most prominent satellite visible in the image. Although it is odd to think of the Earth being orbited by something other than the moon, one must remember that there are now several artificial satellites orbiting our planet. 

APOD 4.4

This image shows the famous Ring Nebula. Identified by Charles Messier as M57, the Ring Nebula is said to be the most well known celestial band after the rings of Saturn. Its impressive appearance, however, is primarily due to perspective; it lies at a full light year across and 2,00 light years away.

APOD 4.3

Pictured in this image is the fantastic constellation Monoceros, the Unicorn. This image gets it's red glow from red emission nebulae, which were excited by energetic light from newborn stars. Included in this image of the constellation include the Fox Fur Nebula, located near the bottom; the Cone Nebula, located at the top; and finally the Christmas Tree star cluster, which forms the roughly tree-shaped  shape in the center of the image.

APOD 4.2

Shown in this image is the Messier Object known as M53. Found in the constellation Coma Berinices, M53 is a globular cluster, and is visible simply with a pair of binoculars. Arranged as a sort of halo around the center f our galaxy, there are roughly 250 such globular clusters; until recently it was hypothesized that all of them were formed at or around the same time, but new discoveries about blue stars are casting this hypothesis into doubt.

APOD 4.1

This image depicts Centaurus A, a local galaxy. Centaurus A is primarily notable for being one of the closest galaxies to our own, at a distance of only 11 million light years. The galaxy was formed after a collision of two other galaxies, and is classified as an "active" galaxy; this means that there a source of luminosity, which is believed to be a super massive black hole, located in the center of the galaxy.

Quarter 4 Biography Sources

Print:
Strand, Levy, David ." Concise Dictionary of Scientific Biography. By Charles Coulston Gillispie. Vol. 19. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1981. 328-332. Print. American Council of Learned Societies.

Online:

http://www.phys-astro.sonoma.edu/brucemedalists/bok/

http://www.nnp.org/nni/Publications/Dutch-American/bokbart.html

Bart Bok Biography

Bart Bok was an influential Dutch astronomer, who is best known for his work with his wife in popularizing the field of astronomy. Born in Hoorn in 1906, Bart an early interest in the field of astronomy, beginning when he was a boy scout. Bok studied at the University of Leiden, and in 1932 received his PhD from the university of Groningen.

The greatest of Bok's achievements began in 1928, when he attended a meeting of the International Astronomical Union. While there, two things happened that would dictate the course of his life. First, Bart met his future wife, Priscilla Fairfield, to whom he proposed almost immediately and married the next year. The second was an invitation to work at Harvard University, where he stayed until 1957. This invitation came from fellow astronomer Harlow Sharply, who was himself notable for his work determining the location of our planet within the Milky Way.

While working at Harvard, Bok performed notable work in mapping the shape of the galaxy. Bok's work in this field was essential in determining the shape of the galaxy's spiral arms; specifically, he refuted the notion that the spiral arms were elliptical, showing instead that they were spherical. It was based on this work that he released his most famed accomplishment, the book The Milky Way. Co-authored with his wife Priscilla, this book was written for and meant to be read by the general public rather than specialized astronomers, and was a great influence in popularizing the field of astronomy. As time went on it received many revisions to accommodate new information about the galaxy.

Additionally, Bok's work has developed our understanding of Star formation. In the 1940's he made the first observations of what are now known as Bok Globules. These 'Bok Globules' are essentially small, discernable clouds placed in front of brighter stars or gasses, and are thought to be the preeminence of early forming stars.

The personal life of both Bart and Priscilla Bok was dedicated largely to astronomy. Bart would frequently lead trips to astronomical events around the globe; for example, to view eclipses. After the death of his wife Priscilla, however, Bart's work slowed until he died of a heart attack in 1983. Both Bart and his wife were honored posthumously by having an asteroid named after them, 1983 Bok.

Observation 3.2 Astronomy Cast Ep. 163

The subject of this episode of Astronomy Cast is the famed Aurora, known popularly as Aurora Borealis. The episode began with a discussion of the visual features of the aurora, including their appearance and size. A main point of discussion in this episode is the creation of the aurora. Essentially, aurora occur because of the Earth's magnetic field; the Earth was compared to a bar magnet with looping magnetic field lines. In the upper atmosphere, which is closer to the sun's radiation, extremely reactive atomic oxygen is found, which is capable of corroding most materials that enter it. Because of our increasing understanding of this phenomena, scientists are able to predict the Aurora with ever-growing accuracy.

Observation 3.1 Astronomy Cast Ep. 149

In this episode of Astronomy Cast, a new program by NASA is discussed. Called the "Constellation Program", it is meant to encourage the creation of machines and technology for space exploration. According to the podcast, this new program is currently developing items for new rockets, planetary landers, and more advanced flight technology. The potential of this program is certainly very exciting; expanding our potential for exploration via new technology is a great way to increase our knowledge of the universe.

APOD 3.7

This image depicts an intriguing astronomical mystery. In 1987 the brightest supernova in recent history was seen in the Large Magellanic Cloud; the remnants of the supernova explosion can be seen in the object in the center of the image. The real focus of this image, however, is the set of rings which seem to surround the center. Although the cause of the rings remains uncertain, ideas range from beamed jets emanating from a left-over neutron star, to  interaction between the wind from the progenitor star and the gas released before the explosion.

APOD 3.6

This fascinating image depicts the "Sailing Stones" in Death Valley, California. The texture of the ground is formed when mud experiences heavy flow, dries, and then cracks when subjected to heavy rain. The truly interesting portion of the image, however, is the "Sailing Stone", which seems to move completely free of external influences. As the description notes, though, this seemingly fantastic situation has a disappointingly mundane explanation; it is simply strong winds pushing the rocks along the lakebed after rains have made the mud slick.

APOD 3.4

This image depicts the suprising phenomenon known as the Belt of Venus. Occurring during a sunrise or sunset, the Belt of Venus refers to the off-color portion of the atmosphere just above the horizon, which often appears to be pink, orange or green. Below the belt, however, the lack of sunlight reaching the atmosphere causes it to appear to be more dark. Visible anywhere there is a clear horizon available, the Belt of Horizon is an impressive example of astronomy interacting with our daily world.

APOD 3.2

This image depicts a stunning aurora visible over Norway. Apparently shaped after and bearing striking resemblance to an eagle, this aurora was formed after a Coronal Mass Ejection, or CME, occurred on the sun; although most of the Coronal Mass Ejection missed the Earth, it effected the Magnetosphere enough to cause this aurora.

APOD 3.3

This image shows the stellar nursery located near the famous Pillars of Creation. Taken by the orbiting Herschel Space Observatory, the image provides interesting developements on the Pillars. Foremost is the revelation that the famed Pillars have in fact been destroyed; although their distance allows them to appear intact, a close-by supernova destroyed the pillars about six thousand years ago. Because of the distance, though, the Pillars will remain visible for at least a few more centuries.

APOD 3.5

This image depicts the Aristarchus Crater, found on our moon. Located in the Oceanus Procellarum, the Aristarchus Crater is an impact crater which is 3 kilometers deep and has a width of 40 kilometers. The image itself was taken by the Lunar Recconnaisance Orbiter in late 2011, and gives thrilling insight into the geography of our familiar moon.

Maria Mitchell Citations

"Maria Mitchell." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 11. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 61. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Sarasota County Public Schools. 2 March 2012

Kendall, Phebe. "Maria Mitchell." Pine Tree Web Home Page. Web. 3 March 2012. <http://www.pinetreeweb.com/maria-mitchell.htm>.   

"Mitchell, Maria." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 9. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2008.  421-422. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Sarasota County Public Schools. 3 March 2012

Maria Mitchell Biography

                Maria Mitchell was born on August 1, 1818 in Nantucket, Massachusetts, and lived until 1889. The third of ten children, Maria was a member of a strongly Quaker family, which would prove to have a large impact on her life. Although she never received a formal education, the importance placed by the Quakers on education meant that Maria was taught by her father on a variety of topics, including astronomy and mathematics, and that she ultimately received an education on par with that of a contemporary man's. It was because of her father's influence that Mitchell was instilled at an early age with a passion for astronomy; in addition to receiving his instruction, she would often help him to take observations on his multiple telescopes. After a brief attempt at opening a school, Mitchell found work as a librarian at the Nantucket Athenaeum Library, where she often took observations of the night sky on the side.

                Maria Mitchell made many accomplishments, and is most largely considered to be most important for legitimizing the role of women in astronomy. One of her most notable accomplishments was the discovery of a new comet, which she entitled the comet Miss Mitchell's Comet. As the first woman to discover a comet, her achievement brought her international fame and recognition; for the discovery she was awarded a gold medal by the king of Denmark (who had offered a prize to anyone who could discover a comet using a telescope). The next year she was elected as an honorary member to the American Academy of Arts and Science, and was the first woman to receive the honor. Mitchell was also elected to or joined, often as the first women, the American Philosophical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Women, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

                Maria Mitchell's final post was at Vassar College, in Poughkeepsie, New York. She worked initially as the director of the observatory, and then later as a professor of Astronomy (the first of her gender).  At Vassar College Mitchell had access to a variety of impressive astronomical tools which she had previously been excluded from using, and continued her research on Jupiter, Saturn and the photography of stars. Mitchell was forced to retire in 1888 because of her failing health, and died soon after on June 28, 1889 in Lynn, Massachusetts. Her legacy lives on, however; she was elected to both the Hall of Fame of Great Americans and the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1905 and 1954, respectively, and was the namesake for the Maria Mitchell Association, made after her death in 1902.   

APOD 3.1

This image shows the area known as Cygnus-X, the largest known "Star Factory" in the milky way. Taken by the Spitzer Space Telescope in 2009, Cygnus-X is roughly a million times as large as the sun and spans 600 million light years. Within a few million years Cygnus-X will disperse and leave behind several independant stars, which will begin to move throughout the galaxy. Seeing an are where stars are formed gives me a new appreciation for our own star, and an interest in learning about it's own origins.

Observation 2.2 Astronomy Cast: Fermi Mission

The Fermi Mission, named after Enrico Fermi, was launched in June of 2008, with a planned 5 year lifespan. It contains two major parts, the Large Area Telescope, and the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor. The purpose of the Large Area Telescope is to detect and show gamma rays, rather than visual light as most other telescopes do. The Purpose of the Gamma-Ray Burst Monitor is to detect gamma-ray bursts across the sky using fourteen scintillation detectors. An important finding of the Fermi mission was the discovery of two Gamma ray and X-ray bubbles extending from our Milky Way galaxy for 25 light years. Although these bubbles have in the past hindered x-ray and gamma- ray observations, their discovery has opened the possibility of observing these wavelengths without error.

Observation 2.1 Astronomy Cast Ep. 194 (Dwarf Planets)

Midway through the decade, in 2006, beloved Pluto was reclassified as a Dwarf planet, a "demotion" of sorts from it's former classification as a standard planet. This reclassification was forced by the discovery of  Eris, which was classified as a dwarf planet despite being larger than Pluto. The International Astronomical Union thus defined a planet as 1) The planet must have a stable round shape, as the result of it's own gravity; 2) The planet must  orbit the sun, and be greater in diameter than 2000 km, and 3) The Planet must clear it's own orbit in it's immediate neighborhood.

APOD 2.8

 

This image shows one of Saturn's moons, called Iapetus. Iapetus is notable for its unusual appearance. Caused by what is suspected to be an unknown dark material, probably a form of carbon, Iapetus looks as though it has been "painted" over. This led to it being closely inspected by the Cassini spacecraft, which moved as close as 2,000 kilometers to image the moon. Iapetus is certainly one of the more interesting moons found in our solar system.

APOD 2.1

This image portrays the impressive Wizard Nebula, located a short 8,000 light years away. Within this nebula, stars are being born which may outlive our sun, despite the short lifespan of the nebula itself. The wizard nebula contains extremely strong gravitational forces, which are required for the formation of stars, as well as powerful radiation. Visible with a small telescope, the Wizard Nebula is a striking image in our sky, and one which I hope to look on again in the future.

APOD 2.2

This is a radar image taken by the Deep Space Network, a radio telescope located in Goldstone, California. The image depicts Asteroid 2005 YU55, an asteroid that passed nearby to earth. Although it maintained a safe distance from our planet and was never a threat, a collision with an asteroid of this size could have disastrous consequences, causing a large tsunami or an explosion equivalent to a magnitude seven earthquake. The detection of this asteroid raises the concerning question of whether there may be other, yet undetected asteroids that do pose a danger to our planet.

APOD 2.3

This image sports an impressive view of our own star, the Sun. Recorded in this image are several features of the sun, such as the large sunspot group AR 1339, Spicules over much of the face of the sun, and multiple noticable prominences. This image, according to the description, was attained by recording the sun in the single color of light Hydrogen Alpha, inverting it, and adding a false color. Having such an impressive image of the sun drives home it's importance in our lives.

APOD 2.4

Centered in this wide image is the ALMA, or Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. Designed to form a single large telescope out of several antennas, the ALMA uses dishes up to twelve meters wide to observer wavelengths "over 1,000 times longer than visible light." The ALMA is located in the Chajnantor Plateau in the Chilean Andes, at an altitude of more than 5,000 meters, in a location which makes it ideally dry and low pressured.  The ALMA provides an impressive glimpse into the future of astronomical observation.

Charles Messier Biography

                Charles Messier was a famed French astronomer, who lived from 1730 to 1817. Notable in particular for his "Messier Objects", he made several important contributions to the field of Astronomy.

                Charles Messier was born to a large family of twelve children on June 26 in Badonviller, France. Although his family's lack of great wealth prevented him from gaining an extensive education, Messier nonetheless possessed a passion for astronomy that was sparked in 1744, when he witnessed an impressive comet that was visible in the sky.  Eventually Messier gained a foothold in the field of astronomy when he was employed in the French Navy under Joseph Delisle, who was the Astronomer for the French Navy. Under Delisle, Messier gained many of his great skills as an astronomer, and became experienced in using astronomical tools and in making observations. A particular interest of Messier was the observation of comets; beginning with his observation of Halley's Comet in its 1758 return, he became a fervent hunter and recorder of comets, leading to his being nicknamed the "comet ferret" by Louis XV, who was the King of France.

                However, the discovery of comets is hardly the extent of Messier's contributions. During his incessant hunt, he composed a list of several astronomical objects he found. Although initially put together as a list of things to avoid due to their heavy resemblance to the comets he was searching for, these "Messier Objects", or M objects, proved in many ways to be a more notable contribution than the comets themselves. This list began with the discovery of the supernova remnant known as the Crab Nebula, or M1.  This list was originally published in 1774 with relatively few objects, but as he added to it throughout his life, Messier's list of objects came to a total of 103, with seven more being added by later astronomers. Notable M-Objects include the Beehive cluster (M44), the Swan Nebula (M17), the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and the Orion Nebula (M42). To record these objects, Messier used a fairly small telescope; as a result, most of the objects on his list can be seen either with the naked eye or with simple binoculars or telescopes. This has made Messier's list especially popular with amateur astronomers, who sometimes conduct "Messier Marathons" and try to identify all of the objects of Messier's list in one night.

                As a result of Messier's tremendous work, he received a number of awards and prizes, including an election into the Paris Academy of Sciences is 1770 and the Royal Society in 1764. Additionally, he later had a comet named in his honor, and a crater on the moon bears his name (the Messier Crater). His life, however, endured a certain amount of tragedy. Failing health caused by a serious fall later in his life forced him to cease his observations, and then the ongoing French Revolution disrupted the entire scientific community. Many of Messier's peers and contemporaries were beheaded or otherwise killed, and Messier himself lost the valuable salary he had been provided by the navy. Although the end of the revolution and the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte gave him a new opportunity to work, Messier suffered a stroke in 1815 and died two years later, in 1817, at 86 years old.

                Charles Messier had an undeniable impact on the field of astronomy, and one that persists to this day. His passion for comet hunting earned him fame and acclaim, and his catalogue of M Objects makes him a popular name in astronomy even today. 

Messier Biography Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Messier
http://www.todayinsci.com/M/Messier_Charles/Messier_Charles.htm
http://www.astrosurf.com/re/messier1.html

Print:

Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 9

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CCX2830902928&v=2.1&u=fl_sarhs&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w

APOD 2.5

This is an image of an impressive lunar eclipse. Taken in February of 2008, in the Zagros Mountains in Iran, it shows a partial lunar eclipse (rather than a total one) as it nears its total phase. The image presents a contrast between the human civilization in the left and the natural beauty of the moon in the other, and is overall very impressive.

APOD 2.6

This image was taken on December 10, and consists of hundreds of shots depicting the gradual movement of the moon across the sky. It was taken in the Zagros mountains in Iran as the moon was experiencing a total lunar eclipse. It is because of this that the moon appears to be red; the umbra of the Earth, which is cast onto the moon during a lunar eclipse, is colored red. This is a very impressive image, and shows a unique and fascinatng view of the moon which I am glad to have.

APOD 2.7

This image, taken in 2010, presents a thirty degree portion of the galactic center. There are several astronomic features present in this paragraph, including dust lanes, several bright nebulae, and star clusters. Located near the Pipe Dark nebulae and the Antares cloud, this image is about 26,000 light years away from the exact galactic center. Although resembling just another region of space on its own, knowing this image is of the center of our galaxy makes it very impressive.