By MaryLou Driedger

Getting to know Galileo was an unexpected pleasure on my recent trip to Italy. I learned many new things about Galileo, as I walked the streets of the cities where he lived and worked. Galileo is perhaps the world’s most famous astronomer and physicist.

The Museum of Science in Florence has a large display of telescopes some of them 400 years old created by Galileo and other early astronomers. One can only marvel at the persistence of these scientists. They had to scrounge around for suitable building materials and were often ridiculed for their scientific ideas. Galileo wrote a book called The Starry Messenger in which he describes his discovery of The Milky Way and the four moons of Jupiter. He presented the original bound copy to Cosimo Medici, the Grand Duke of Tuscany along with the first telescope he invented. That copy of the Starry Messenger and the telescope are both displayed in the Museum of Science in Florence. My favorite item in the museum was a grocery list. It’s a page from one of Galileo’s notebooks on which he’s listed the supplies for a scientific experiment having to do with optics. Interspersed in that list he has scribbled words like chickpeas, rice, pepper and sugar, obviously grocery items he needs. Even people working on groundbreaking discoveries need to be concerned about the more mundane aspects of everyday life.

The experiment Galileo is perhaps most famous for is one he conducted at the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Galileo, who was born in Pisa, gathered a group of scholars together to watch as he dropped a heavy cannon ball and a lighter musket ball off the Leaning Tower of Pisa to prove that both fall at the same speed. We visited the Leaning Tower on a cold, rainy day and although we did not climb to the top of the tower to try to recreate Galileo’s experiment we did go inside the nearby cathedral. We saw a large, ornate brass lamp that inspired Galileo to invent the pendulum. Galileo was sitting in church one Sunday when he was a student at the University of Pisa. During the service he watched that lamp swinging back and forth and that’s what prompted him to begin a study of pendulums.

One place we didn’t get to visit in Florence, because it is in the process of being restored, was the home where Galileo lived under house arrest for the last decade of his life after being condemned by the Catholic Church for insisting the sun and not the earth was the centre of the solar system.

At the Pitti Palace in Florence I saw Susterman’s portrait of Galileo prominently displayed along with the likenesses of other famous citizens. We visited the Santa Croce Cathedral where I took photographs of the tomb where Galileo is buried. It’s nice to know that while he ended his life as a prisoner Galileo is being properly honored now for the contributions he made to the scientific world.

http://www.thingsasian.com/contributor/marylou

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=MaryLou_Driedger
http://EzineArticles.com/?Getting-to-Know-Galileo&id=3038076

By Julie Hammel

Astronomy is one of the most exciting sciences due to numerous celestial phenomena that are simply awesome and beautiful to see. Not only that, the universe as a whole is a mysterious fact that may never be fully explained by science. There are new discoveries such as the existence of distant galaxies and black holes that are constantly revealed by space exploration programs. The reason why we are so fascinated by these celestial objects is because many of them pose as threats to our human existence. Whatever cataclysm that occurs far away can cause destruction to our planet.

Most of these strange occurrences happen in extremely long distances from Earth and are too far away to cause a catastrophe. However, there are some that are relatively near to us. Among these are the asteroids which are large rocks, having a diameter that can reach miles. These celestial objects have become the talk of the town by astronomers, soothsayers, and the public due to fears that if just one of them strikes us, the human race will be wiped out. Scientists are still looking for evidence that support the theory about the extinction of dinosaurs caused by huge asteroid impacts.

It is very important to separate the facts from fiction regarding asteroids. By virtue of popular culture as represented by science fiction books and movies, one of the wildest ideas is that these space objects are allegedly used by aliens to dominate our world. Certain forms of extraterrestrial life are suspected to be found in impact zones, spawning a strange epidemic and causing havoc to humans. However, the most popular concept is asteroids hitting Earth and using our latest technological advances to avert the said disaster.

In order to allay our fears, the scientific community is always conducting research on the nature and composition of these celestial bodies. Their studies have helped us understand the truth about asteroids. These are actually debris that can range from a golf ball up to gigantic rocks as large as continents. Since they have no particular orbits unlike planets and moons, they can and have many times actually struck our planet. Nevertheless, the ones that have penetrated our Earth’s atmosphere are called meteorites and these are typically small. Some are known as meteors because they have been thoroughly burned and have totally turned to dust. The chances of a direct hit from a giant asteroid are relatively small, but astronomers are not taking this fact for granted. By using giant telescopes that are strategically placed in different sites around the world, they constantly observe the heavens for tell-tale signs of asteroids that may stray into a dangerous collision path with our planet.

Another fact is that an asteroid belt exists between Mars and Jupiter. This is where most asteroids come from. Astronomers have separated these into classes based on their material composition and proximity to the said planets. Those that are the nearest to Mars belong to the Class S, while the ones that are closest to Jupiter are known as Classes C, D, and V. The latter classes are called Centaur asteroids and they have particular material compositions and are known to drift the vast space from Jupiter to Uranus. To gain a first-hand look at these celestial behemoths, scientists have sent space probes to fly near them. The asteroid called Ida was observed by the probe Galileo from a distance of approximately 1,000 miles and was found to have its own moon. Some probes have actually landed on asteroids and have sent amazing photographs for us to enjoy.

The author shares many different writing passions. Want to find out more about VTech LS 5105 Cordless Phone, then visit the author’s site on how to choose the best VTech Cordless Phone for your cordless telephone needs.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Julie_Hammel
http://EzineArticles.com/?Asteroids—Giant-Balls-of-Light-Streaking-Across-the-Sky&id=3186857

By: Rachael Stone

If you want to measure our solar system, how would you do it? This simplest way is to measure it in light years. For those not familiar with the term, a light-year is the distance that light travels in a vacuum in one year. This is because the distances between stars is so huge that it is otherwise very challenging to imagine them. A light year is exactly 9,460,730,472,580.8 kilometers. Putting this into real world distances, the Milky Way is approximately 100,000 light-years across.

The Earth is one of nine planets that form the Solar System, so called because the sun, the source of solar energy, is the central point around which all the planets revolve. So far, scientists have not been able to establish or prove the existence of life forms on any other planet within the solar system. Often, the search for other life forms has focused on looking at the climatic conditions of the celestial body in question. Scientists assume that life forms on a different planet would need similar conditions as life on earth, such as oxygen, light and water, to grow. This may or may not be true.

Other than the sun, no other celestial body significantly affects the earth as the moon does. It is well known that the moon affects the rise and fall of the ocean tide. Such is the effect of the gravitational pull between the earth and the moon. Jupiter is easily the largest planet in our solar system. To put its size in context, Jupiter is more than 300 times the mass of Earth. Here is the interesting part; Jupiter has 63 moons that orbit it and yet it is not the planet in the Solar System with the most moons. That honor belongs to the ringed-planet Saturn, which has 66 moons identified so far. Pluto, the farthest flung among the nine planets, has been the subject of heated debate on whether it really qualifies to be considered a planet. Nowadays, it is classified as a dwarf planet. Its orbit around the Sun is somewhat heavily elliptical. In fact, there are instances where Pluto is actually closer to the Sun than Neptune, the planet that precedes it.

Now speaking of size within the Solar System, well, let us just say that the Sun is unmatched. Did you know that the Sun comprises more than 99% of the total mass of the entire solar system? Jupiter actually takes up much of the remaining proportion. Surface temperatures on the Sun stand at 5000 Kelvins (4727 degrees Celsius). With temperatures at its core reaching a 15.6 million Kelvins (15.6 million Celsius), the Sun is truly a celestial spectacle. It gets even better when one realizes that the Sun is classified as a class G star. Stars are classified in six major categories that tie in to the surface temperature and brightness. The categories are M, K, G, F, A, B and O listed in ascending order brightness and surface temperature. You can see that the Sun falls on the lower end of this classification. Category B and O are rare in the universe while most stars are in the category M and emit less heat and light energy. That said, the Sun is within the 90th percentile by mass among all stars. We have found other stars that are larger than our sun: one is estimated to be approximately 60,000 times bigger.

The Solar System forms a tiny part of the Milky Way Galaxy, a vast conglomeration of stars and planets. What makes astronomy so thrilling is that despite its size, the Milky Way is not the only galaxy in the universe. There are hundreds of billions of galaxies out there, probably more. The closest galaxy to our own Milky Way is Andromeda. Now, brace yourself for the distance: it is 2.3 million light years away. One of the most exciting phenomena for astronomers is the black hole. It is an area of the universe where the concentration of mass is so massive (no pun intended) that the gravitational pull it generates sucks in everything around it. Everything includes light. Remember that the escape velocity for any object in the universe is the speed required to escape the objects gravitational pull. The escape velocity for the Earth is slightly over 11 kilometers per hour while for the Moon is 2.5 kilometers per second. Well for a black hole, the escape velocity exceeds the speed of light. That is how strong the pull is.

Sun jewelry, moon jewelry and star jewelry are wonderful ways to let others know how much you enjoy learning these facts.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rachael_Stone
http://EzineArticles.com/?Fun-Astronomy-Facts&id=2842057

Patna, July 20 (IANS) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is upbeat about watching the total solar eclipse Wednesday along with scientists from across the world at Taregana village, one of the best places in India to view the celestial spectacle.

“I am really upbeat to watch the total solar eclipse along with astro-physicists, scientists and researchers … a lifetime opportunity,” Nitish Kumar said here Monday.

The engineer-turned-politician stressed that the state government would provide all facilities to scientists and others coming to Taregana to study and view the century’s longest solar eclipse.

The chief minister, along with a team of top officials, visited Taregana, about 35 km from here, Sunday to review the preparations.

The total eclipse, starting a little after sunrise, is expected to last three minutes and 48 seconds at Taregana. According to the NASA forecast based on satellite imagery, the sky over the region is likely to be less cloudy than others along the path of the total solar eclipse. So it may offer one of the best views of the celestial phenomenon.

Taregana already has an ancient connection with astronomy, having been one of the two places used by 6th century Indian astronomer-mathematician Aryabhatta for his celestial studies.

Hundreds of scientists, researchers and astro-tourists from across the world are expected to arrive in the Bihar village ahead of the total solar eclipse. These include scientists from US space agency NASA, Britain, Italy, Germany, France, as well as from the Tata Institute for Fundamental Research (TIFR) and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

The Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation has decided to set up a special counter at Taregana to provide all possible facilities. The departments concerned have been assigned the tasks of setting up temporary public toilets, repairing the road, providing round-the-clock power supply as well as bringing out a pamphlet on the village.

The state government is also providing a pair of special goggles at a minimal price to view the eclipse.

Courtesy: Sindah Today