Dear Urban Astronomer I recently received this presentation in an email. Apparently, Mars will look as big as the Moon on 27 August, because it will be closer to us than ever before in recorded history and will look as big as the Moon in the sky. Is this true? I was tempted to simply dismiss this as a joke. After all, it’s not like anybody still falls for this, right? Surely people remember seeing the same hoax this time … Continue reading →
Would finding the centre of the Universe help us understand our place in the Cosmos? In a previous article, I talked about the problem of trying to measure speeds in space. Because there are no fixed positions in the universe, there can be no such thing as an absolute, “real” speed. Even the ground beneath your feet is attached to a planet hurtling through space!. The very idea of speed simply means “The distance traveled, divided by the time it took … Continue reading →
If you’ve ever heard of the Kepler Telescope, it should come as no surprise to learn that it’s named after an astronomer. The Kepler Telescope is involved in the search for habitable planets beyond our solar system — but why would it be named after an astronomer who was born in 1571? Johannes Kepler was lucky enough to be taught by some of the greatest astronomers of his time. In return, he discovered three major laws regarding how planets move. … Continue reading →
Tycho Brahe: The Wildest Astronomer Strange men are common, but strangely awesome men are not! Tycho Brahe, born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, led a most unusual life. Even from his earliest years, Brahe was simply not made to fit the mold. If Brahe had the misfortune of being born into poverty, we might have had nothing in the history books about him. Weirdly, it doesn’t actually matter what Brahe was born into, since he was stolen from his parents at … Continue reading →
Dear Urban Astronomer I recently read that the andromeda system is our closest neighbour. Apparently, our galaxy is on a crash course with the andromeda system. They make it sound like its going to happen in the next few decades. I was just curious how much bigger is andromeda? How close is it to us? And how close are we to impact. Thanks in advance, Drew Dear Drew First thing first, we are indeed on a collision course with the Andromeda … Continue reading →
