Dr. John Wilkins was definitely a man ahead of his time. When he proposed the first manned mission to the moon, he knew he would have to wait for technology to catch […]
Meet the Man Who Proposed the First Mission to the Moon… in 1638!
Outer Space: Closer Than You Might Think
Is outer space a distant, mysterious place? Mysterious, perhaps, but it is a lot closer than you might suspect. Depending on just how you define “outer space,” it could be as close […]
A One Billion Year Lap
Although the number of galaxies is so vast that they cannot be accurately counted, they have one thing in common. All disk galaxies, no matter their size or mass, rotate once every […]
The Diet of the Stars
It’s always a matter of interest when a big star finds a diet that works. If losing weight is your goal, you might want to find out the secret of the biggest […]
Forget About Dog Years — What About Planetary Years?
A planetary year is defined as the time it takes for that planet to make one complete orbit around the sun. Neptune was discovered on September 23, 1846. In terms of planetary […]
Forget the Chicken and the Egg — What About the Universe and the Stars?
One problem with working out the age of the universe is trying to find out which came first — the stars or the universe that contains them.
Was Tycho a Psycho? Weird Facts About One of History’s Greatest Astronomers
Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) was one of the greatest astronomers to ever live. He was also probably at least a little bit off his gourd if history is to judge. The Danish astronomer […]
Feeling Old? Tell People Your Age in Galactic Years
A galactic year (also known as a cosmic year) is the amount of time it takes for our solar system to orbit the center of the Milky Way. Traveling at 514,000 mph […]
“State of the Art” From a 21st Century Vantage Point
The super-sophisticated, miracle machine of the 20th century was the guidance computer for the Apollo rockets. This technological marvel made it possible for manned flight to and from the moon. Developed by […]
Singular Facts About Singularities
Black holes — also known as “singularities” — can be big or small. Scientists think the smallest black holes are as small as just one atom. These black holes are very tiny […]
Man in the Moon? Maybe… But Two-Legged Beavers?
New York City newspaper The Sun printed a series of six articles in 1835 about the discovery of civilization on the moon. The articles claimed that a British astronomer named John Herschel […]
Commonplace Fun Facts 