Nasa’s first uncrewed Artemis mission returned to Earth in December 2022 after almost four weeks in space. Travelling far beyond the Moon, it proved the capabilities of the Orion capsule, its European Space Agency (Esa) Service Moduleand the giant SLS rocket that blasted it on its way. Artemis II is due to carry the first […]
Throughout human history the Moon has been an inextricable, ghostly presence above the Earth. Its gentle gravitational tug sets the rhythm of the tides, while its pale light illuminates the nocturnal nuptials of many species. Entire civilisations have set their calendars by it as it has waxed and waned, and some animals – such as […]
Katherine Johnson, the now-retired NASA computer whose work on early human spaceflight milestones was highlighted in the blockbuster movie “Hidden Figures,” will publish an autobiography for young readers in September 2019 called “Reaching for the Moon.” Now 100 years old, Johnson joined the government agency that later became NASA as a human computer in 1953. […]
In a wonderful display of photographic expertise, this remarkable photo taken by Dylan O’Donnell in Australia, shows the International Space Station crossing in front of the moon. Click on the picture for more info. It took Dylan over a year to get this picture and he attached his camera to a telescope to effectively create […]
A mathematical proof is an argument from accurate assumptions to reach a conclusion. Each step of the argument follows the laws of logic. Consider the logic in this statement: I can eat cheese The moon is made of cheese; Therefore, I can eat the moon! In Mathematics, a statement is not accepted as valid or […]
What causes tides? Are we really any lighter when the moon is above us? “Remember that the Earth’s rapid daily rotation causes the tidal bulge to be forward of the place directly below where the Moon is in the sky. This means that there is some extra mass (of that water in the tidal bulge) […]
