The snapshots are stored in either Gadget-II format or HDF5. They can be read using the readgadget.py and readsnap.py scripts. If you have Pylians installed you already have them. The user can find an example on how to read and manipulate Quijote snapshots in Tutorials.
The snapshots only contain 4 blocks:
Header: This block contains general information about the snapshot such as redshift, number of particles, box size, particle masses…etc.
Positions: This block contains the positions of all particles. Stored as 32-floats
Velocities: This block contains the velocities of all particles. Stored as 32-floats
IDs: This block contains the IDs of all particles. Stored as 32-integers. (This block may be removed in the future to reduce the size of the snapshots)
An example on how to read a snapshot is this:
import numpy as np import readgadget # input files snapshot = '/home/fvillaescusa/Quijote/Snapshots/h_p/snapdir_002/snap_002' ptype =  #(CDM), (neutrinos) or [1,2](CDM+neutrinos) # read header header = readgadget.header(snapshot) BoxSize = header.boxsize/1e3 #Mpc/h Nall = header.nall #Total number of particles Masses = header.massarr*1e10 #Masses of the particles in Msun/h Omega_m = header.omega_m #value of Omega_m Omega_l = header.omega_l #value of Omega_l h = header.hubble #value of h redshift = header.redshift #redshift of the snapshot Hubble = 100.0*np.sqrt(Omega_m*(1.0+redshift)**3+Omega_l)#Value of H(z) in km/s/(Mpc/h) # read positions, velocities and IDs of the particles pos = readgadget.read_block(snapshot, "POS ", ptype)/1e3 #positions in Mpc/h vel = readgadget.read_block(snapshot, "VEL ", ptype) #peculiar velocities in km/s ids = readgadget.read_block(snapshot, "ID ", ptype)-1 #IDs starting from 0
In the simulations with massive neutrinos it is possible to read the positions, velocities and IDs of the neutrino particles. Notice that the field should contain exactly 4 characters, that can be blank:
"ID ". The number in the name of the snapshot represents its redshift:
000 ——> z=3
001 ——> z=2
002 ——> z=1
003 ——> z=0.5
004 ——> z=0
In February 2023 we compressed the Qujote snapshots due to storage limitations. While the format is exactly the same, you may enconter problems reading them if you don’t use Pylians. In order to read them you will need both hdf5 and hdf5plugin.
For instance, if you are reading the snapshots using h5py directly, you will need to install hdf5plugin,
python -m pip install hdf5plugin, and then import both h5py and hdf5plugin
import h5py import hdf5plugin
Reach out if you experience problems.
On top of the snapshots at redshifts 0, 0.5, 1, 2, and 3, we also provide the initial conditions for each simulation. Those can be stored as hdf5 files or as Gadget format I files. In both cases, you can read the positions, velocities, and IDs of the particles using the above example just using as snapshot the name of the initial conditions, for instance:
snapshot = '/home/fvillaescusa/Quijote/Snapshots/w_p/ICs/ics'
If you want to use the linear matter power spectrum used to create the initial conditions, take a look at Linear power spectra.
We note that the particle IDs are unique across snapshots. For instance, particles with an ID equal to 43623 at redshifts 0, 0.5, and 127 represent the very same particle at different times. This can be used to track particles back/forward in time; for instance, can be used to identify the Lagrangian region of a halo or a void.
The particle positions, velocities, and PID, are stored in HDF5 files, using HDF5 compression filters to reduce the disk usage. Specifically, the files use the Blosc compression filter, as implemented in the hdf5plugin Python package. Blosc compression applies a transpose to the data then passes it to zstandard, all of which is lossless and transparent to the user. As a preconditioning step to increase the Blosc compression ratio, we manually null out some bits of the positions and velocities to increase the compression ratio. This step is lossy. The typical total compression ratio is 2.5x.
The positions are stored as absolute coordinates in float32 precision. The lossy preconditioning we apply is to set several of the low bits in the float32 significand to zero. The number of bits nulled out is B=6 for the 1024^3 simulations, B=7 for 512^3, and B=8 for 256^3. This introduces a fractional error of 2^(-24+B), which is 3.8e-6 for the 1024^3 simulations. Since these are 1 Gpc/h simulations, this is 3.8 kpc/h precision worst-case. The softening length in all cases is 1/40th of the interparticle spacing, or 24.4 kpc/h for 1024^3. Therefore, the lossiness is 6.4x smaller than the softening length and should have a minimal impact on science analyses.
Likewise, we null out 11 low bits of the velocities, for a fractional precision of 0.01%. The velocity rarely goes above 6000 km/s in LCDM simulations, so this is a worst case of 0.6 km/s precision.
No lossy compression is applied to the IC files, or to the PIDs.
Each HDF5 file also has a new group called
/CompressionInfo whose attributes contain a JSON string describing the exact compression options used.
The scripts used to do the compression are here: https://github.com/lgarrison/quijote-compression
Check FAQ if you are having problems reading the snapshots.


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Strange moon on December 15 2010 at 10 pm in Lahti Finland
The moon had two strange light circles around it yesterday evening.
I took a few photos, all within 2-3 minutes. My camera is an
old Sony Digital Mavica using 3,5" 1.44 Mb disks...
The first photo is quite different from the rest, see the stars (???) around the moon,
the other photos have no stars near the moon. The light circles can not be seen in all the photos even though they were
quite clear in the night sky.
What makes this still more astonishing is the fact that the stars below the moon are all in different colors
when the disk is in my Sony camera. The colors from left to right are blue, red, green, red and green, the star
above the moon is blue. The stripes on the moon surface are branches of a tree.
Raimo Kaarna, the publisher
Wednesday, December 15, 2010 at 18:34:38
Name, age, sex: Ravi Dev
Address: Marthali Junction, Bangalore, INDIA
Email:rdev_2005=AT=yahoo.co.in Education: degree
Languages: English, Hindi
Hobbies: intrect with girls and have fun with them
Signal is: nice
Greetings: Enjoy every movement of ur life.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010 at 13:52:29
Name, age, sex: Jamal, 30, male
Address: Fes, MOROCCO
Email:sultantalaba=AT=live.fr Education: university
Languages: English, French
Hobbies: sport, apiculture
Signal is: good


Solutions for the harshest environments on Earth, and beyond
ABB’s leading role in the Energy and Fourth Industrial Revolutions means we have some valuable contributions to make in the field of space exploration
In the course of ABB’s participation in the CERAWeek conference in Houston this week, we had an opportunity to spotlight some of the interesting work that our company carries out in the field of space exploration. ABB and space exploration aren’t closely associated in many people’s minds, but the truth is that the International Space Station and other modern space projects make use of some very sophisticated power generation systems and incorporate robotics on a growing scale. ABB’s leading role in the ongoing Energy and Fourth Industrial Revolutions means we have some valuable contributions to make in this field.
We were fortunate to be able to bring an interesting and appropriate guest speaker to the conference, to offer his own insights about the future of space travel and the possibility of building a colony on Mars. Capt. Mike Foreman is a former mission specialist in NASA’s Space Shuttle program. Foreman, who came to NASA after a distinguished career as a Navy test pilot, served as an astronaut on the Space Shuttles Endeavour and Atlantis on flights to the International Space Station in 2008 and 2009.
Mike pointed out that reliable access to power plays a critical, if unheralded, role in any space journey. “As astronauts, we’re energy consumers,” he said. “We just plug in our equipment and expect it to work.” But it’s up to the scientists and engineers to make sure that it does work.
A high level of energy-efficiency is central to any space mission. The ISS and other space platforms contain sophisticated electric microgrids, typically relying on solar power and battery storage. The task of providing energy to a larger installation – like a colony on Mars, for example – will pose even bigger challenges … of a kind that ABB is uniquely well equipped to take on.
At our CERAWeek exhibition, we have put on display a virtual-reality conceptual rendering of a future Mars base. A number of space agencies have put forward proposals for sending humans to Mars in the not-too-distant future, and our VR presentation gave attendees at the conference a chance to experience a visit to the red planet themselves. The virtual visitors to Mars get to see a colony under construction – with ABB robots assembling prefabricated modules and an EV charging station used to power surface vehicles.
Captain Foreman agreed that robots would have a major role to play in making any base on Mars a reality. “Space travel is inherently dangerous, and NASA has an amazing safety culture. Every single person in the room is asked to contribute to any discussion of safety issues. Mars is much further away from the earth than the ISS, so communications are a lot slower, and people there won’t have immediate support from their colleagues on earth the way we did on the space station. These are all reasons why robots will be used both to prepare for the arrival of people on Mars and to carry out dangerous jobs whenever possible in any colony we build there.”
ABB also had representatives on hand from its measurement and analytics research team in Quebec to discuss some of the other ways in which ABB is contributing to space exploration. These include the design and production of sensitive spectrometers that can be used in satellites to carry out weather forecasting and environmental monitoring – for earth or any other planet. ABB’s team in Quebec City has worked in the past on instrumentation projects with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Canadian Space Agency and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency. James Veilleux, an ABB systems engineer based in Quebec, is currently being considered for a spot as an astronaut in the Canadian program. So ABB may soon be sending not just its equipment but even one of its own experts into space.
This is just another fascinating example of how we are writing the future.


Thanks to Carl Sagan’s latest documentary series on the cosmos, no one can deny that space is unparalleled in its natural beauty and the sense of wonder it instills in all of us, and so the intrepid designers at Marca Corona have recreated the organic swirling dusty patterns of the surface of many planets in our solar system and adapted them for the new porcelain Planet series. Our fascination with space started with the night sky and was nourished by healthy weekly doses of Ms. Frizzle’s Magic School Bus and Bill Nye the Science Guy.
For most of us the fascination continues each night when we look to the heavens. Unfortunately for people in places like Paris and Shanghai, they may not be able to appreciate our solar system’s jaw-dropping beauty, but then again this may only enhance their desire. You don’t need to break out your nerdy telescope to see the beauty in the detail of this series. To satisfy such urges, choose from any of the five soothing undulating shades of fine full-body porcelain stoneware. If you have always dreamt of being the ruler of your own planet, now is your chance to design the look. Ice Queen’s rule on a frosty tundra of, well, bright white Ice.
If you want your domain to have a bit more warmth, perhaps the Grey, Tobacco or Dark are more up your atmospheric alley. Not only is the Planet series stunning, but you will be through the roof about the time it takes to maintain your floors. Porcelain stoneware is way easier to clean than space debris and you can do it without worrying about your oxygen levels. You can’t be the first person to walk on the moon, but you can certainly be the first person in your neighborhood to walk on the Planets (series). Cool, soothing neutrals make that same sense of calm and wellbeing wash over us that we get each time we take a second to appreciate the night skies.


Imagine floating in the immensity of space, gazing at spectacular views of our planet – the curvature of the earth, its biosphere and atmosphere, painted in saturated hues of white, blue and green against the blackness of an infinite cosmos. Now this captivating, transformative experience – once reserved only for astronauts – is a voyage you can take to the frontier of space for a view of our world like none other.
Credit: World View Enterprises, Inc.
Travel is what inspires me to dream. Travel is not a luxury. It is a necessity — one that is no longer confined to the boundaries of Earth.– Philippe Bourguignon World View Advisor, Vice Chairman of Revolution Places LLC, CEO of Exclusive Resorts, and former Chairman and CEO of Euro Disney.


Cetoex News – In the vast and ever-expanding universe of cryptocurrencies, a new star has emerged, shining brightly on the blockchain horizon – Dogelon Mars (ELON). Inspired by the captivating realms of outer space and Elon Musk’s visionary endeavors, Dogelon Mars has captured the attention of crypto enthusiasts and space enthusiasts alike. In this SEO-friendly blog, we will embark on an interstellar journey to explore the fascinating world of Dogelon Mars and uncover the reasons behind its meteoric rise. Join us as we venture into the depths of the Red Planet of Crypto!
What is Dogelon Mars?
Dogelon Mars, often abbreviated as ELON, is a decentralized cryptocurrency that takes inspiration from two beloved and influential phenomena: Dogecoin and Elon Musk. Launched in the spirit of playful adventure and innovation, Dogelon Mars aims to create a robust community-driven ecosystem that orbits around the potential of space exploration.
The Red Planet of Community:
At the heart of Dogelon Mars lies its vibrant and passionate community. Similar to other meme coins, the ELON community thrives on social media platforms, including Reddit, Twitter, and Telegram, where enthusiasts gather to share memes, discuss the latest news, and engage in the advancement of the project. This strong sense of camaraderie and collective vision has fueled the coin’s growth.
The Technology behind Dogelon Mars:
Dogelon Mars is built on the Ethereum blockchain, utilizing smart contracts to execute transactions and facilitate its operations. This choice of blockchain ensures security, transparency, and compatibility with various decentralized applications (DApps) and wallets.
Why Dogelon Mars Soars:
a. Space-Themed Nostalgia: The coin taps into humanity’s fascination with space exploration and the allure of interplanetary travel. The space-themed branding and aspirations resonate with those who dream of a futuristic world beyond our own.
b. Community-Driven Development: The ELON community actively contributes to the coin’s growth and development. Ideas are shared, improvements proposed, and contributions welcomed, fostering an organic evolution of the project.
c. Elon Musk’s Influence: As the name suggests, Dogelon Mars draws inspiration from the visionary entrepreneur, Elon Musk. The coin often receives attention when Musk tweets or references anything related to cryptocurrencies or space exploration.
a. Volatility: As with any cryptocurrency, the value of Dogelon Mars can be subject to extreme price swings. Investors should be cautious and only invest what they can afford to lose.
b. Research: Thoroughly research the project, its team, and its technology before investing. Familiarize yourself with the project’s whitepaper and the roadmap for its future developments.
c. Security: Store your Dogelon Mars coins in secure wallets and be wary of potential scams or phishing attempts. Stick to trusted exchanges for buying and selling ELON.
Dogelon Mars (ELON) is a captivating addition to the galaxy of cryptocurrencies, fusing the charm of meme coins with the limitless possibilities of space exploration. As the project continues its interstellar journey, it remains essential to approach investing in ELON with caution, thorough research, and a sense of adventure. So, fasten your seatbelts, fellow travelers, and embark on this thrilling voyage to the Red Planet of Crypto! Together, we’ll witness the evolution of Dogelon Mars and its potential impact on the cryptocurrency universe. May the stars guide you on your path to the cosmos!


Main / Brain & Puzzle / Astrometrica
Astrometrica Shareware: Research grade CCD astrometry data reduction tool. Downloads. Important Notice - Read this first! Software avaiable for download on this site is provided "as is" in the hope that it will be useful, but without any. Astrometrica provides the ability to easily compare astromerical images for the purpose of moving object discovery. See links below for software, installation.
5 Nov How To Measure Asteroids using Astrometrica. User's guide for the EURONEAR project. Authors: Ruxandra Toma, Ovidiu Vaduvescu. I used the software called Astrometrica. You can go to the web home site http:// pakinstruments.com to get more information about it. Attached is just a small part . Astrometrica: A Brief Tutorial. Reference: "The Handbook of Astronomical Image Processing" by Richard Berry and James Burnell, pub. William-Bell Inc. can be.
28 Oct Astrometrica new user - posted in Astronomy Software & Computers: I am trying to learn to use Astrometrica for asteroid observation, and. Richard Miles approached Herbert Raab and Bill Gray to see if the V magnitudes so calculated could be incorporated in to their software, Astrometrica and. Stellar Catalogue. Astrometrica reconciles the positions of the stars in your images with those from published stellar catalogues in order to accurately determine. Astrometrica is an interactive software tool for scientific grade astrometric data reduction of CCD images. The current version of the software is for the Windows . configuration into the Astrometrica folder found under Program Files. 2. Reference Star Match Error. Check that the proper configuration (“config”) file is loaded.
Instructions for Using Astrometrica. September Step 1: Moving Object Utility (Automated Search). · Start Astrometrica. The following is the Astrometrica. 28 Jul Before you start using Astrometrica you may need to adjust the program settings. These settings are stored in the file pakinstruments.com which is. Finding asteroids in Astrometrica. Introduction. The metre Faulkes Telescopes can provide excellent data for the positions of Near Earth Ob- jects ( NEOs). "ASTROMETRICA" INTERNAL INFORMATION. ASCII Reference Stars File Format. Orbital Elements File Format. Data Reduction Methods. 8.
В© 2018 pakinstruments.com - all rights reserved!


We have just added a new and exciting event to the calendar!
On November 7th, 6:30pm at the Middle School, Steamboat's very own astronomer and astrophotographer, Jimmy Westlake of Colorado Mountain College and SteamboatToday fame will be hosting an astronomy night, which is bound to be fascinating!
Please bring warm clothes to put on when we go outside, as it may be quite cold.
We will start inside where Jimmy will give us a presentation, before heading outside to view stars, constellations and more.
This night will count toward the cub scouts earning these three recognitions:
If you have one available, feel free to bring a telescope.
If you have a tablet, or smartphone, before coming, you may want to download one of the great astronomy apps that are available, such as:
Star Walk (for iOS)
Night Sky: (for iOS)
Pack News >


NASA has revealed storms on HD 189733b rain glass at seven times the speed of sound and temperatures hit 5,400°F. Glass particles in the atmosphere give it a dazzling blue color. "To the human eye, this far-off planet looks bright blue," NASA says "But any space traveler confusing it with the friendly skies of Earth would be badly mistaken. The weather on this world is deadly."
HD 189733b's blue hue is probably caused by light scattering off silicate particles in its atmosphere, scientists say. HD 189733b is much bigger and hotter than Earth; it's about the size of Jupiter and orbits its host star in just 2.2 Earth days. That orbit is so close that the exoplanet is probably tidally locked, always showing one face to its star, just as the moon always shows one face (the near side) to Earth.
The winds on HD 189733b (which lies about 63 light-years from Earth, in the constellation Vulpecula) blow at up to 5,400 mph (8,700 km/h) — about seven times the speed of sound and the rain on this world is made not of water, but of molten glass. Why, then, does this bizarre planet appear so superficially Earth-like? It's just a coincidence, scientists said.
"The cobalt blue color comes not from the reflection of a tropical ocean, as on Earth, but rather a hazy, blow-torched atmosphere containing high clouds laced with silicate particles," NASA officials wrote in a statement.
HD 189733b was discovered in 2005, and scientists figured out its color in 2013 using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and other instruments.
Scientists found that the temperature on the planet increases dramatically with altitude – up to 3,000°C (5,400°F) in the upper atmosphere, hot enough to melt lead. Lower down on the planet, temperatures are believed to drop to a still-scorching 1,700°C (3,100°F). To measure the wind, the team measured how the sodium lines were ‘blueshifted’ -meaning its light was stretched in such a way to indicate it was coming towards us. This blueshift suggests the hyper winds are coming from a circulation process on the planet.
The researchers used the 3.6 metres wide telescope at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in La Silla, Chile.


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The Orion Nebula (M42) will be one of the prime targets at the 2019 Tucson Star Party. // Jason WareOn Saturday, February 9, 2019, Astronomy magazine will sponsor the seventh annual all-day skywatching party at the East Campus Observatory of Pima Community College (PCC). The address there is 8181 East Irvington Road. Activities begin at 10 a.m. And continue all the way through 9 p.m. The event is hosted by the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA), one of the most active astronomy clubs in the United States.
Throughout the day, club members will operate several solar telescopes that will give visitors safe, high-quality views of some of the features visible on the Sun. Then, about an hour after our daytime star sets (at 6:04 p.m.
Tucson time), we’ll begin the second phase of skywatching: nighttime observing. And in addition to numerous telescopes set up by the TAAA, the Pima Community College Observatory will be open throughout the day and night. Its solar telescope will follow the Sun in the daytime, and its 14-inch telescope will target deep-sky treats at night. Even before it gets dark, telescopes will turn toward the 14-percent-illuminated crescent Moon. A thin crescent is one of the best times to observe our natural satellite. And it won’t be spreading lots of light through the night sky, ruining views of nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies.
The next object telescope operators probably will target is Mars. It lies some 32° east-northeast of the Moon in front of the stars of the constellation Pisces the Fish.
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The Red Planet will be easy to find, but its small size (because we’re currently moving away from it) will require a large scope to pull out any details. As twilight ends, the Pleiades star cluster (M45) will come into view. This will be a great object to view through binoculars and telescopes with a wide field of view. The Orion Nebula (M42) also will be a highlight. This star-forming region is the middle “star” in the constellation of the Hunter. Fellowship with other star-gazing enthusiasts, the opportunity to ask questions about lots of different telescopes, and the prospect of clear skies mean that the is shaping up as a “must-see” event.
Golovej ribalko praktikum po vozrastnoj psihologii pdf. So, when you make plans to come out, be sure to bring family and friends. And remember, the star party will be held Saturday, February 9 at the Pima Community College East Campus Observatory, 8181 East Irvington Road, southeast of the center of the city.


1788 May 8 William Herschel marries Mary Baldwin Pitt, the widow of a successful London merchant.
1792 Mar. 7 Birth of John Herschel (hereafter JH).
1809 Oct. 19 After studies at Eton and at Dr. Gretton's private school at Hitcham, JH enters St. John's College of Cambridge University as a Foundress scholar.
1812 Founds, with others, the Analytical Society.
1813 January Takes the Cambridge tripos examinations, coming out as Senior Wrangler and First Smith's Prizeman.
1813 May 27 Elected a fellow of the Royal Society.
1813 Publication of the first volume of Memoirs of the Analytical Society for which JH had written a major portion.
1813 Elected a fellow of St. John's College; remains a fellow until his marriage in 1829.
1814 Jan. 24 Begins preparations at Lincoln's Inn for a career in law.
1815 March Applies for the chair in chemistry at Cambridge, but loses the election by one vote.
1815 May Offered position as sub-lector at St. John's College; declines it at first but finally accepts it.
1815 Dec. 18 Writes Babbage: "You are pretty well aware what a job it must be to be set from 8 to 10 or 12 hours a day examining 60 or 70 blockheads, not one in 10 of whom knows his right hand from his left, and not one in 10 of them knows anything but what is in the book.... In a word I am grown fat, full and stupid.-Pupillizing has done this--and I have not made one of my cubs understand what I would have them drive at."
1816 Made an honorary member of the University of Gottingen.
1816 July 3 Receives his M. A. from Cambridge.
1816 Begins to direct his energies to astronomy and (Oct.) departs from Cambridge.
1819 Discovers that sodium thiosulphate dissolves silver salts, which eventually contributed significantly to the development of photography.
1820 JH and William Herschel construct the mirror and mounting for an 18.25-inch aperture, 20-foot focal length reflector.
1820 Publishes A Collection of Examples of the Application of the Calculus of Finite Differences.
1820 Elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
1820 Jan. 12 Along with 13 others attends a meeting that leads to the formation of the Astronomical Society, of which JH serves as foreign secretary from 1820 to 1827.
1821 Royal Society awards JH its Copley Medal for his contributions to mathematics.
1821 With Babbage travels through France to Italy and Switzerland. JH meets Arago, Laplace, Biot, Humboldt, Pictet, and Plana and also ascends Breithorn, next to Monte Rosa.
1821-23 Beginning in March, 1821, JH observes double stars in collaboration with James South, working at South's observatory in Blackman Street, Southwark.
1822 Summer JH and his close friend James Grahame visit Holland and Belgium.
1822 Aug. 25 Death of Sir William Herschel, which occurred while JH was on the Continent.
1824 April Travels, along with Babbage, through France, Italy, Sicily, and Germany, meeting Gay-Lussac, Poisson, Fourier, Thénard, Bouvard, Nicollet, von Zach, Amici, Piazzi, Encke, Harding, Pfaff, and Fraunhofer. On his return trip, visits his Aunt Caroline in Hanover. On this trip he also makes ascents of Mount Vesuvius and of Mount Etna, where on July 3 he carries out a barometric determination of the height of Mount Etna. Arrives back in England on 18 October 1824.
1824 November Elected secretary of the Royal Society, which leads him to move from Slough to 56 Devonshire St., Portland Place in London, which was his residence until 1832.
1825 JH along with Babbage invents what is called the "astatic" or neutralized magnetic needle.
1825 Begins a review of all nebulae seen by his father, this review extending to 1833, by which time he had discovered 525 new nebulae.
1825 JH and South receive Lalande Prize of the French Academy of Sciences for their work on double stars. In the same year, South moves to Passy, near Paris, and sets up his observatory there.
1825 July Working with Edward Sabine and a group of troops from the military, JH in collaboration with French scientists attempts to measure the difference in longitude between the Greenwich and Paris observatories.
1826 Publishes studies of the Orion and of the Andromeda nebulae, the Orion paper being directed to determining whether changes had occurred in this nebula.
1826 Mar. 9 Presents to the Royal Society a paper giving the first discussion of the changes of position angle as a means of determining stellar parallax.
1826 Apr. 14 JH and James South receive the Gold Medal of the Astronomical Society for their double star work.
1826 September Brings his actinometer to the top of Puy de Dome to experiment on solar radiation. On this trip, which included many geological observations, he meets Baron Cuvier.
1826 October Despite urgings from friends, JH decides not to compete for the Lucasian professorship at Cambridge, which had become vacant.
1827 Declines an offer by Lord Brougham of the chair of mathematics at the newly founded University of London.
1827 February Elected president of the Astronomical Society.
1827 Autumn JH and Babbage travel to Ireland, where JH attempts but fails to meet William Rowan Hamilton.
1827 December Resigns as secretary of the Royal Society.
1829 Mar. 3 Marries, at St. Marylebone Church in London, Margaret Brodie Stewart, daughter of the Presbyterian divine and Gaelic scholar Dr. Alexander Stewart of Dingwall, Ross-shire. The couple, after a period of travel in Europe, take up residence at JH's house on Devonshire Street.
By 1830 Publishes articles "Light," "Physical Astronomy," and "Sound" in the Encyclopaedia Metropolitana.
1830 Nominated for presidency of Royal Society as part of a reform move; JH loses the election to the Duke of Sussex by 8 votes.
1830 Publishes articles "Mathematics" and "Isoperimetrical Problems" in David Brewster's Edinburgh Encyclopaedia.
1830 Publishes an important work on the philosophy of science, his Preliminary Discourse on the Study of Natural Philosophy, which was translated into French, German, and Italian. A second edition appeared in 1851.
1830 July 1 Declines offer to write one of the Bridgewater Treatises, a series of works showing how science supports religion.
1831 Publication of Mary Somerville's Mechanism of the Heavens, on which JH had provided advice before its publication and of which JH published a review (1833).
1831 Efforts made to have JH become the Astronomer Royal.
1831 JH created a knight (Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order) by King William IV.
1831 July William Whewell publishes a major review in the Quarterly Review of JH's Preliminary Discourse.
1832 Jan. 6 JH's mother dies. Shortly thereafter, JH gives up his house on Devonshire Street and moves back to Slough.
1832 Jan. 13 Presents to the Royal Astronomical Society his new method of calculating orbits of double stars.
1832 March Meets William Rowan Hamilton at a dinner given by the Duke of Sussex. Later Hamilton visited JH.
1833 Royal Society awards JH its Royal Medal.
1833 Publishes his Trealise on Astronomy.
1833 July 1 Presents a catalog of 2,307 nebulae and clusters to the Royal Society, including drawings of nearly 100 objects.
1833 Nov. 13 JH, his wife, and their three children depart from Portsmouth for the Cape of Good Hope on the Mountstuart Elphinstone.
1833 Nov. 30 Royal Astronomical Society awards JH its Gold Medal for his method of calculating the orbits of double stars.
1833 Dec. 7 Records in his diary: "Last night saw for the first time the Greater Magellanic Cloud. It is brighter & larger than I expected to see it & a very odd looking object.--"
1834 Jan. 15 Arrives at Table Bay at the Cape of Good Hope, where Thomas Maclear had come a few days earlier to director of the Cape Observatory.
1834 Feb. 1 Begins to move into a large house, which he named "Feldhausen," located about 6 miles southeast of Cape Town at the base of Table Mountain.
1834 Feb. 22 Starts observations with his 18.25-inch aperture reflector. His 5-inch refractor was mounted in a dome and put into operation by June of 1834. JH writes that "on the 22nd of February, I was enabled to gratify my curiosity by a view of [alpha] Crucis, the nebula about [eta] Argus, and some other remarkable objects in the 20-feet reflector, and, on the night of the 5th of March, to commence a regular course of sweeping."
1835 September Richard Adams Locke, a New York journalist, creates a sensation by publishing in the New York Sun a series of articles reporting that JH had sighted living beings on the moon. JH later learns of this fictionalized publication.
1835 Oct. 28 Sights Halley's comet.
1835-6 Sights Mimas and Enceladus, two inner moons of Saturn. These had not been seen since his father's time and were not sighted again until 1846, when Lassell observed them. JH had searched for these satellites in England, but had been unable to sight them.
1836 Feb. 12 Awarded (in absentia) a Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society. This was apparently for his catalog of nebulae.
1836 Feb. 20 Writes a very important letter to Charles Lyell on that "mystery of mysteries," the species question. Evidence indicates that this letter significantly influenced Charles Darwin.
1836 March Begins determining a sequence of 500 Southern Hemisphere stars arranged in order of brightness.
1836 Mar. 5 Writes in his diary: "Tried a project of Comparing Stars with Moon by total refln at the base of a Prism." This was the beginning of what JH called his "astronometer."
1836 June 15 Charles Darwin visits JH at the Cape.
1836 Aug. 24 JH's June, 1835 letter telling of his Cape observations read at the Bristol meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS). It was published in the Athenaeum (1836), 627-8.
1836 Nov. 30 Awarded a Royal Medal by the Royal Society for his catalog of nebulae.
1837 William Whewell publishes his History of the Inductive Sciences, which was dedicated to JH.
1837 JH and also C.S.M. Poullet measure the intensity of solar radiation.
1837 Mar.1 Suggests in a letter to Francis Baily that there exists a relation between solar and auroral activity.
1837 Dec. 16 Discovers the variability of Eta Argus, which is now known as Eta Carinae.
1838 Mar. 11 JH and family board the Windsor Castle for return to England.
1838 Apr. 21 Writes in his diary: "Headaches & utter discomposure from the ship's movements. To live on board ship is equivalent to living in a perpetual earthquake on land with the prospect of being drowned instead of crushed, as a catastrophe."
1838 June 28 "Coronation Day" (diary) of Queen Victoria; JH raised to the baronetcy by the Queen.
1838 July Travels to the Continent with his son William and pays his last visit to Caroline Herschel. Meets with Olbers, Schumacher, and Gauss on his return trip.
1838 Aug. 4 Arrives back in London from his European journey.
1838 August Attends the BAAS meeting in Newcastle. At this meeting he was appointed to a committee for reducing Lacaille's stars. JH wrote the preface for the catalog of them published in 1847. He was also elected president of the mathematics section.
1838 Oct. 15 Dines with Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle to help plan James Ross's South Polar expedition.
1838 Dec. 3 William Whewell tries to persuade JH to accept the presidency of the Geological Society.
1839 Elected President of the Royal Astronomical Society.
1839 Jan. 22 Receives a letter from Sir Francis Beaufort reporting on Daguerre's invention of a photographic process. JH immediately begins to carry out a series of experiments of his own.
1839 Jan. 30 Using a camera obscura, make a photograph of the frame of the 40-foot telescope.
1839 Jan. 31 William Henry Fox Talbot (1800-1877) presents a paper to the Royal Society on his photographic method.
1839 Feb. 1 Fox Talbot visits JH at Slough and JH tells him of the fixing property of sodium thiosulphate. Talbot eventually realizes this is a better method than his own and incorporates a new method of using it in his 1843 patent application.
1839 Mar. 14 Presents paper at the Royal Society explaining his method of using sensitized paper to make photographs.
1839 Mar. 23 Notes in his diary: "Wrote Buckland declining Savilian, " i.e., the Savilian Professorship at Oxford.
1839 June 12 Receives an honorary D.C.L. [Doctor of Civil Laws] from the University of Oxford.
1839 July 9 Succeeds in producing by photographic methods an image of the solar spectrum in its natural colors. JH does not, however, succeed in fixing this image.
1839 Sept. 9 Makes a photograph on a glass plate of the 40-foot reflector.
1840 Jan. 1 In a ceremony at Slough, reads a poem and lays his father's 40-foot telescope to rest.
1840 Jan. 10 Presents a paper to the Royal Astronomical Society announcing his discovery of the variability of Alpha Orionis (Betelgeuse).
1840 Mar. 5 Presents paper to Royal Society on his photographic work; introduces in this paper the now common terms positive and negative.
1840 Apr. 3 JH and family move from Slough to Collingwood in Hawkhurst in Kent. JH renames the house, originally known as "The Moor House," as "Collingwood."
1840 Sept. 7-10 The prominent German astronomer Encke visits JH at Collingwood.
1840 Nov. 30 Awarded a Royal Medal of the Royal Society for his work on photography.
1841 May 18 Completes and dispatches review of Whewell's History of the Inductive Sciences and his Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences for the Quarterly Review.
1841 June Presents a plan, worked out in conjunction with Baily and Whewell, to the Royal Astronomical Society for constellation reform. His plan, being quite radical, was not accepted. In 1844, he submitted another plan.
1841 At the BAAS meeting at Newcastle, JH presents a report on the plans for setting up stations for terrestrial magnetism observations.
1841 Oct. 17 According to diary, JH writes to Duke of Northumberland in favor of William Whewell becoming Master of Trinity College, Cambridge.
1842 Elected Lord Rector of Marischal College, Aberdeen.
1842 Publication of John Stuart Mill's System of Logic, which drew heavily on JH's Preliminary Discourse.
1842 Feb. 15 Obelisk erected in South Africa on the site where JH's reflecting telescope had stood.
1842 July Friedrich Bessel, the leading German astronomer of the period, meets JH at Manchester BAAS meeting and later visits him at Collingwood.
1842 August Apparently influenced by conversations with Bessel, writes to Francis Baily to urge a search for a trans-Uranian planet.
1842 Aug. 23 Diary records: "Received from Chevalier von Bunsen the Cross and Patent of the Prussian Order of Merit."
1843 Becomes a member of the Board of Visitors of Greenwich Observatory and is appointed a trustee of the British Museum.
1843 Mar. 7 Observes the great comet of 1843 from Collingwood.
1844 At BAAS meeting at York: paper by JH on a less radical plan for constellation reform and his preliminary report on James Ross's antarctic expedition.
1845 June In his presidential address at the BAAS meeting in Cambridge, JH attacks evolutionary thinking in general and the Laplacian nebular hypothesis in particular. This attack was partly aimed at Vestiges of Creation, which Robert Chambers had published anonymously in 1844 and which championed evolutionary ideas, causing intense controversy.
1845 September Serves as president for the BAAS meeting at Cambridge.
1846 June 29 At a meeting of the board of visitors of the Royal Greenwich Observatory, JH learns from Airy of the agreement between the positions predicted by J. C. Adams and U.J.J.Le Verrier for what turns out to be the planet Neptune.
1846 Sept. 23 Discovery of the planet Neptune by J. G. Galle in Berlin on the basis of Le Verrier's predicted position.
1847 Publishes his Results of Astronomical Observations Made ... at the Cape of Good Hope, the printing costs of which were paid for by the Duke of Northumberland. On July 6, presents a copy of his Results to Queen Victoria at Trinity Lodge (Whewell's residence).
1847 Become president of the Royal Astronomical Society.
1847 July 10 Adams and Le Verrier meet for the first time at JH's house with Wilhelm Struve and Charles Pritchard both present.
1847 Nov. 30 Awarded a Copley Medal by the Royal Society for his Cape results.
1848 Honored, along with others, by a testimonial organized by the Royal Astronomical Society.
1848 Declines offer of presidency of the Royal Society.
1848 January Publishes review of Alexander von Humboldt's Kosmos in the Edinburgh Review.
1848 Jan. 9 Death of Caroline Herschel, JH's aunt.
1849 Edits the Admiralty Manual of Scientific Inquiry, for which JH wrote the article on meteorology.
1849 Publishes his Outlines of Astronomy.
1849 May 9 Finishes and dispatches review of Quetelet on probabilities.
1850 Serves as member of the Royal Commission appointed to make recommendations concerning Oxford and Cambridge.
1850 Sept. 5 JH at Pau; declines J.A. Gordon's request that he stand for Parliament.
1850 Nov. 17 Writes letter accepting Mastership of the Mint.
1850 December By an Act of Parliament, the Mastership of the Mint was removed from being a political office that entailed a seat on the Cabinet and was made a purely administrative office.
1850 December Appointed Master of the Mint. While Master, JH unsuccessfully urged the decimalization of the coinage.
1850-55 Master of the Mint. During this period, takes a house in London in Tavistock Place. His wife and older daughters live there during the winter months but return to Collingwood for the summer.
1851 Jan. 25 Issues memorandum at the Mint abolishing some previous privileges, which causes staff problems.
1852 Apr. 1 Seized with vertigo.
1853 May 17 Meets with Sir Charles Edward Trevelyan, assistant secretary to the Treasury, and mentions his desire to resign from the Mint. Trevelyan dissuades him from this.
1854 Recommends the use of photography for the registration of sunspots.
1854 late Suffers a nervous breakdown.
1855 Made a chevalier of the Prussian order 'Pour le Mérite.'
1855 Feb. 5 Diary indicates that by this date, JH had sent in letter of resignation from the Mint.
1855 July 23 Elected one of the eight foreign associates of the French Institute.
1855 September JH and family make a trip to France.
1857 Publishes his Essays from the Edinburgh and Quarterly Reviews.
1857 Publishes article "Meteorology" in the 8th edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
1857 Nov. 13 Maria Mitchell, a prominent American astronomer, arrives at Collingwood to visit JH.
1858 September At BAAS meeting at Leeds, reports on geomagnetic and meteorological observations at various locations in British Empire; gives address at chemistry section of which he was the president.
1858 Dec. 7 Dispatches last pages of his Physical Geography, which was published in the 8th edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and later as a book.
1859 Serves as one of the vice-presidents at the BAAS meeting in Aberdeen.
1859 Publication of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species.
1859 Publishes "Physical Geography" in the 8th edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. This was published as a book in 1861.
1860 Publishes "Telescope" in the 8th edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. This was published in 1861 as a book.
1861 May 23 Darwin writes a letter responding to JH's gift of a copy of JH's Physical Geography, which included a footnote critical of Darwin's theory of evolution.
1863 Nov. 19 Presents his catalog of nebulae to the Royal Society.
1864 Publishes a consolidated catalogue of 5,079 nebulae.
1864 Mar. 14 Writes in his diary: "I have been long very deaf in my right ear but heard very well with my left. Today quite suddenly I find the hearing of the left also so much diminished that I can no longer follow a conversation."
1864 Apr. 7 "Received notice of being elected an Honorary Member of the Scottish Meteorological Society." (Diary)
1865 Nov. 8 Finishes his hexameter translation of the Iliad, which was published in October 1866.
1866 Mar. 6 Death of William Whewell, who had visited JH at Collingwood in the summer of 1865.
1867 Publishes his Familiar Lectures on Scientific Subjects.
1867 Made an honorary fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge.
1867 Publishes a list of 812 double stars observed by his father.
1868 July Publishes in the Cornhill his translation of the first canto of Dante's Divine Comedy.
1870 Jan. 14 Presents to the Royal Astronomical Society his seventh catalog of double stars.
1871 May 11 Death of John Herschel.
1871 May 19 Burial next to Isaac Newton at Westminster Abbey.
1884 Aug. 3 Death of Margaret Herschel, JH's wife


August 28, 2013 § Leave a comment
So says Juan Williams:
“The civil rights challenge of this generation is education,” Williams said. “Dr. King would never allow anybody to buy his silence, to buy him off.”
He charged that unions are paying off civil rights leaders like Reverend Al Sharpton so that they will not support charter schools and education vouchers. “Poor people need better schools and you can’t make excuses at the cost of our children and our children’s future.”
via Fox News Insider. (with video.)
The editor didn’t even choose the best quotes.
“They don’t ever want those civil rights leaders to stand up and say ‘Yes.’ to charter schools. ‘Yes.’ to vouchers.” … “We need — the black community — better schools.”
This is a big story. But the MSM will not touch it. Sadly.
Poor children being denied a good education is a tragedy.
Civil rights leaders on the take not supporting educational choice for these poor children is a travesty.
August 7, 2013 § Leave a comment
The sun’s magnetic field is expected to flip in the next three to four months and it could lead to changes in our climate, storms and disruption to satellites.
This solar event only happens once every 11 years and signals what physicists call the Solar Maximum – a time when the Sun’s solar activity is at its highest.
During this peak in activity the outbursts of solar energy can increase the amount of cosmic and UV rays coming towards Earth and this can interfere with radio communications, cause solar bursts of light – known as flares – and can affect the planet’s temperature.
via Mail Online.
No one tell Al Gore that it’s really the sun that affects the Earth’s temperature. Oh, let’s hope the “flip” is particularly violent, like it was in 1859.
On a cool September night in 1859, campers out in Colorado were roused from sleep by a “light so bright that one could easily read common print,” as one newspaper described it. Some of them, confused, got up and began making breakfast.
Farther east, thousands of New Yorkers ran out onto their sidewalks to watch the sky glow, ribboned in yellow, white and crimson. Few people had ever seen an aurora that far south — and this one lit up the whole city.
At the time, it was a dazzling display of nature. Yet if the same thing happened today, it would be an utter catastrophe.
The auroras of 1859, known as the “Carrington Event,” came after the sun unleashed a large coronal mass ejection, a burst of charged plasma aimed directly at the Earth. When the particles hit our magnetosphere, they triggered an especially fierce geomagnetic storm that lit up the sky and frazzled communication wires around the world. Telegraphs in Philadelphia were spitting out “fantastical and unreadable messages,” one paper reported, with some systems unusable for hours.
Today, electric utilities and the insurance industry are grappling with a scary possibility. A solar storm on the scale of that in 1859 would wreak havoc on power grids, pipelines and satellites. In the worst case, it could leave 20 million to 40 million people in the Northeast without power — possibly for years — as utilities struggled to replace thousands of fried transformers stretching from Washington to Boston. Chaos and riots might ensue.
via. Washington Post.
Wouldn’t that be interesting?


Saylua is the planet that the Saylua game takes place on. The planet of Saylua is tidally locked, which means it does not rotate relative to its sun. This means that one side of Saylua is always light and the other side is always dark.
Residents on Saylua call the light side Saydia and the dark side Luaria. In between the two sides of Saylua, there is a border region called the Dawnlands, a place where the sky is always the color of a sunset/sunrise, and the temperatures are the most moderate found on the planet. Despite the fact that the passage of time on Saylua does not correlate to a day and night cycle, Sayluans still measure time in terms of a 24-hour cycle, a holdover from a time when the planet used to have day and night cycles. However, since timezones no longer became necessary since the tidal locking of Saylua, the whole planet is unified under the single timezone of Saylua Mean Time or SMT for short.
Saylua has a 7-day orbit around its star, Sayaris. Saylua spins on its axis, but its spin cycle is exactly 7 days long as well, causing the planet to be tidally locked. Thus, while Saylua both revolves and rotates, one side of the planet is always facing the sun, and the other side of the planet is always facing the darkness. Saylua has a relatively thick atmosphere, allowing the temperatures between its two sides to be more stable than on other tidally locked planets.
This means that roughly half of the surface of Saylua is within habitable temperatures. However, the extrema of Saylua (the center regions of each side) are still very harsh and difficult for humans to live in.
Saylua does not have any satellites around it. However, the planet of Luaris is visible from Luaria and can be seen as a large white circle in the sky, similar to the moon on Earth. Colloquially, Luaris is referred to as Saylua's moon despite the fact that Luaris is actually another planet.
The two main regions of Saylua are the light side and dark sides of the planet, Saydia and Luaria. The hottest region in Saylua is the Noon Desert, which is located in the center, the "eyeball" of Saydia, the light side. Opposite to the Noon Desert, an extremely cold arctic lies in the center of Luaria. The most temperate region in Saylua is the Dawnlands, which lies between the two sides.
Saylua has a high amount of biodiversity with many different kinds of plants, sprites, and minis. Creatures and plants on Saylua differ significantly between the two sides of the planet because of the large climate differences. For example, the Eydrun has eyes all over its body with night vision, allowing it to stay hidden in the dark while sensing the approach of other creatures. On Saydia, sprites such as the Fleuran have adapted to take advantage of the constant light by absorbing energy with photosynthetic body parts. In contrast, sprites such as the Gorbin use their own energy to produce light in Luaria.
Plants on Saylua
Between the two sides, plants are notably different. On Saydia, plants tend to photosynthetic, absorbing the the sun's constant light, much like the plants on Earth. Since Luaria does not have sunlight, the plants in that region tend to be luasynthetic instead, absorbing lua particles from the ground and air. Korvin trees, for example, tend to have really deep roots, allowing them to absorb lua particles that are not reached by other plants or creatures. As a result, these trees are are often valuable distributors of lua, causing sprites to gather near them. In addition to photosynthetic and luasynthetic plants, there are additionally a few known hybrid plants which can absorb both light and lua for energy. Most of these hybrid plants are found in the Dawnlands. However, a striking example of a successful hybrid plant species is the Great Amarose Flower, found across Gardenia Plains. Using a combination of luasynthesis and photosynthesis, these brightly colored flowers have been known to grow up to 6 feet tall, making them stand out as a symbol of life on Saydia.


We, humans, love our moon.
Our single satellite, circling our lives, changing our tides, even loosening our inhibitions and making us a little “loony!”
We write poems and songs about it, stare at it, and propose under it. We even think about that special someone that may be far away and know that they, too, are looking at the same heavenly object.
Yes, we all love our Moon. We look at the Moon, much like the ancient Hawaiians did centuries ago. With equal fascination, we have a comparable sense of awe, and the unique comfort that we find in her constant presence in our life.
Of course, the ancient Hawaiians had much more time (and darkness) to contemplate the Moon. They could observe the simultaneous ebbs and flows of the entire island ecosystem to her changing phases.
No doubt, they carried eons of cultural knowledge already with them about the Moon’s phases, when they originally traveled north to Hawai’i.
How Do We, the Non-Island Folk, See the Moon?
The Moon rises in the east and sets in the west. Sometimes we look for her and, romanticism aside, sometimes we take her for granted.
Way back, we all learned about the moon in school. It waxes and wanes. The Moon is crescent, then full. And all the other phases of the moon intrigue us, including gibbous.
What? The Moon is gibbous? The definition of gibbous means crooked, unbalanced, unsymmetrical, things like that. Who dares describe our Moon thus? And why such confusion over the Full Moon?
People are always asking, When is the Full Moon?
NOT the Hawaiians! You can be sure that they knew precisely when the Full Moon was. Well, sort of…. Read on and learn about their unique way of acknowledging a Full Moon.
Some History of the Hawaiian Moon Calendar
The Hawaiian word for Moon is Mahina*. It is derived from the name of the Goddess of the Moon. She presides over all other Goddesses. Yes, she is a big deal! To understand the Hawaiian Moon phases and the calendar created by Hawaiians many years ago, we must begin with the Goddess Hina ̒aikamalama*.
Hina is THE strong female force in Hawaiian creation and mythology.
This is indicative of how Hawaiians respected, supported, and revered women, and feminine energy. She is also one of the oldest goddesses in Hawai’i. Hina represents strength and standing up for what you believe. Her partner is Kū*, the God of Strength, War, and Healing. Quite a pair! Women and men, gods and goddesses, held equally important roles.
The Moon is where Hina resides. Hawaiians have prayed, whispered, and admired her in the Moon, night after night since their memory began.
Do you remember the old saying “As Above, So Below”?
That old saying takes on another meaning when we see the phases of the Moon calendar created by these intuitive and acutely aware islanders. The Hawaiians understood and moved with the Moon and it proved to them that everything is connected. They followed the Moon phases to plant certain crops and to fish in particular ways or at particular times, to prevent overfishing.
They thrived as island people under the guidance of the Moon’s harmony with the rest of nature and existence. As the Moon waxed, it was derived that certain activities would flourish, and as the Moon waned, it was time for restraint, for rest. It was the Moon’s guidelines and seasons that they became attuned to.
There are 29.5 Moon phases in the Hawaiian Moon calendar. Moving through each of these phases contributed to their lives in a myriad of ways. Their survival linked them to the earth, the sky, and the sea.
Westerners counted days. Hawaiians counted nights.
They studied the natural rhythms of life, and they structured their lives and the moon calendar to be in harmony with the natural world around them.
Their calendar provided guidelines. It clearly designated the timing of most of their essential activities like planting, fishing, hunting, and life in general, based on the rotation of the Moon around the earth. Not the earth around the sun.
The Hawaiian Moon Calendar Organized Daily Life
The Hawaiians were remarkable navigators. Perhaps some of the best in the world. They had a deep understanding of the ocean, and its currents, and a similar knowledge of the stars and the movement of the Moon, which enabled them to find their way through the vast spaces of the Pacific Ocean without any western instruments.
A-poe-kahiko* (people of old Hawai’i) tracked the Moon through the seasons, months, and days. They would follow the rising and setting of the sun and the traveling of the stars across the heavens.
Each phase of the Moon has a Hawaiian name and some of the things they are associated with are:
- Planting of certain crops
- Fishing for certain types of seafood
- Gathering of seaweed or other staples
- Times for reflection
Some Phases of the Hawaiian Moon and What They Mean
As we mentioned previously, the Hawaiian Moon calendar has 29.5 phases. These moon phases still continue to guide fishermen to this day.
Let’s look at a few examples of these phases of the Moon. We can see how they support and enhance the Hawaiian people as people of the land and the sea.
It starts with the first Moon or as we call it today, the New Moon. This first Moon is called Hilo*. It’s a time to braid new things into our lives. The darkness builds the anticipation of the moonlight that is on its way. This night Hilo often had men and women spending the night at the seashore, hand-fishing or fishing with their homemade nets, as the tides were low in the evening and the calm nights had little wind to disturb the fish.
During Ho’aka, the second Moon, preparation was made for the 4 Kū Moons* coming next. It was a time of rising energy. A time to plan and organize for securing the materials necessary for the vital needs of all the people and villages.
During the 4 Kū Moons, fishing and planting were a priority. Staple crops were planted. Fishing was known to be at its best during this time before the rough tides which, would surely come with the next 4 ‘Ole Moons*.
The 4 ‘Ole Moons were a time of reflection. The 4 FULL Moons will be here soon and that will be a time of extreme energy, performance and action. The time leading up to the 4 Full Moons, was taken to return to self and build inner resources.
Ah yes – the 4 FULL Moons: known as Akua, Hoku, Māhealani and Kulu.
We all have our Full Moon experiences. Scary stories. Waking up in the night to see the moon setting over the water, or the most romantic night ever! How do we know when the full Moon is? Usually, we guess, OR we ask Siri or Alexa!
The Hawaiians did not need to ask anyone. For them, there were 4 FULL Moons. Great news for us!
The moon cycles were a way of life. It prepared and readied the people for the next Hawaiian moon cycle.
Of course, it is too much to go through 29.5 Moon cycles, but we know this:
The last day is Muku*. It means to cut. We can now stop or cut anything from our life that isn’t serving us well.
Today it could be eating too many desserts or releasing a negative experience.
It was not so different back in the days of early island life. There were many things recorded that showed us just how important it was for these early Hawaiians to have health, happiness, and harmony in their lives and in the lives of their families and villagers. Muku, the last day of the Moon, the day before Hilo meant that they could start fresh.
How Do We Put This All Together for the Western Mind?
For the Hawaiians, without satellites or western instruments, they had to become ultra-sensitive and attuned to the cues offered by nature, to know what was the best time to fish or stop fishing for a particular fish.
They understood sustainability much better than many scientists today. They could figure these complex rhythms out by following things like the Phases of the Moon, the rising and setting of the stars, the direction of the setting sun, and other natural cycles around them. The wisdom was passed down through the generations through stories and chants.
They observed things like the Phases of the Moon with such regularity and intimacy they could tell you without even looking, what phase the Moon was in. Without any scientific instruments, they became the instrument themselves. They merged themselves with the natural world.
We want to encourage you to take some time to look at the moon. On a quiet, cloudless night, breathe in her beauty for a moment. Close your eyes and feel her energy, her presence. You are sharing this moment with not only the first Hawaiians but the ancient peoples all around the globe.
Writing and graphic creation by Sugandha Ferro Black
GLOSSARY* of Hawaiian Words
4 Kū Moons – Kū Kahi, Kū Lua, Kū Lua, Kū Pau
4 ‘Ole Moons – ‘Ole Kū Kahi, ‘Ole Kū Lua, ‘Ole Kū Lua, ‘Ole Kū Pau
A poe kahiko – the people of old Hawai‘i
Hina ̒aikamalama – Goddess of the Moon, translates as Hina the light
Kapu – refrain from doing something or going some place that is “off limits”
Kū – Kūka’ilimoku – God of Strength, War and Healing. One of the four Great Gods in Hawaiian Mythology
Mahina – Hawaiian for Moon
*Please keep in mind that all Hawaiian Words have many meanings. The meanings we share here are the specific translations for the words as they pertain to this particular blog’s subject matter.
Photos courtesy of Wiki Commons (BEFORE August 2020) & other paid for or free sources unless otherwise noted.


An international group of scientists has made a groundbreaking discovery that confirms the existence of gravitational waves first envisioned by Albert Einstein.
The report, published on Thursday, says that astrophysicists were able to “hear” low-frequency gravitational waves — changes in the fabric of the universe that are created by huge objects moving around and colliding in space.
“It’s really the first time that we have evidence of just this large-scale motion of everything in the universe,” said Maura McLaughlin, co-director of NANOGrav, the research collaboration that published the results in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
These gravitational waves, detected at low frequencies, create a cosmic background hum that permeates the universe. The research indicates that space is filled with these waves, which oscillate over extended periods, primarily originating from pairs of supermassive black holes spiraling and merging together.
Confirming Einstein’s theory
Einstein initially proposed the existence of gravitational waves, or ripples in space-time, in 1916 as an extension of his revolutionary theory of general relativity. The famous theory described gravity as the distortion of space and time caused by matter.
However, it wasn’t until 2016 that scientists successfully detected these waves directly, having relied on indirect evidence since the 1970s.
The recent research heavily relied on pulsars, which are the highly dense remnants of exploded stars spinning at extraordinary speeds.
“Gravitational waves are generated by astronomically dense objects in our universe, typically in orbital motion around each other. As these waves travel through space, they physically stretch and compress the fabric of space-time itself,” Jeff Hazboun, an astrophysicist from Oregon State University and lead author of one of the papers published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters told the Reuters news agency.
The data for the latest report was collected by the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) Physics Frontiers Center, consisting of over 190 scientists from the United States and Canada, in the period of 15 years.
Gravitational waves sound like hum
Scientists liken the universe’s gravitational wave background to the hum of a large gathering, where individual voices cannot be distinguished.
This discovery comes seven years after the initial detection of gravitational waves generated by two distant black holes, dense objects with gravity so intense that even light cannot escape them.
The motion of black holes and other massive objects can produce these gravitational waves. The previous research was conducted using the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO).
Hazboun said, “We now have compelling evidence of gravitational wave hum in a new frequency range. These frequencies are significantly smaller, around 10-12 orders of magnitude, compared to those detected by LIGO, and they have wavelengths spanning light years.”
He further added, “The most straightforward explanation for these gravitational waves involves a collection of supermassive black hole pairs orbiting each other in our cosmic neighborhood. However, alternative explanations could involve intriguing new physics related to the early stages of the universe, near the Big Bang, approximately 13.8 billion years ago.”


Science and Society | The Big Picture
MARCH 16 | 5 PM ET
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Join us for a conversation with Sean Caroll, author of The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself.
Human beings are made from the same particles and forces that make up rocks and rivers and planets. But the world as described by science, from quantum uncertainty to the genetic code and the expansion of the universe, can seem exotic and alien to us. Dr. Carroll will talk about how our human-sized world fits into the bigger picture defined by the underlying laws of nature -- in particular, how our impressions of cause and effect and the appearance of complex structures can be traced to special conditions near the Big Bang -- and what it implies for meaning and mattering in the universe.
Sean Carroll is a Research Professor of theoretical physics at the California Institute of Technology and External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute. He received his Ph.D. in 1993 from Harvard University. His research focuses on fundamental physics and cosmology, quantum gravity and spacetime, and the evolution of entropy and complexity. He is the author of several books, most recently Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime. He has been awarded prizes and fellowships by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Sloan Foundation, the Packard Foundation, the American Physical Society, the American Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of London, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the host of the weekly Mindscape podcast.
The conversation will be moderated by Colin Norman, the former News Editor at Science, and Fred Dylla, Executive Director Emeritus of the American Institute of Physics and author of Scientific Journeys. This event is part of the series Science and Society - Making Sense of the World Around Us, launched by the Lewes Public Library last year and co-organized by Fred Dylla and Linda Dylla.
We invite you to support the author by purchasing a copy of their book. Call-in orders are accepted at (302) 226-2665 or you can stop by the store to purchase a copy. For store hours, please visit their website. Each copy purchased comes with a signed archival bookplate.
NOTE: this meeting is being conducted through Zoom. You MUST REGISTER to receive instructions for joining the meeting.
This is an online event. Event URL will be sent via registration email.


Lone Peak (Unframed)
$250.00 – $1,100.00
Giclee on Canvas
Images Sizes: 22″ X 11″ | 44″ X 22″ | 60″ X 30″
Edition Sizes: 25 | 25 | 5
“I have always been drawn to the moon and mountains. I was visiting a close friend that lives in Big Sky and this was his view from his balcony. I set my tripod, camera and long lens up for a couple hours and I patiently waited for the moon to come across the sky towards Lone Peak.
Over the last couple years, Lone Peak has become my favorite single peak I’ve seen.”


Image Disclaimer: Images are intended for illustrative purposes only and do not form part of any contract or warranty as to what you are purchasing. This transaction/purchase is subject to the confirmation of price and product by Safari & Outdoor (Pty) Ltd. See full Terms and Conditions.
Sky Guide Africa South 2018 is a practical resource for all astronomers, whether they be novice, amateur or professional. It covers the upcoming year’s planetary movements, predicted eclipses, meteor showers – any events and facets of the night sky that change annually. Star charts plot the evening sky for each season, facilitating the identification of stars and constellations. The guide contains a wealth of information about the Sun, Moon, planets, comets, meteors and bright stars, with photos, diagrams, charts and images. There’s also an excellent list of useful websites and a comprehensive glossary.


Friday, July 19 › 10-11 a.m.
Columbia Public Library, Friends Room
Soar through the skies with this compilation of Greek mythology! You'll explore the constellations and learn the stories of the wind, the seasons, the sun and the moon. We hope audiences will be inspired to look up once in a while. The Hampstead Stage Company performs this piece with two actors, each playing several roles and encouraging audience participation.
This special performance is for adults with disabilities with caregivers.
Registration: Not required.


- Illustrated study guide included
- 5.9" Sun with labeled month positions.
- Illuminated sun via light LED's
This three dimensional model allows students to study our solar system -- looking at planets' (and a dwarf planet's.. Sorry Pluto) relative sizes and colors. Planets can be set by month to show their relative positions. The 5.9" sun is supported on a sturdy base with the outer most (dwarf) planet being 18" from the sun. An illustrated guide is included with planet position tables.
|Please register as a teacher or distributor to view and download instructions.
|High Resolution Image
|Please register as a teacher or distributor to view and download high resolution images.


Great prizes here!
It’s worth a try: I did and won this car!
Naming a star:
Humanity has been fascinated by the beauty of stars since the first time a man lifted his head and saw the sky. For thousands of years, stars have enthralled us with their secrets. Romantics and pragmatists, children and old men, amateurs and scientists — for centuries, all types of people have turned to the mysteries of the starry skies to help them find their way.
Whether you are a romantic looking for a special gift for your loved one, or a business person looking for an unusual present for a colleague, this “name a star” gift is the best choice. Although you cannot buy a star, you can give it your name or the name of your loved one, friend, or business partner.
Naming a star is very easy with us. Simply pay using PayPal, and our fast and convenient customer service will leave you completely satisfied.
After your purchase has been added to the star registry, you will receive a certificate where you can fill in the name of your star and its coordinates. Simply put the coordinates into your telescope to see it.
In addition to naming a star, you will receive another star as a present. Also, each and every one of our customers who participates in the Adopt a Star event will have the chance to win one of the wonderful prizes of an apartment, a car or a laptop.
Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences, and one of the few areas where amateurs can make new discoveries. Today, astronomical research can easily be done without long observations of the sky. One of the main goals of our company is to support the development of the amazing science of astronomy. Your purchase also helps, because when you adopt a star, you automatically support the study of astronomy.
From now on, you can easily wish upon your personal star!
firstname.lastname@example.org Tel.: +64 9 889 04 05


MASIC endeavors to create a thriving space industry ecosystem that attracts investment, talent, and partnerships from around the world, inspiring future generations of Malaysians to pursue careers and opportunities in the space industry, contributing to the nation's socio-economic progress.
To establish Malaysia as a globally recognized hub for space exploration, satellite technologies, and space-based applications, driving economic growth, scientific innovation, and societal advancement.
- Coordinate, arrange and manage all space industry development programmes via collaboration/partnerships among Malaysian academia, industry players and the Government with international players.
- Facilitate capability and capacity development programmes in targeted space technologies and products through the empowerment of local industry and start-ups.
- Develop and implement action plans proceeding from the Space Industry Strategic Plan 2030 and monitor the progress of the industry.


It’s easy to forget that most of what makes you “you” is actually billions of years older than you think, considering that the human body is composed of 7 octillion atoms, the vast majority of which are hydrogen atoms that were formed in the big bang some 13.8 billion years ago.
Most of the remaining atoms were made when stars merged or exploded billions of years after the big bang, while a small number of atoms were made due to cosmic ray fission.
Astronomer Carl Sagan famously described the situation in an episode of Cosmos, “The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.”
And now, to give us an even better idea of where specifically our atoms originate from, Jennifer A. Johnson, an astronomer at the Ohio State University, composed the handy periodic table seen below and featured on her blog with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey.


Looking Into the Skies to Understand Climate Change
Two astronomers at the University of Hawaii study the solar system to understand the climate crisis on earth. The study might help scientists slow down warming.
Professor John Tonry and Ari Heinz
Professor John Tonry is the lead of the NASA-funded ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) project. The project is often referred to as the "Earth's Last Defence." He is working alongside Ari Heinz. The study is expected to play a critical role in the global discussion about climate change and can contribute a lot to some of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, under the Agenda 2030.
John Tonry told the UN News agency along with the International Labour Organisation that their job is to track asteroid that might be hazardous to our planet. They calculate if and when they will hit Earth. They have the technology to anticipate these events and measure them systematically. He also added that the chances of the earth getting hit by an asteroid in the next year are very small, but talking about the century, there might be some events that can take place and some can even cause deaths. The asteroid hitting event has a low probability but is considered a very high consequence event.
Ari Heinz added that most of their surveys focus on large asteroids, and they can see them decades or even centuries before they hit Earth. But ATLAS focuses on smaller asteroids, which may not cause global devastation, but have the potential to destroy a city. These asteroids are very small that they can only be detected when they are close to Earth. If ATLAS spots such an asteroid, the first thing the team will do is to alert the people living in the particular area to evacuate the place, so that casualties are least, as the collision of the asteroid with Earth may cause a massive explosion.
John added to this saying two decades ago, it was not possible to purchase the computers we use today, as they were extremely expensive. The cameras and telescopes too were not advanced enough to spot what they spot today.
Astronomy and Climate Change
John explained that astronomy can be very helpful in understanding climate change. The sun goes through century-long cycles. And the star is extremely important for us. The way sun behaves can give insights into weather patterns. A lot can be learned from other planets in the solar system as well, where climate change went seriously wrong. Venus was driven to extreme heat by its atmosphere. Mars went to extreme cold. Hence planetary atmosphere can help generate the data which will help us in better understanding the climate crisis.
Ari said that future development of telescopes and new space missions are possible. There are areas in space which is yet to be explored by humans. There is a misunderstanding among the people about whether climate change is happening, to which Ari replied, "Yes, and that's what I told my students 30 years ago. The only questions are really, how severe it will be, and how much it will cost to put right. The most important thing for the human race right now is that we absolutely need to deal with it. I think astronomers understand all of this very clearly, and we can also explain it pretty clearly."
Author: Subhasri Banerjee
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Galaxy / Space / Stars / Universe Laptop Sleeve
$39.99 – $41.99
“Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at.”
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Lāhainā Noon – Beyond a Shadow
At all times, there is a single point on Earth that is closest in distance to the sun, where the sun is directly overhead and its rays strike the earth’s surface exactly perpendicular. This subsolar point traverses the globe every day and produces the eerie effect of stripping objects of their cast shadows. Hawai’i refers to this tropical solar phenomenon as Lāhainā Noon and celebrates the event twice a year, occurring before and after the summer solstice.
Solar radiation is in part a function of the angle of incidence, or the angle the sun’s rays strike the Earth. When the summer sun reaches 90 degrees overhead, sunrays travel the shortest distance possible through the atmosphere before striking the Earth’s surface and are consequently extreme. This is contrasted to a winter sun that does not rise as high in the sky and its rays travel a greater distance through the planet’s atmosphere before striking the Earth—greatly reducing the intensity of solar radiation.
Lāhainā Noon occurs only in the tropics, the range of latitudes located between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, and the force of the solar event is important for designers to consider. In the period between the two Lāhainā Noon events, the sun’s path over-rotates beyond perpendicular to a peak at 93 degrees—in other words, the sun is able to travel into the northern sky in the tropics. This unique solar geometry challenges our conventional understanding of building exposures and their relationships to the procession of the sun. As a result, shading in Hawai’i must also be considered on northern building exposures, as the sun has the potential to strike northern facades for a few weeks each year.
Traditional Hawaiian architecture accounts for this phenomenon through a number of architectural interventions that serve as a model for contemporary, sustainable building strategies. Simple post-and-beam structures promote natural ventilation while large overhanging roofs on all sides shield living spaces from harsh noontime light and direct solar exposure. The variant sun exposures—depending on orientation—require different overhang lengths: wider on the south side, and shorter on the north.
Lāhainā Noon will pass over the new Waikoloa Middle School Classroom Building on the west side of the Big Island on May 18, July 24, and 25. The roof pitch and materiality mitigates Hawai’i’s high sun exposure. In Hawai’i year long summer weather the heavily insulated roofing material and light colors will reduce heat gains, critical to decreasing energy requirements. Waikoloa is a naturally ventilated building with thin-open walls and generous window to wall ratios to permit daylighting and cooling trade winds in while easing energy loads. Waikoloa is the first ground-up project from our Honolulu Studio.
The name Lāhainā Noon was adopted in recent memory and means ‘cruel sun’—referencing the strength and direct angle of the sun’s rays. The Ancient Hawaiian name, kau ka lā i ka lolo, offers a similar interpretation when translated as the ‘sun rests on the brains’. Traditional Hawaiian beliefs suggest that this event spurs the aka (shadow) to retreat into one’s body, producing a time of great energy.
Understanding and managing the unique influence of the tropical sun on buildings and occupant comfort is essential to the design of successful spaces in the Tropics, and Lāhainā Noon plays an integral part in this story. The rich Hawaiian history that acknowledges and considers this curious solar event offers contemporary designers the opportunity to call forward traditional building practices while mitigating the sun’s intensity and telling the very story of this phenomenon.
This year Hawai’i will experience the Lāhainā Noon on:
May 2023 Lāhainā Noon Dates:
- Honolulu (O‘ahu): 12:28 PM (May 26+27)
- Kahului (Maui): 12:22 PM (May 24)
- Līhuʻe (Kauai): 12:35 PM (May 31)
- Hilo: 12:16 PM (May 18)
- Kona: 12:20 PM (May 18)
July 2023 Lāhainā Noon Dates:
- Honolulu (O‘ahu): 12:37 PM (July 15 + 16)
- Kahului (Maui): 12:32 PM (July 18)
- Līhuʻe (Kauai): 12:43 (July 11)
- Hilo: 12:26 PM (July 24)
- Kona: 12:30 PM (July 24+25)


Astronomers have spotted an explosion 180 million light-years away that challenges our current understanding of cosmic explosions, revealing a significantly flatter appearance than previously thought.
- Astronomers have observed an explosion 180 million light-years away that challenges our current understanding of explosions in space, which is much flatter than previously thought.
- Bursts are always expected to be spherical because stars themselves are spherical, but this is the flattest ever seen.
- The observed burst is a very rare Fast Blue Optical Transient (FBOT) – known among astronomers as a “cow” – that only four people have ever seen, and scientists don’t know how they occur, but this discovery helps to solve part of the problem. of the puzzle
- A possible explanation for how this explosion occurred is that the star itself may have been surrounded by a dense disk, or that it may have been a failed supernova.
An explosion the size of our solar system has baffled scientists, as part of its shape — like a very flat disk — challenges everything we know about explosions in space.
The observed explosion was a bright fast blue optical transient (FBOT) – a much less common type of explosion than other explosions such as supernovae. The first bright FBOT was discovered in 2018 and given the nickname “cow”.
Starbursts in the universe are always spherical because stars themselves are spherical. However, the explosion, which occurred 180 million light-years away, was a spherical shape never before seen in space, a disk-like shape that emerged days after its discovery. This part of the burst may have come from material that the star shed just before it exploded.
It is not yet clear how bright FBOT bursts occur, but it is believed that this observation was recently published in the journal. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical SocietyBrings us closer to understanding them.
Lead author of the study, Dr. Justin Mount said: “Very little is known about FBOT bursts – they don’t act like exploding stars, they’re very bright, and they form very quickly. Simply put, they’re strange, and this new observation makes them even stranger.
“Hopefully this new discovery will help shed some more light on them – we never thought the explosions could be this spherical. There are a few possible explanations for this: the stars involved may have formed a disk shortly before they died, or these could be failed supernovae, where the core of the star is a black hole or neutron star. Collapses into a star and then eats the rest of the star.
“What we now know for sure is that the recorded asymmetries are an important part of understanding these mysterious explosions, and it challenges our preconceptions about how stars explode in the universe.”
Scientists made this discovery after accidentally detecting a beam of polarized light. Using the astronomical equivalent of Polaroid sunglasses – they were able to measure the polarity of the burst – with the Liverpool Telescope (owned by Liverpool John Moores University) located in La Palma.
By measuring the polarization, it allowed us to measure the shape of the burst, effectively looking at the size of our solar system, but in a galaxy 180 million light-years away. They were able to use the data to reconstruct the 3D shape of the eruption, and map the edges of the eruption – allowing them to see how flat it was.
The mirror of the Liverpool telescope is only 2.0 m in diameter, but by studying the polarization, astronomers have determined the shape of the burst to be about 750 km across.
The researchers will now conduct a new study with the International Vera Rubin Laboratory in Chile, which is expected to help discover and further understand FBOTs.
Reference: “Polarized optical light pointing to a flash aspherical ‘cow” by Justin R Mount, Peter A Hoflich, Ian A Steele, Yi Yang, Klaus Wiersema, Shiho Kobayashi, Nuria Jordana-Midjohns, Carol Mundel, Andreja Kombok. Cristiano Guidorsi and Robert J. Smith, 21 February 2023, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.


Mercury Rising – Transit Weekend
Mercury Bay Museum
|Date:||Saturday November 9, 2019|
|Location:||Mercury Bay Museum|
|Address:||11 The Esplanade, Whitianga, The Coromandel|
Meet the team outside the Mercury Bay Museum for a weekend of fun to celebrate the transit of Mercury!
They’ll have Lab in a Box and the Otago Museum science communicators doing some hands-on experiments, activities, and manning an indoor planetarium all weekend long. Go and say hi!
More information on the Mercury Rising Project website.
This event is part of the Tuia 250 Encounters programme.
On the 9th of November 1769 Captain James Cook and Astronomer Charles Green observed the transit of Mercury across the Sun from Te Whanganui o Hei without sharing the excitement with the Maori. A lot has changed in Aotearoa in the last 250 years.
The Otago Museum, along with Tuia 250 and the Mercury Bay Museum, hope to bring people together this transit, to learn from each other’s astronomical expertise, and to watch the last transit of Mercury visible in New Zealand until 2269.


Christina is a Senior Architect (NY) and a PhD student at the Center for Ecosystems in Architecture working on the integration and scaling of plant-based systems in built environment ecosystems.
With an undergraduate background in astronomy and philosophy, and a Masters of Architecture from Columbia University, Christina bridges a career between practice and research at the intersection of the natural sciences and the built environment, designing for a sustainable future for Earth and Space.
Christina’s experience is diverse ranging from NASA Johnson Space Center’s Habitability Design Lab to the NYC Department of Urban Design. She was the 2016 Buckminster Fuller Institute Fellow, and the 2015/2016 Ann Kalla Fellow at Carnegie Mellon University School of Architecture teaching interdisciplinary design studios between engineers, scientists, and architects designing habitats for closed-loop off-world applications for which she received a NASA Space Consortium Grant.
In her work in practice, Christina has held significant roles in projects which bridge multiple science and engineering teams in project work. At Ennead Architects, Christina was Project Leader of a team of ecologists and engineers together winning Leading Innovation in Resilient Waterfront development for an ecologically integrated coastal development in the FAR ROC Design Competition. At Ennead, Christina used her knowledge in astronomy as a critical design team member in the winning entry for the Shanghai Planetarium. At the offices of Foster+Partners, Christina helped to organize the company’s efforts in design for outer-space applications with the Specialist Modeling Group. At the Laboratory for Visionary Architecture in Berlin, Christina was a senior designer and project coordinator for the winning commission for the German Pavilion in the Sustainability District at the 2020 Dubai EXPO.
Christina is a Co-Founder and Principal Architect of SEArch+ (Space Exploration Architecture) which develops evidence-based human-supporting design concepts for space habitats in close collaboration with interdisciplinary science and engineering teams. SEArch’s team won the 2015 Phase 1 NASA Centennial Challenge to 3D Print a Martian Habitat with the “Mars Ice House.” SEArch+ went on to place first in the 2019 Phase 3 NASA Challenge with their project “Mars X House.” SEArch+ continues a relationship with NASA Langley Research Center and NASA Marshall Space Center on closed-loop and advanced structures for space applications. SEArch’s work has been exhibited in multiple international design museums, and Mars Ice House is part of the permanent collection at SF MOMA.
She is a member of the American Institute of Aerospace and Aeronautics (AIAA) Technical Committee on Space Architecture.


My own personal favorite solution to these constraints is in Michael Molnar’s 2000 book, The Star of Bethlehem. He argues that there was a conjunction of all the planets and the new Moon, similar to that used by Augustus to support his own royal birth, occurring in the constellation Aries (which he argues is connected with Judea), in late March of 4 BC. Most appealing, this conjunction occurred when the planets rose with the Sun in the east – hence fitting the Matthew description, while explaining why only astrologers were aware of this event. They could calculate its occurrence, but no one, not even them, would actually see these planets: they’d be hidden in the glare of the rising Sun.
It’s all quite neat. And indeed it’s rather startling to realise that such an event really did occur in the sky about the time when Jesus may well have been born. If you have a planetarium program, you can look it up for yourself.
But was this really what Matthew was talking about?


The 22nd of July witnessed a rare celestial event. There was a total solar eclipse visible in many Asian countries including China and India. It is a spectacular natural phenomenon and so many nature and science lovers travel to remote locations to observe one. Zillions gathered in Varanasi to catch a glimpse of it. I caught a breathtaking view on TV as the intensely bright sun got replaced by the silhouette of the moon. They said it won't happen again for another 105 years. This was a rather significant eclipse since it lasted 5 times in duration as compared to a regular solar eclipse.
In ancient times solar eclipses were attributed to supernatural causes. Total solar eclipses can be frightening for people who are unaware of their astronomical explanation, as the Sun seems to disappear in the middle of the day and the sky darkens in a matter of minutes. Asian countries always attach the angle of astrology to eclipses. Typically, the belief is that eclipses bring some adverse effects in the area that it happens. The general rule of thumb is that it is better to do charity on this day and especially indulge in free distribution of food after the eclipse is over which relieves people of their sins of the present and the previous births. All the others should continuously chant a name of their favorite god, which would give manifold effect. The idea is to pray for the blessings of ancestors who've left the earth. If you happen to be in India around that time, you’d get countless other forms of unsolicited advice.
On a scale on 1 to 10, my superstition level would be negative 2. Except for a black kitty crossing my road. I have never been able to get over that one. But other than that, I'm a negative 2 ;) The day that followed the eclipse brought about some rather strange turn of events. They weren't run of the mill things going wrong but really strange things. My baby sitter’s car got punctured (I've never heard of it happening here) and as soon as she fixed it and got home, the second tire busted. My co-worker was stranded somewhere without money and found out that her credit card got cancelled due to bad credit. Later it was established that someone with her same name and a different city had bad credit and they randomly canceled her’s. My acquaintance in Texas got bit by a snake while watering her plants in her backyard. She lives in the city not the suburbs. My toe nail broke at the gym while I had shoes on and my finger nail broke the next morning. I have the strongest nails ever.
Tell me this is normal!
Strangely enough, I’m loving the idea of correlating unpleasant events with extraneous occurrences. My DVD player is on life support and I’m on the lookout for something to blame it on.


Frank White is the author of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution, first published in 1987 and re-issued in 1998. A member of the Harvard College Class of 1966, Frank graduated magna cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He attended Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship, earning an MPhil in 1969. He is the author or co-author of eight additional books on space exploration and the future, including The SETI Factor; Decision: Earth; Think About Space and March of the Millennia (both with Isaac Asimov), The Ice Chronicles (with Paul Mayewski), and Space Stories (with Kenneth J. Cox and Robbie Davis-Floyd). He also contributed chapters on the Overview Effect to four recently published books on space exploration, Return to the Moon, Beyond Earth, Living in Space, and Space Commerce.
Frank has spoken at numerous conferences on space exploration and space development. In 1988, he delivered the keynote address at the International Space Development Conference in Denver. In 1989, he spoke at George Washington University to mark the 20th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. He also delivered the keynote address at the first Overview Effect Conference in 2007.
In 2006, the Space Tourism Society awarded Frank a “Certificate of Special Recognition.”
In 2008, Frank was one of the speakers at a session of the International Space Development Conference that launched the Overview Institute and announced the signing of the Overview Declaration.


This is a new interpretation of my work “Stars” under the influence of the painting of Van Gogh “Starry Sky.”
The basic idea was to combine graphics and painting in one work, and at the same time they should be
Since ancient times, scientists and philosophers have been questioning about existence; ‘is our world one, unique, one way or is there other possibilities?’
Scientists-physicists who are engaged in quantum mechanics offered their own version of the multiplicity of universes. Experiments led them to the idea that our world is variable and multidimensional.
This theory says that where there is a choice – universes bifurcate. If this assumption is true, then the Universes are really a great multitude, they are borning every moment. Our world is three-dimensional, but there are a lot of such worlds. Each point of our space is a complex multilevel universe with its own laws and peculiarities.
Our known universe is as far as we know 13.7 billion years. Perhaps outside this space is another independent universe, which in turn borders on another world. If we take into account that space and time are flat, then our “huge” Universe, in which we are, is just a piece in the colossal “canvas” of many universes.
The topic of quantum physics and multidimensionality (parallel worlds) has interested me for a very long time.
Physicists are well aware of the concept of “corpuscular-wave dualism” – the notion of the two-unity of the material world, in which all objects possess both wave and corpuscular properties.
In my work, dualism is also represented. I wanted to show the manifestation of two realities. One of them is colorful, pastel and there are holes into the another black and white graphic reality.
through brightness and color manifest black and white reality.
We peer into space, and the cosmos looks at us. The eyes in the starry sky are symbols of those who’re watching us …
The universe, so full of wonders. I could spend countless hours looking up in the sky; so many stars, so many mysteries.
© Parallel worlds