Space: The Final Frontier For this Class and For Society

"The Earth is a very small stage, in a vast cosmic arena."
    ~Carl Sagan

We have been learning about space all our lives. Starting with the planets and cute little songs to remember them. Looking at pictures of astronauts, space shuttles, and looking through telescopes. When looking back at those years, I never remember thinking that we are just a speck of dust in the sunlight. We grew up with more of a Capernicus mentality and thinking we were the center of the solar system. We then learn from Galileo Galilei that we are not the center of the solar system and that the sun is. 

Solar System

(to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star)

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
Oh so bright and oh so far.
In the sky, a tiny dot.
Glowing gas that's very hot!
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
Oh so bright and oh so far.

Beaming, beaming, gleaming moon,
Like a giant white balloon,
Round and round the Earth you spin,
Through the month, new shapes you're in.
Beaming, beaming, gleaming moon,
Like a giant white balloon.

Glowing, glowing, red-hot sun.
Shining light on everyone.
Earth goes round you once a year.
You're a star with atmosphere!
Glowing, glowing, red-hot sun,
Shining light on everyone.

http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/songspoems34.html

When you look at the stars at night, what do you think about? Do you think that they are balls of fire, just burning out or beginning to die? Do you think about the moon and how the Earth's gravitational pull keeps it in orbit? Or are you thinking of the childhood song Twinkle Twinkle Little Star? Space is a vast unknown that expands billions of lightyears.  

One of the most incredible telescopes around is the Zeiss telescope that resides at the Griffith Observatory in Hollywood where 7 million people have had the experience of looking at Haley's comet and other comets such as Hale-Bopp and Hyakutake. What is a telescope? "an optical instrument for making distant objects appear larger and therefore nearer. One of the two principal forms(refracting telescope)  consists essentially of an objective lens set into one end of a tube and an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses set into the other end of a tube that slides into the first and through which the enlarged object is viewed directly; the other form (reflecting telescope)  has a concave mirror that gathers light from the object and focuses it into an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses through which the reflection of the object is enlarged and viewed." Telescopes give us the ability to combine art, science, and technology all into one machine that can range in size from an action figure toy to the most powerful telescopes in the world that are enormous and incredibly strong and powerful. They allow us to see into the depths of the univers and take pictures of the stars, planets, and galaxy. While also allowing scientist to begin understanding the once greater unknown. 


~Claire 

Citations:

"Space." CanTeach. CanTeach.ca, n.d. Web. 30 Nov 2013.
"Telescope." Griffith Observatory. Griffith Observatory, n.d. Web. 29 Nov 2013.
"Telescope." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, LLC, n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2013.
Griffith Observatory, . The Zeiss Refractors of Griffith Observatory . 1965. Photograph. Griffith Observatory, Hollywood. Web. 1 Dec 2013.
Camel Country. 2013. Photograph. FairfaxDigitalWeb. 1 Dec 2013.
 Sagan, Carl. Pale Blue Dot. 2007. video. YouTubeWeb. 1 Dec 2013.