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Posts Tagged ‘science’

Encounter with Mars

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , , on August 1, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday we flew to the Moon, so today what say we go to Mars? 

Created from thousands of images, the sequence begins with Mars as a small crescent in the distance. During close approach on May 15, the Red Planet’s cratered surface fills the imager instrument’s field of view. As the spacecraft departs Mars, the changing perspective reveals the planet’s icy south pole.   

Want to learn more about the mission? Here’s an article from NASA:

NASA’s Psyche Mission Delivers Mars Flyby Data, Time-lapse Video

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Photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash

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Double the Fun!

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , , on July 17, 2026| Leave a Comment »

A friend who knows I like rainbows and Star Wars sent this my way, and it is fascinating!

In case you’ve ever wondered what difference two suns would make:)

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Double rainbow but only one sun. Photo by Coralie Meurice on Unsplash

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Waxing Poetic

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , on July 12, 2026| Leave a Comment »

We recently spent some time on the road, and drove through some fascinating geology. I had a professor once who was known to wax poetic about highway road cuts, and he wasn’t wrong. Millennia of geological processes are exposed to the light. It got me thinking about geology in general and rocks in particular.

Here’s a general introduction that emphasizes the connection of geology to everything from plate tectonics to the location of our cities:

I’d rather have polished stones from my local highway than diamonds, actually. And for fun, here’s a video on labradorite, a very pretty example of Earth’s stone modification skills:

Thanks for taking us to the Geology Department open house that one time, Dad. I still remember the rock polishing demonstration:)

And if you have a moment next time you’re on the road, watch the road cuts as you go by. Earth’s secrets are out there, waiting for you.

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Photo by Brian Cornelius on Unsplash

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The 99%

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , on July 8, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Another fun astronomy fact today (and for many other days!).

99% of people on Earth will get sunlight at the same time this Wednesday

On July 8, at about 11:10 GMT, about 99 percent of the world experiences sunlight at the same time.

That is pretty cool!

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Photo by Ishan @seefromthesky on Unsplash

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Hello Helios

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , on July 7, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Apologies for being ever so slightly behind the times on this, but we just (as in yesterday!) experienced aphelion. That’s right, on June July* 6th at 1:30pm EDT, the Earth and all of its inhabitants (that’s us!) were 152,087,775 kilometers or 94,502,962 miles away from our favorite life-giving ball of fire.

Perihelion and Aphelion 2026

The Earth orbits the Sun in an elliptical path, which means that there is one point on the path closest to the Sun and one point that is farthest away from the Sun.

And in case you were wondering: Aphelion: Earth is as far away from the sun as it ever gets. So why is it so hot?

(* edited because it’s July now, somehow; catch up, brain! And on a related “really far away from the Sun” note, we just watched Project Hail Mary and thoroughly enjoyed it:) 

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Photo by Andrey Câmara on Unsplash

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Our (Martian?) Future

Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 3, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Can you really survive on Mars? What science fiction gets wrong about off-world living | Space

Arnie said, “Get your ass to Mars”, but is it really a good idea? We asked the experts about our Martian future.

How likely is it that humanity will be able to live and thrive on Mars? Short answer, no. Longer answer? Still no! Doesn’t mean we can’t dream of new and exciting vistas in our future, though!

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Photo by Daniele Colucci on Unsplash

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Another Thing About the Moon

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , , on May 31, 2026| Leave a Comment »

If you missed yesterday’s blue moon, don’t worry, it will still look full tonight too. And as I should also have mentioned, it’s a micromoon (the opposite of a supermoon). The moon is at apogee, or as far from us as it can get. Right now, that’s about 251,000 miles away. 

Here’s a NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day showing the difference between a supermoon and a micromoon. It’s not nothing! 

If you have a chance to see the (almost) full moon tonight, count yourself lucky. The next blue micromoon won’t happen until 2053.

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Photo by Federico Di Dio photography on Unsplash

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What If They’re Already Here?

Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged , , , , , , on May 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Recently, Neil deGrasse Tyson visited Stephen Colbert to talk about aliens and his new book Take Me To Your Leader: Perspectives On Your First Alien Encounter. He discussed aliens, why you probably shouldn’t shake hands, and how they might mirror what they see of humanity. 

It made me think of the story I wrote on that topic, and how I hope that humanity does more good than not. I’ve re-posted before but I like the story, so here it is again. Click through for the full piece.

We Are Mirrors | J.R. Johnson

You and Yours

I came from the stars to meet you. I was happy. Excited, even. First contact with your verdant world. Think of all that we could share with you.

“You” could have meant a lot of things. I started with one of the most populous. An insect.

I remember little of what it was like, a flash of light, a warm wriggle in a puddle after rain. The feel of wind in my wings.

It’s embarrassing to say this now, but I was promptly eaten.

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Photo by Dre Erwin on Unsplash

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Big Old Grin

Posted in Other, Science!, tagged , , , , , , , on May 1, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Here’s an interesting interview with astronaut and naval aviator Victor Glover, pilot for Artemis II’s Orion spacecraft.

Artemis II pilot talks about what it was really like to fly and land in Orion – Ars Technica

And when those parachutes came out, when the mains came out, it was like God himself led us down to the water. And I had a big old grin on my face. It was intense. It went from intense to pure elation.

If you are curious about what it’s like to pilot in space, the difference between a touchscreen controller and stick-and-throttle hand controllers, or the “very intense” 13 minutes and 36 seconds of reentry, read on.

I was!

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NASA/Jim Ross (left to right, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman)

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Comet C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , , , on April 19, 2026| Leave a Comment »

NASA reminded me that we have a new, if transitory, neighbor in the skies overhead. The comet PanSTARRS is making a quick visit and tonight is the closest it will come to the sun.

APOD- 2026 April 18 – PanSTARRS and Planets

This is a good weekend for northern hemisphere comet watchers to try to catch PanSTARRS an hour or so before sunrise, as the comet grows brighter approaching its perihelion on April 19. On April 26 the comet makes its closest approach to our fair planet but by then will be difficult to see in the solar glare. Good views of this comet PanSTARRS in late April and early May will be from the southern hemisphere.

If your skies are clear and dark, check it out!

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Photo by Justin Wolff on Unsplash

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