Astronomy Minute

A brief description of what constitutes and astronomical observatory with a few examples in the real world that you have probably heard of.

A brief description of the philosophical concept known as Occam's Razor, which asserts that “the simplest explanation of a particular natural phenomenon is usually the correct one.” 

A brief description of why the Webb Telescope is optimized to observe infrared light. Hint: it has to do with the four main science areas that it will be studying: “Other Worlds,” “Star Lifecycle,” “Galaxies Over Time,” and “Early Universe.”

A brief description of the four main science goals of the James Webb Space Telescope - “Other Worlds,” “Star Lifecycle,” “Galaxies Over Time,” and “Early Universe.”

A brief description of the James Webb Space Telescope and how it's different than the Hubble Space Telescope.

A brief description of the Hubble Space Telescope and its scientific capabilities.

A brief description of the two primary reasons why we send telescopes into space to observe and study celestial objects.

A brief historical summary of what we mean when we refer to "Spiral Nebulae." 

A brief description of what will happen if the universe stops expanding and collapses back on itself - this is known as the Big Crunch.

A brief description of the basic properties of astronomical objects such as mass, radius, distance, luminosity, and temperature.

A brief description of the Local Group of galaxies which contains the Milky Way, the Andromeda galaxy, and dozens of dwarf galaxies all gravitationally bound to each other.

A brief description of what scientists mean when they say we "know" something.

A brief description of the structure of atoms - how they are mostly empty space - and why the everyday objects you use don't collapse and fall in on themselves.

A brief description of what we mean when we talk about interacting galaxies.

A brief description of nuclear fusion, which is the process by which stars produce light so that they can shine.

A brief description of giant molecular clouds and why they are important for stars.

A brief description of the observational evidence we have supporting our assertion that the Milky Way galaxy is spiral in shape. 

A brief description of the 21 centimeter radiation (light) that the Hydrogen atom emits and the mechanism behind this emission.

A brief description of what astronomers mean when they say that "all pulsars are neutron stars but not all neutron stars are pulsars."

A brief description of neutron stars, which are essentially the end state of massive stars some of which become pulsars.

A brief description of a white dwarf star, which is the end-state of a star that is less than 8 times the mass of Sun. 

A brief description of how we use the HR Diagram and the main sequence to measure the ages of stars in groups and clusters.

A brief description of seeing and the resolving power of a telescope.

A brief description of the true nature of black holes as highly localized sources of gravity and not cosmic vacuum cleaners.

A brief description of what we think was here before the Big Bang. Short answer is that we don't know since "Science" is not equipped to answer questions where no data or information is available.

A brief description of my personal point of view regarding the possibility that UFOs harbor extraterrestrial beings visiting Earth.

A brief description of the structure of the Milky Way galaxy - our galactic home.

A brief description of the Hubble Law, now more formally known as the Hubble-Lemaitre Law.

A brief description of starburst galaxies and why they are in star formation overdrive.

A brief description of whether the findings of science are _absolutely_ true. It could also have been entitled “Are Scientific Results Absolute?” and “Is the Scientific Method Absolute?”

A brief description of what is meant by dimensional analysis. In short, the final units in a calculation must be correct for the calculation to be correct.

A brief description of the nature of sunspots and the sunspot cycle.

A brief description of Einstein’s Theories of Special Relativity and General Relativity?

A brief description of how we mathematically relate cause and effect in science. A short description of the equation of a straight line, y=m*x + b is also included.

A brief description of the different kinds of lunar and solar eclipses and how they happen.

A brief description of what makes Earth unique from the other terrestrial planets - active plate tectonics, liquid water, a significant atmosphere, and the rich diversity of life.

Some advice for anyone wanting to pursue professional astronomy/astrophysics as a career choice.

A brief description of how atoms absorb and emit particles of light known as photons based on the Bohr Model of the atom. This leads directly to the creation of absorption and emission lines in the spectra of stars.

A brief description of some deep sky objects whose names you may have heard of in popular culture.

A brief description of what is meant by retrograde motion of the planets in the Solar System.

A brief description of the professional organizations that support the work of astronomers in North America and worldwide.

A brief description of the process used to allocate telescope time to professional astronomers interested in addressing scientific questions.

A brief description of how astronomers disseminate their research results to other scientists.

A brief description of how we quantify the amount of metals in a star, i.e. how much of the star is composed of elements heavier than Helium, using a logarithmic quantity designated as Fe over H, or simply [Fe/H].

A brief description of light pollution and why astronomers are so concerned about its effects on the brightness of the night sky.

A brief treatment of the limitations of science as pertains to seeking the truth in other areas outside of the natural world.

A brief description of the notable celestial objects located in the constellation of Virgo.

A brief description of the notable celestial objects located in the constellation of Ursa Major.

A brief description of the notable celestial objects located in the constellation of Tucana.

A brief description of the notable celestial objects located in the constellation of Triangulum.