Essays on Astronomy

Pluto was discovered only in 1930 and has been considered a planet for many decades, and its demotion has caused a lot of debates both in scientific circles and in general public. The process of demotion conducted by the International Astronomical Union was seen by many as unfair because the number of voters was deemed too small to take a final decision on such a controversial issue, especially that some suggestions that did not pass were supported by nearly a half of the voters (Plait, 2006). While many scientists view the planetary status of Pluto as a part of

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Astronomy

Astronomy is a vital branch of science that has been with us for the longest time. This form deals with the observation and scientific study of bodies such as; stars, galaxies, the planets and comets. This history of the study can be dated back to places such as Babylon, Greece and other early civilized worlds. In the present day, astronomy has narrowed down to astrophysics as compared to astronomy in early civilization that was broad and included calendar making and celestial navigation (Bodo 2001 p 7). Through these early studies, the notion that the earth was the main centre

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A telescope is a device that makes it possible to view distant and faint objects as though they were near (Telescope, 2009). The discovery of the telescope and subsequent improvement in technology has gone a long way to transforming the way we view the universe. Telescope helps in viewing distant planets, stars, and heavenly bodies. To understand the mechanisms of operation of a radio telescope, it is important to initiate by taking a look at its discovery as well as the events that potentially led to the discovery. The essay will take a look at how the discovery and

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The Pantheon is one of the most recognizable ancient buildings in Rome, Italy. The building has stood for thousands of years and was constructed under the rule of Emperor Augustus. The name comes from for two Greek words. The first is “pan” which translates to everything. The second is “teon” that essentially translates to divine. The Pantheon was constructed in 126 AD. The architects of this phenomenal building were Marcus Agrippa, who was assisted by Apollodorus of Damascus. The Pantheon has often received wide praise and acclaim for its architectural design as well as its concept of space. It

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Looking up to the sky has been one of the most important activities of humans. Early civilizations are finding answers to their theological principles in the stars while others look guidance as they travel (Rosenburg & Russo, np). Astronomy is a vital part for the foundation of the religious beliefs and concepts of most of the early civilization. They view astronomy as a tool or as a backbone to their religious, social and cultural beliefs (Sprajc 87). Curiosity and hunger for knowledge have been the fuel for mankind to search answers in space. The significance of astronomy to life could

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Biography of Archimedes

Archimedes was born in 287 BC in Syracuse on the island of Sicily. His father Phidias, was astronomer and mathematician; He provided him education in sciences. Archimedes had his studies in Alexandria. Archimedes met the famous astronomer Conon, the astronomer and mathematician Eratosthenes, with whom he maintained in the future scientific correspondence. He worked in a library where he studied Democritus, Eudoxus and other scientists.
Archimedes later published several works in mathematics. His work consists of providing the areas of figures bounded by the curves and volumes of bodies bounded by arbitrary planes. He is the one of the

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For a long time, people believed that the earth was the center of the universe. This was until Nicolaus Copernicus radically transformed the traditional astronomical model of the universe. Born on 19 February 1473, Nicolaus was a polish astronomer who changed the perception in the nature of the universe. He came up with a working hypothesis that demonstrated that the sun was the center of the universe. The scientific and religious community treated the hypothesis of Nicolaus Copernicus with rejection because it disputed other hypotheses considered valid. These included the Aristotle and Ptolemy’s geocentric astronomical models that placed

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Question 2: Why is useful to think of 'Sciences' in the plural rather than of 'Science' as a singular enterprise?

Since the beginning of scientific inventions, a number of new scientific disciplines have emerged. These include disciplines like systems ecology. With an emergence of such disciplines, researchers have overwhelmingly been faced with highly complex issues that tend to defy the generalization of science as a single discipline (Ede and Cormack, 19). According to historical documentary analysis, science is a discipline that became diversified into different approaches since the beginning of 1950s. In many schools today, there are a number of departments where scholars deal with a specified branch of science. In addition, there has also been an emergence of

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Newton`s contribution to physics

Newton studied all the basic questions of physics and mathematics relevant to his time. Mighty apparatus of Newton`s mechanics, its versatility and ability to explain and describe a wide range of natural phenomena, especially astronomical, had a tremendous impact on many areas of physics and chemistry. “His study and understanding of light, the invention of the reflecting telescope (1668), and his revelation in his Principia of the mathematical ordering of the universe are all represented on his monument in Westminster Abbey” (“Sir Isaac Newton”).
Newton's influence on the further development of physics is enormous. Nowadays all scholars think

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At what level were women participating in the sciences (e.g., physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, engineering, etc.) in the 18th and 19th centuries
The question about the role and contribution of women in science has been a key research question in many studies. Women in sciences have also evolved into being a course that one can take at a university level. It is an important question to understand the role of women in science in 18th and 19th century. The most import thing to understand what as the significant contribution that women played during the two centuries. This research looks

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Part 1

Principle of physical science is the procedure and the concepts employed by the people who study the inorganic world. There are challenges that come up when the scientists try to measure the organic world. One of the challenges that the scientists face when trying to measure the organic world is because some of the things are God created and there is no measure that can be applied. For example it becomes extremely hard for an astronomer to try and count the number of stars in the sky or the difference in distance between one star and the other. The

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What is IR?

IR or infrared is an electromagnetic radiation, one of radiations of light. This radiation has the longest wavelength in comparison with other visible light waves and less in comparison with radio waves, starting from the red edge of visible light up to 1mm. Due to the fact that infrared has the longest wavelength it contains the most thermal energy. Approximately more than half of the thermal energy from sun is received in form of infrared radiations, therefore the balance in emitted and absorbed radiations has great role in earth’s climate.

What is UV?

UV or Ultraviolet is also one of the

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Chapter 4: The Origin of Modern Astronomy (Summary & Reflection)

Chapter 4 of “Astronomy: The Solar System and Beyond” starts with a description of the geocentric view that that the Early Greeks held of the universe. It was Aristotle’s conclusion that the Earth is spherical in shape. In A.D. 140, the Ptolemaic system, a more refined form of the Greeks’ geocentric view, was presented by Claudius Ptolemy. According to Ptolemy, the planets orbited the Earth in epicycles or small circles. It was Nicolaus Copernicus who proposed that the sun is at the center of the universe and the plants orbit around it. Tycho Brahe made the most precise

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