Tag: Universe

Muse’s Starlight – The Dissonance between Hope and Despair

Some things can cause a strange feeling of dissonance. When you look toward the stars in the sky, possibly thinking to dedicate a star to someone, or get a star named after you, you’ll perhaps be overwhelmed  at the idea of a burning ball of gas burning for billions of years; yet perhaps slightly...

Scorpius – The Polynesian Connection

Scorpion or Fish hook? To register a star must have been tricky for the ancient peoples as they only had the naked eye to use. Part of the reason we have constellations at all is that making shapes out of stars that were clustered together made them easier to locate. But not all cultures saw the...

Antares – the Heart of the Scorpion

What makes the constellations special is not just the images they inspire, but the body of stars that makes them up. It’s a very special thing to own a star, and for the constellation of Scorpius, it has a very interesting one at its very heart. The brightest star of the Scorpius constellation is...

The Layers of a Star

When you’re looking to get a star named after you, or name a star after someone you know, it’s easy to forget the sheer wonder that allows these flaming balls of gas to exist in the first place. The existence of every available star in the intergalactic star database is dependent on the laws of phys...

Star Lyrics – Sky Full of Stars (Coldplay)

Coldplay’s reputation is, suffice to say, a mixed one at best. Their fans see them as catchy and sincere, while their detractors might view them as sickly sweet and lazy. Nevertheless, they have dominated the music landscape for 17 years and in many ways are the definitive band of the 00’s and the 2...

Fomalhaut; the loneliest star?

For the stargazing among us Autumn can be a particularly grim time of year. That chill of the night only gets worse the closer we edge toward Christmas and the casual stargazer could be forgiven for not wanting to be outside too much for extended periods of time. Winter is coming If you’re loo...

Apocalypse Theories that Weren’t the End of The World.

It seems that people have been attempting to predict the end of the world for as long as people have been around. The world has apparently been due to end in many colourful ways- floods, fires, comets – but luckily for humanity, none of it has been accurate. The 2012 Mayan Apocalypse. Accor...

Starry Superstitions

Throughout history and in cultures all over the world, the stars have held the answers to questions for philosophers, farmers and dreamers alike, but do you know the history of these superstitions? 10: Hands to Yourself Pretty much everyone knows that it is rude to point, but some cultures bel...

Ridiculous Things People Have Believed to be UFOs.

Lightning It is probably unsurprising that weird weather phenomena are linked with UFO sightings. This happens particularly often with a phenomenon known as sprite flashes, which are triggered high up in the Earth’s atmosphere by thunderstorms. These sprites often take the form of fast-mov...

How the Body is Affected by Spaceflight.

Even though it has been half a century since humanity took its first step towards the final frontier, questions remain on how a human body is affected by space flight. In a recent study, scientists were able to get a look at these effects, particularly that of weightlessness, on a molecular level....

Space Inspired Fashion

There is no denying that the fascination with space extends far beyond the realms of science and has inspired designers for decades. In both interior design, for example, the Sputnik chandelier and of course, fashion.   The Space Race showed a jump forward in the clothes of the time, and is to...

How Nasa Has Changed Your Everyday Life

Long Distance Communication Without the 200 or so NASA satellites in orbit around the Earth it would not be possible to stay in touch with people on the other side of the world. Solar Energy NASA developed solar energy in an attempt to cr...