we lov optimism

Last night, Columbia Astronomy Outreach held their bi-monthly lecture and stargazing series. This week’s guest was Jana Grcevich, who received her Ph.D. in Astronomy from Columbia and now works as a freelance Data Scientist and author. Hear what Bwogger Mary Clare Greenlees thought about the Vacation Guide to the Solar System.

After a Friday filled with class, work, and a club, my relaxing night was to include an astronomy lecture. This was the second Astronomy Outreach lecture I had gone to and I felt like a seasoned pro. I entered Pupin at 6:50 pm and followed the printed signs pointing to where the lecture was. After walking down a flight of stairs I was handed a survey from a graduate student, asking different questions such as age, occupation, if this is your first time, and if you learned anything. This time I got to circle ‘no’ when it asked if this was my first time. I was surprised to see so many familiar faces from the previous Astronomy Outreach event. Regulars, who come to the Astronomy Outreach events to learn more about the wonders of space, just as I have.

Dr. Grcevich began her talk with a slide announcing “Top 10 Things to do on your Space Vacation before as you die.” A great start to the lecture, no doubt. The slide drew a laugh from the audience as she explained that most places in the solar system are unsuited and dangerous to human life. Throughout the presentation, Dr. Grcevich sprinkled humorous anecdotes and facts to enhance her visual storytelling. She chose to focus on 10 different sites featured in her book with co-author Olivia Koski, Vacation Guide to the Solar System.

Number 10 on the list was visiting the skies of Venus. For a hands-on experience, Dr. Grcevich recommends floating in a bubble in the atmosphere while seeing the beautiful sites of this alien world. Venus’ atmosphere has a similar pressure and temperature to Earth’s, meaning that a vacationer would only need a bubble of air and they would be set to go. A word of warning, however, be careful not fly to close to the ground, as temperatures on the surface are around 864 degrees Fahrenheit. This is also the reason that no lander on Venus has lasted longer than 45 minutes. Imagine what it would do to a human.

If Venus is not quite your style, Dr. Grcevich provides many vacation spots in and around Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system. One of the activities you could partake in is skydiving. You could fall through the layers of swirling clouds and venture through multicolored storms if you choose. However, travelers are reminded of extreme temperatures and Dr. Grcevich recommends paying after the experience, not before. If you would rather sit back and relax instead of joining in on the skydiving adventures, Jupiter’s Aurora is the perfect destination for you. With a very strong magnetic field, you can witness pink and purple auroras at the north or south pole of Jupiter. After viewing these fantastic Auroras, it’s best to follow up with some old-fashioned moon hopping. Jupiter has 79 moons (and counting) to choose from. If you want some heat, Io is an excellent choice, as it is entirely made up out of volcanoes (which can even be seen from space). If you want a cooler option, Europa is the best choice for you, with its icy crust and saltwater ocean below. Although Jupiter has these amazing experiences, if the extreme heat and cold don’t kill you first, the radiation will take a slow, but nasty toll on your body.

our boi titan in infrared! see that glint in its eye, that’s the sun

If you want a smaller gas giant, Saturn is the place to be. There, you can see the famed hexagon at Saturn’s north pole. The swirling gas and fluids create a perfect, multicolored hexagon (something scientists have been able to recreate in labs!). After visiting the north pole, your next stop could be the moon, Titan. See the bright reflective spot? That’s a reflection of the Sun off of the surface of Titan. When roaming the moon, you would see spectacular seas, not of water, but of methane and ethane, which creates the reflective spot.

The best way to end the journey is by visiting Mars to view a Martian sunset. Unlike Earth sunsets, which can range from the typical yellow and reds to purple in pinks, this sunset is purely blue. Do you see the tinges of red? Don’t be fooled, it’s just from the dust in the air that mixes in the atmosphere to distort the beautiful blue sight.

the moon!

After a round of questions, it was announced that there would be limited stargazing because of cloud cover. I took the elevator to the 13th floor and followed the trail of red light to the roof of Pupin and the Observatory. My eyes had trouble adjusting as I waited in line for my turn at seeing the moon. But what I could see was the strong glow of the moon through the hazy clouds. When it was my turn, I walked up the wooden steps were the graduate student on duty told me to look through the telescope. At first, I just saw a white blob and for a horrible moment I thought I broke the telescope, but as my eyes focused, I saw the craters of the Moon. All the stargazing I had done up until that point had primarily been without using a telescope, but I saw what I was missing. Seeing the intricate details, and the light and dark features put into perspective how much we have been able to learn about our solar system and even beyond.

As I squeezed down the stairs of the observatory and back to the 13th floor to catch the elevator, I ran into a woman and man who I identified as ‘Regulars.’ On the elevator ride down, we discussed the lecture and the moon, Titan. However, I was getting off on the 5th floor, campus level, and they were getting off on the 2nd floor, 120th exit. As I said my goodbyes, the man said, “Well, see you in two weeks.” I have three and three-quarters years until I graduate, I hope by then, I will be a regular at these events, and I hope to see everyone in two weeks at the next lecture, Ultraviolet Universe.

amazing space bois via Mary Clare Greenlees