Conversations About Science with Theoretical Physicist Matt Strassler
What would the Grand Canyon look like if it had sunset light without the sunset shadows? Sunday’s annular solar eclipse provided a hint of an answer: Quite a first visit to the North Rim of the canyon. Maximum eclipse occurred an hour before sunset, and the sun set with a small piece of the moon’s … Read more
Hi all! I said that posts would be sparse for a couple of weeks, but I didn’t realize quite how sparse! But I’m gradually getting back on-line here.
Right now, what’s occupying my attention for the next 48 hours is all in the sky: three crescents, and a ring. I’ll be brief, but if you want more explanation about the geometry involved, you might want to read my very relevant article about geometry and the beauty of the heavens.
Why does the sight of the Moon draw our gaze and silence our voices? What is it about the planets, those exceptionally bright points of light that wander among the stars, that we instinctively find so beautiful? Is it perhaps that they make us dream of faraway, unreachable places? Is it that they are beacons … Read more