コンデンセート超新星
Supernova Condensate is a blog about our place in the Universe. Of astronomy, chemistry and life in the big bad bubble of academia.
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Invader Xan is a molecular astrophysicist and part-time alien invader, who spends life looking at very small things on very large scales, and trying to better understand the chemistry of interstellar space.
DFTBA ♥
我々はすべての星の塵で作られています。
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Writing this blog is a labour of love, and I'm presently a poor unemployed scientist (and struggling writer). If you like what I write, the best way to show your gratitude would be to fuel my caffeine addiction and buy me a coffee to say thank you. All coffee donations are gratefully accepted!
Tag Archives: stars
Life under a blue sun?
So an article I wrote for Discovery last week revisited the idea of whether life could survive under a red sun, and what challenges it might face. Thing is, while red dwarfs may be exceptionally cantankerous little things, it seems … Continue reading
How “habitable” is our solar system anyway?
If you take a look around our solar system, it’s sometimes enough to make you feel slightly lonely. As far as we know, the only planet with any kind of life on it is ours. We certainly haven’t seen any … Continue reading
Keeping in the loop
I was rather gratified the other day, to learn that I’m not boring for being a fan of Orion. Apparently, several other people pick Orion as their favourite constellation, ever vigilant in the skies from almost anywhere on the planet. … Continue reading
Centauri Dreams!
There is a planet in the Alpha Centauri system. An Earth-sized planet★. In the Alpha Centauri system. I don’t know about anyone else, but to me this is huge huge news! As many a space enthusiast will tell you, the … Continue reading
Second star to the right, and straight on till morning…
Dreamed up by the British Interplanetary Society in the 1970s, Daedalus was an idea for an unmanned interstellar space probe. It was to be powered by a nuclear fusion rocket, using a rocket engine bell larger than St Paul’s Cathedral. Continue reading
The eternally starry skies of star cluster planets
Our sun sits in a rather lonely part of the Milky Way. Here in our quiet little home in a mundane part of the Orion Spur, a tiny offshoot from one of the galaxy’s spiral arms, we have few neighbours. … Continue reading
Quit your pessimism, ok?
I’m tired of seeing this self pitying garbage show up in every corner of the internet I frequent. Can we please just get rid of it? Please? No. Nonononononononono. You can say whatever you like, but don’t be using my … Continue reading
Black holes singing in space
One of the things which particularly caught my eye in this week’s Carnival of Space was that article from the quite marvellous Science in a Can about a singing black hole! This black hole is about 250 million light years away … Continue reading
Carnival of Space 262
Ladies and gentlemen and variations thereupon, I bid you welcome to this week’s edition of Carnival of Space. With Curiosity’s daredevil landing on Mars this week, there’s a distinctly martian flavour about this carnival! Whether this is your first time … Continue reading
Posted in chemistry, space
Tagged astrochemistry, astrophysics, black holes, mars, planets, space exploration, spaceflight, stars
5 Comments
Significance?
In astronomy, the typical way to give the mass of a large object is in solar masses, denoted M⊙. This isn’t an exact measure, but it’s good to a suitable degree of accuracy. For example, Sirius A is about 2.02 M⊙. … Continue reading
