Tag Archives: celestial mechanics

Three suns?

Posted on June 11, 2012 by Invader Xan

I love sci fi. Really. While countless people whine about the lack of accuracy in sci fi generally, I’ve come to realise that suspending my disbelief is usually more fun★. Anyway, if we’re honest, deconstructing science in movies is like … Continue reading →

Posted in Sci Fi, space | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Unholy Haleakalā!

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Invader Xan

I managed to miss an absolute gem over the weekend. A comic about the Supermoon — featuring a zombie Phil Plait! For anyone who’s escaped hearing about it so far, the amusingly dubbed “supermoon” is an interesting little astronomical event. … Continue reading →

Posted in Imported from Livejournal | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Singularly beautiful

Posted on November 17, 2009 by Invader Xan

Everything in the Universe likes to go in circles. Moons orbit planets, planets orbit stars, stars orbit other stars — and in each case all parts of the system are interrelated. The speed at which one star orbits another, for … Continue reading →

Posted in Imported from Livejournal | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

A wobbly star!

Posted on May 28, 2009 by Invader Xan

I remember reading an article when I was just a kid called “The Hunt for Wobbling Stars”. I can’t have been much more than 8 years old, but the concept seemed simple enough even then. Any planet tugs on a … Continue reading →

Posted in Imported from Livejournal | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Gravitational Ballet

Posted on September 30, 2008 by Invader Xan

I just wasted my entire coffee break playing with this! It’s a celestial mechanics simulator. You can build your own tiny solar system with up to four objects (planets or stars), set their masses and velocities, then hit the start … Continue reading →

Posted in Imported from Livejournal | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Alpha Centauri

Posted on June 27, 2008 by Invader Xan

Surely any astronomer has spent at least some time wondering about Alpha Centauri. Being a tantalisingly close 4.37 light years from us, it really is our next door neighbour. The third brightest star in the sky (excluding the Sun), visible … Continue reading →

Posted in Imported from Livejournal | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment