Why is astronomy cooler than we thought? Astronomy is without a doubt one of the most important topics out there. The mere fact that our planet is like one grain of sand on a long beach is enough to force you to slide back under the covers for a while before you try to face the facts.
Just like any study, astronomy certainly makes more inquiries than it will be able to answer any time soon. In fact, that is a part of what makes it so wonderful. Adventurers question what is over the horizon, but astronomers enlarge the limits. Space is absolutely huge, larger than we can even imagine, and astronomers are trying to determine what really exists out there in the universe. Here are some of the things that make astronomy so cool.
Astronomy begins close to home
We do not have to go far to get started with astronomy. Our own sun is actually incredibly interesting, and we see it every single day. Did you know that the sun is moving at 12 miles per second? That is 720 miles per minute, or 43,200 miles per hour!
The sun is vital to our own survival, and provides the source of energy that powers everything on Earth. While it is the perfect temperature to power life on our planet, the sun’s own surface is incredibly hot, at about 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Earth’s elements exist in space
There are 92 common elements on Earth, and interestingly, two-thirds of these elements have been found on the moon as well. It leads to an interesting question about where the elements come from in the first place. In fact, researchers believe that the other third of Earth’s elements likely exist on the sun, too. It is hard to believe that our water and life rich planet could be so strongly linked to that hot red ball of gas. Astronomy certainly is fascinating.
Future worlds
Just like those adventurers who preceded us and dreamed about what new worlds existed beyond their horizons, we dream about what sort of worlds lie beyond our own solar system. We believe that there may even be other stars and planets out there that are similar enough to our own planet Earth to provide us with a new home in the future.
It may have been only a few decades since people first walked on the moon, but technology is advancing at a steady pace, so it might be just a matter of time before we explore far beyond what we know today. We are always looking ahead, trying to learn more about how and why we exist, and what other life might be possible given the proper conditions. Astronomers are at the forefront of this exploration.
We are spending our home planet’s resources at an alarming rate, and things will soon run out. If we’re not careful about how we treat our Earth, the time may come when we have to find a new home, another planet where we can survive.
Astronomy is so cool because it helps us learn more about our own planet as we search for new and incredible things in the vast universe.
