Thursday, January 14, 2010

how do you pronounce uranus?

i tell you what i think in the newest sixty symbols video (filmed when i was feeling pretty ill before the holiday season!).

5 comments:

Woodman said...

Great video! If I ever get to teach that long sought-after astronomy class, I hope to use some of these...

C W Magee said...

Uranus is clouded by methane? No wonder the kids can't keep a straight face.

BTW, the other woman in your video spins her apple the wrong way.

StevoR said...

Great video - thanks. :-)

This has been posted on the 'Bad Astronomy' blog too (as y'may already know) & more comments and feedback is available there - hope posting this link works & is okay here:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2010/01/18/ooo-ran-us/

I happen to be in the school of thought (& facebook group) thinking it should be renamed Ouranos which is closer to the original greek.

PS. Astropixie you have just been added to my favourites. Love your work.

StevoR said...

Great video - thanks. :-)

This has been posted on the 'Bad Astronomy' blog too (as y'may already know) & more comments and feedback is available there - hope posting this link works & is okay here:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2010/01/18/ooo-ran-us/

I happen to be in the school of thought (& facebook group) thinking it should be renamed Ouranos which is closer to the original greek.

PS. Astropixie you have just been added to my favourites. Love your work.

StevoR said...

Sorry about the double post.

I take it the moons are shown to scale there? Miranda (innermost) looks really tiny.

As for the sideways position of Ouranos being due to ejecting a large moon, all I can say is ejected *how*?

Interesting idea but I've got a few, well three big questions about that idea :

1. If its true wouldn't you expect to see a bit more disruption of the Ouranousean satellite and ring systems wouldn’t you?

2. Is there any observational evidence for this idea or is it just purely hypothetical?

3. Also is it necessary to explain this or is it superflous? Don’t planetary axial tilts naturally vary unless they are stabilised by large moons such as is the case for Earth?


Anyone care to answer these or comment please?