Another thing that sets circumpolar stars apart is that they do not rise into the sky or set. They always appear directly above the horizon, which is a line that you can see in the distance. Now is a good time to learn more about circumpolar stars and what they are.   Latitude and Altitude The main thing that will determine what circumpolar stars you can see is your … [Read more...]

When you look at your science textbook at images of the Earth and other planets, you'll notice that they look round. Planets aren't entirely round but do have a round shape. This is due to the gravity of the planet. Gravity both pushes up and down on the planet and pulls it out from the sides, which makes it look round. It's often better to think of planets in terms of spheres. … [Read more...]

Armageddon and other famous movies showed the disasters that could occur when comets hit the Earth or came close to the planet. Those disasters ranged from end of the world situations to buildings catching on fire and oceans flooding. Astronomers often call comets dirty snowballs because they primarily consist of ice or snow mixed with debris. Comets can move through the … [Read more...]

The distance between the Earth and the sun is the perfect distance between those two objects. It sits in a region known as the 'Goldilocks zone', because it is just right. If the Earth were closer, the sun could cause life on the planet to burn up. If the Earth moved away from the sun, it could become too cold for humans to survive. People sometimes think that we're getting … [Read more...]

Earth is one of the most important planets in the solar system because it is the only one that can sustain human life. All the other planets in our universe either consist of gases that humans cannot breathe or temperatures that are too high. Our planet is home to more than seven billion people and billions of animals. It is more than four billion years old and sits roughly 92 … [Read more...]