Moose, Meese, Mooses Way back in the 42nd episode of the newsletter, we explored the gorgeous Gekko gecko, otherwise known as the tokay gecko. I came upon that beauty through photographs but loved the nearly identical scientific nomenclature, which got me thinking about tautonyms. A tautonym is the term for a doubled taxonomic name, and its […]
Moose, Meese, Mooses Read More »
Derechos I think most people are familiar with tornadoes, hurricanes, and blizzards, all storms associated with ferocious winds. But there is another menacing monster out there in the clouds, beyond these familiar storms, called a derecho. The term comes from the Spanish word for “straight” or “direct.” Unlike the swirling winds of a tornado, a derecho
Maximum Tree Height The tallest trees in the world are Coast Redwoods. The highest known specimen is named Hyperion and is located somewhere in Redwood National Park in California. Its exact location is a well-guarded secret to protect it from potential damage. One day, I’m sure, we’ll explore this grand tree in its own article,
Maximum Tree Height Read More »
Fireflies: Suns of the Terrestrial Night In the dry summer field at nightfall,fireflies rise like sparks.Imagine the presence of ghostsflickering, the ghosts of young friends,your father nearest in the distance. –Marilyn Kallet For me, one of the greatest parts about summer is the emergence of fireflies. For a month or two each year, I love to
Fireflies: Suns of the Terrestrial Night Read More »
Comet NEOWISE The astrophotography world has been abuzz in recent weeks thanks to the spectacular emergence of Comet NEOWISE, which is one of the brightest visible objects in the northern hemisphere since the famous 1997 edition of Comet Hale-Bopp. Before March of this year, we didn’t even know this comet existed. Astronomers picked up an
The Summer Solstice Tuesday, 21 June, marks 2023’s summer solstice. The word solstice comes from the Latin solstitium, which combines sol (sun) and stit (stopped or stationary). Technically defined, the summer solstice is the point when one of Earth’s poles is tilted maximally toward the sun. Broadly defined, it is the day on which the sun reaches the highest position
The Summer Solstice Read More »
Skywalker and Depthdiver The Dr. Seuss book Oh, the Places You’ll Go! is a fairly common graduation gift and for some people it is prophetic. If the book, published in 1990, had been around in the 1960s you might have been a true Nostradamus had you given a copy to Kathryn Sullivan. A couple of weeks ago she
Skywalker and Depthdiver Read More »
Mediocre Amateur Today I was feeling the wanderlust in a large way. The last quarter-year has been difficult for many of us who love traveling and exploring the outdoors in locations that aren’t necessarily in our areas. The desire for travel, however, doesn’t simply vanish during a quarantine. One benefit of modern life is the
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Plastics are amazing. Since the first man-made version was patented in 1856, plastics have brought forth countless benefits. But very few materials exist downside-free and plastics are no different. One of the main positives can also be a drawback. That tub you use as a storage bin will last forever,
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Read More »
The Mother of Modern Physics Maria Salomea Skłodowska entered our orb in Warsaw, then part of the Russian empire, now the capital of Poland, on 7 November 1867. Her parents were both teachers, whose families had histories of involvement in Polish independence movements, and probably envisioned an erudite future for their youngest child. My guess, though,
The Mother of Modern Physics Read More »