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MOIYA MCTIER,
Astrophysicist, Folklorist, & Science Communicator
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Moiya McTier
Jul 24, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #100!
Alright, friends. Here it is, my 100th and final astronomy fun fact! And what better topic to end on than the ultimate fate of the...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 22, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #99
Astronomy is often viewed as an unnecessary science because people think astronomy research doesn't directly affect people's lives....
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Moiya McTier
Jul 22, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #98
If you look closely enough at the Big Dipper, you might notice that one of the points in the handle is actually two points. They are...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 21, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #97
In honor of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing... Only 12 humans have walked on the Moon. They are 1. Neil Armstrong 2....
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Moiya McTier
Jul 20, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #96
The Moon is tidally locked, which means one side of the Moon is always facing the Earth. An interesting consequence of the Moon’s tidally...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 18, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #95
As of 2019, the heaviest thing humans have ever launched into space is the Saturn V rocket, which carried the Apollo Lunar Module. Saturn...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 17, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #94
The universe is expanding, and that expansion is speeding up. But even though the universe is getting bigger, it's not creating any new...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 16, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #93
I don't believe in astrology, but I know that there are people who do, and I want those people to know how their signs are assigned. The...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 15, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #92
Total solar eclipses are possible because the apparent size of the Moon on the sky is bigger than the apparent size of the Sun. Both take...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 15, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #91
If you're lucky enough to be standing outside at sunrise or sunset with an unobstructed view of the Sun as it dips below the horizon in a...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 14, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #90
You learned in Fun Fact #89 that there's a lower limit for the mass of a star. There's also a theoretical upper limit. Stars are a...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 12, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #89
Some people say that Jupiter is a failed star -- that it could have been a star if it were just a bit more massive. So how massive does...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 11, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #88
The footprints that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin left on the Moon are still there because there's no wind to blow them away. There is a...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 10, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #87
It's common knowledge that there are different unit systems. That's why Americans use units like inches, pounds, and degrees Fahrenheit...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 9, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #86
The second popular coordinate system used by astronomers is the Galactic Coordinate System. This system is centered on the Sun, but it...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 8, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #85
Space is huge and has no single reference point, which means there are no set directions. So how do astronomers keep track of the...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 8, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #84
Uranus rotates on its side! You may have heard that the Earth’s axis is tilted at 23 degrees. That’s nothing compared to Uranus’ tilt of...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 6, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #83
The Earth is only the third planet from the Sun. We’re so close to the Sun that it keeps us all from freezing. But “close” means...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 5, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #82
In December of 2013, the European Space Agency launched Gaia, a powerful astrometric telescope, into space. The telescope cost 650...
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Moiya McTier
Jul 4, 20191 min read
Astronomy Fun Fact #81
Since astronomers study things that are so large and distant, we often think in log scales (base 10). That means we think in terms of...
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