Helium balloons?......a must have for a kids’ party
these days.
Okay, what
about perfect TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSES?.....common enough?
Actually they are unique!...unknown anywhere else in our solar system - or the universe!
So?? Where’s the connection?
With the Sun being 400 times greater in diameter than our 'new
moon' and 400 times further away, the angular match is often perfect for a
total eclipse....enabling us to discover a new element, work out what powers
the Sun...and fill kids' party balloons. None of us knew about helium, the
second most abundant element in the universe until 1868 when Pierre Janssen and
Sir Joseph Lockyer positively identified it from bright yellow emission lines
in a spectroscope aimed at the Sun. What led them to this? Observations during Total
Solar Eclipses.
Okay, what
about perfect TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSES?.....common enough?Actually they are unique!...unknown anywhere else in our solar system - or the universe!
So?? Where’s the connection?
This Total Solar Eclipse occurred on 14 November
2013 over Far North
Queensland. For a few minutes, astronomers had a clear view of
Mercury, besides a daytime view of Saturn and Venus!
 |
| Wowee!! The awesome sight that greeted Far North Queensland |
So, are Total Solar Eclipses on Earth just another stunning ‘fluke of nature’ or a supernatural set-up that enables Man to explore the universe?
Acknowledgement: Wallace,
Dawes & Northfield, ‘Astronomy Australia 2012’, Quasar Publishing
Image credit: Solar Eclipse / Stellarium
I learnt from astrophysicist Guillermo Gonzales, co-author of ‘Privileged Planet’, about the discovery of helium, in time for the stunning eclipse over FNQ which could be simulated for my students in their classroom, thanks to the free download program: Stellarium.
ReplyDeleteAustralian newspapers gave the eclipse scant coverage, not even mentioning the bonus line-up of 3 planets.