Space is a mysterious thing. To unravel the mystery a bit, here are ten common astronomy misconceptions that you can avoid!
One of the most common misconceptions relating to astronomy involves the equinoxes. We read each year that days and nights are equal on the date of an equinox. However, if you were to look at the sunrise and sunset times listed on your smartphone, you would see that those times didn’t match up. There was more day than night!
Astronomy misconceptions are prevalent even when it’s not the equinox. Here’s a top 10 list of common space and astronomy errors.
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- Total solar eclipses do not turn the day pitch black. It’s brighter during totality than during a full Moon.
- It’s wrong to say the Moon doesn’t spin. It whirls completely around every two weeks.
- Water does not spiral down drains in different directions in different hemispheres. It goes down randomly.
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From Pluto, the Sun is not “just a bright star.” From there, the Sun is an unbearably dazzling point of light 300 times brighter than the full Moon—still too dangerous to look at. If Pluto had an atmosphere like ours, the Sun would make it look blue.
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Space Station astronauts do not float around because they’ve escaped Earth’s gravity. There’s 90% as much gravity 230 miles up as there is in your bathtub. Orbiting astronauts are merely falling freely.
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The Moon does not have a permanent “dark side.” Writers often allude to the “dark side” of the Moon when they really mean the “far side.”
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Mars is not red, any more than a pumpkin is red. It’s more of an orange-red, which is caused by the iron in its soil.
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Meteors are not hot when they land. The lower atmosphere’s subzero temperatures cool them before they hit the ground.
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The sky is not blue because it’s reflecting our blue oceans. Actually, it’s blue because the light from the Sun scatters when it reaches Earth’s atmosphere and the shorter, smaller waves are blue.
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Black holes do not suck up stars or planets; their diet is almost entirely subatomic particles!
Bob Berman
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So why, again, do we never see the other side of the moon?
As for number 10, how do you know this for certain? Humans have not been around for billions of years as the universe has.
Ask God, he's forgotten more about our creation then you'll ever know......
So I asked god and got no response ..referenced the holy books and bibles ...again nothing of significance ..any other brilliant ideas?
Picture this…..
SUN……………………….moon…Earth.
Oh look! the moon is between Earth and Sun.
Which side of the moon is lit up by Sun? Which side of the moon are you seeing form Earth?
Is not the rotation of moon 4 weeks, not 2? (One orbit).
The "Dark" side is an old term for the "Unknown" side. In our grandparents day Africa was known as "The Dark Continent" for the same reason. Exploration removed the "darkness". Dr. Livingston anybody??
Please feel free to vent such interesting facts frequently. I was especially surprised by the brightness of the sun at Pluto. What an incredible powerhouse old Sol is! Thanks. :)
Whoa ! I feel soooo s-t-o-o-p-i-d !
The only one I knew, was the spinning of water down the drain, and talking about it brought on many an argument ! You KNOW when I make any of these statements in after-dinner conversation, it is certain to escalate into all out battle ! Ha ha VERY interesting, and NOW I have to locate more information.
Thank you ! ( I think . . . )
Ask Mr. Hanky, from South Park, he'll know the answer to the toilet question.
