Is anyone into Astronomy? I know I am. There are alot of things that we do that are based on astronomy. We just don't know it. Here is a real and true example-
The anciet people always studied the sky. They knew the sky and the patterns of the stars like the back of their hand. Every star moves along the sky in the same pattern every year, and the ancient people knew that. But every once and a while there would be 5 stars that didn't move across the sky like the other stars. Those 5 stars were also alot brighter then the other stars. The ancient people didn't know how to explain these 5 bright stars that didn't follow the same pattern as the other stars. So the said that the 5 stars were gods. They also gave those 5 stars a name. They called those 5 stars 'wandering stars' or as we call them today, 'lanets' 5 of the planets in our solar system are visable in the night sky from earth, (mercury, veanus, mars, jupiter, and saturn). The ancient people knew nothing about planets, so they decided the 5 planets were Gods, because the planets are not only bright, but they don't follow the pattern that all of the stars do.
It might be hard to belive, but it is true. The fact that we can see planets at night is also true. Go outside any day that it isn't overcast between now and mid-march. There will be a super bright star. It will be over 3 times brighter then any other star in the sky. That super bright star is actually a planet, Veanus. It is so bright not only because it is so close to us, but also because of its color. Grab a decent pair of binoculars, and you will be able to see a yellow-orange color. That is The color of the immense clouds that are on Veanus.
Here is a good example on how things that we don't even think about are based on astronomy-
Have you ever wondered why we have 7 days? It the 7 days are for the 5 planets the ancient people could see, the sun, and the moon. Monday is lunes in spanish. (pronounced lunase) Lunes is the day for the moon. Tuesday is martes in spanish. Martes is the day for Mars. Wednesday is miercoles in spanish. (pronounced mear-e-coles) Miercoles Is the day for Mercury. Thursday is jueves in spanish. Jueves Is the day for Jupiter. Friday is viernes in spanish. Viernes is the day for Veanus. Saturday is sabado in spanish. Sabado is the day for Saturn. Sunday is domingo in spanish. Domingo is the day for the sun.
So there you have it- 2 great examples on how Astronomy has shaped our lives in ways that we don't even think about. If we could see 6 planets in the sky, then we would have an 8 day week!
i think that would be a very interesting thing to study about i have thought about it but i decided that i want to study other things instead
Thats actually not surprising. Not many people study Astronmy. "But even the most ignorant person gets captured if even for a little bit in the thought of all that is out there." -Studing the Stars (got the book at the libary)
Exactly. Both are named for Gods. But I am as sure as I can be that the 7 days are for the 5 visable planets, the sun, and the moon. As for what Cenere said, the 7 gods for each day were named for the 5 visible planets, the sun, and the moon.
Thanks for that link Milos some of those pics were beautiful.
ok so what god is earth named after
Earth comes from the anglo-Saxon word erda meaning ground/soil. "Mother Earth" is seen as a deity in many cultures though. However I don't think Earth is names for a god in the same sense as the other planets are.
love Astronomy. NASA places a new picture on its site every day
Try going to Astronmy Picture of the Day (APOD) it's a great site.
if you look care fully under Orion's Belt, you can see a faint green smudge. This smudge is actually the Orion Nebula.
It might seem green, but It's not... And you can't see any of the color with the naked eye. Anyway, I think it is also called the horsehead nebula. The color is violet, but there is another yellowis one on top of it. Or so I've heard...
Actually, depending on weather you are, and the atmostphere conditions, the Orion nebula could seem green... Anyway, The Orion Nebula is suppossed to be a sword hanging on his belt.
