By Marcus Scott
"On a basic quantum level, all the matter in the universe is essentially made up of stardust," said quantum physics enthusiast and electro-pop personality Moby, when he was interviewed after his megahit "We Are All Made of Stars" took over the airwaves in 2002. Who knows? Maybe, he's right.
Celebrating the
science and one of its trailblazers with the International Year of Astronomy
2009, a global nod to astronomy and its contributions to the arts, culture and
civilization, the Buffalo Museum of Science's astronomy exhibit continues until the end of April.
Taking place on a local and international level, from the heart of Africa to here in the states, the International Year of Astronomy 2009 is observing practically everything about the science and the stars, from black holes to cosmology.
This week, the museum will be doing a continuum of "Telescopes and Constellations," a weekend program that documents how a telescope works, and trains one to recognize universally-known constellations in Western New York on April 18-19 and April 25-26. Another scheduled program is that of "Night Sky and Solar Energy," a tutorial on the sun's energy and the conversion of light energy into heat and mechanical energies and a seminar of the Earth's moon and its eight phases is ongoing until the 17th.
The museum also encourages Buffalo residents to
join Dr. Dejan Stojkovic of SUNY Buffalo as he gives an overview of black holes
this Sunday, April 19th.
Connect with the stars and connect with people at this year's
International Year of Astronomy.
"Who knows?"
Well, you should know that, and so should everyone else. That elements are sythesized inside stars is a fact that has been mentioned quite often in your science classes, in scientific literature, on public television, at science museums, and yes, even in the the lyrics of many pop songs.
Please "dust" off your periodic table of elements and take a look at it. You will surely remember some of our favorite elements. Oxygen, Carbon, Nitrogen, Sodium, Iron, Gold, Tungsten. Those and all of the other elements you see there (except Hydrogen) are sythesized inside stars! The molecules that make up your body, the air you breathe, and the ground beneath you feet, were ALL forged in the heart of a stellar furnace. Furthermore, most of the elements on the table are ONLY able to be sythesized in the final, ultra-violent moments of a star going supernova and blowing itself apart. Not all stars are massive enough to have such spectacular deaths, so the heavier elements that surround us can take many, many stellar generations to be sythesized in quantity.