If I Could Gift Wrap the Moon
Posted by DrJeff on July 2nd, 2009
Filed under 1.4. Teachable Moments in the News, 1.5. Dr. Jeff's Jeffisms, 5.1.2. The Moon, 6. Cool Spacecraft
Copyright 2009 | About this blog
This post is a Teachable Moment in the News and a Dr. Jeff’s Jeffism.
Have you ever just stopped on a cloudless night and stared at the Moon? And I’m not talking about a 2 second passing glance, and a smile. A jewel in the night, it is a sight many of us learn to ignore. Yet it is ANOTHER WORLD, and we can see it clearly from our backyards. That to me seems like a gift.
Now for my gift to you. If you’ve never done it, or you haven’t recently, PLEASE just take out a simple pair of binoculars (forget the telescope) and look at the Moon. Do it with your children. Teach them an appreciation for what’s in their sky. It is a stunning site.
Read the rest of this entry »
Yesterday’s Launch of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Brings Back Memories of Apollo 11
Posted by DrJeff on June 19th, 2009
Filed under 1.4. Teachable Moments in the News, 2. Nature of Exploration, 3. Science Education, 5.1.2. The Moon, 6. Cool Spacecraft
Copyright 2009 | About this blog
Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., lunar module pilot, is about to become the second human being to walk on the Moon. This picture was taken by Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, Apollo 11 commander, July 20, 1969.
This post is a Teachable Moment in the News.
This is crossposted at the Huffington Post HERE.
Yesterday (Thursday, June 18) the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) blasted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, and will reach the Moon next Tuesday, June 23. LRO is a robotic mission that will pave the way for humans to return to the lunar surface. It’s also a timely teachable moment in the news for another reason—
July 20th is coming. I’m waiting for the emotions to wash over me again. It will be the 40th anniversary of the first human footprints on another world, and I lived it.
I remember it so vividly. It was July 16, 1969. At Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Apollo 11—a rocket as tall as a 36-story building—blasted off with Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins aboard. The command module Columbia—with barely enough room for the three crew seats—was their home for the 3-day trip to the Moon, and by July 19th they were in orbit.
Read the rest of this entry »
