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Billions and Billions

Nobody really knows how many brain cells anybody has, but typical estimates are around 200 billion. You've heard the late Carl Sagan talk about 'billions and billions of stars' in the universe. Think about this. Each brain cell has many connections with many other brain cells, by way of multi-branching dendrites and axons, communicating across a ...

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BillionsBillions
Chemistry

Nitrogen Gas and Compounds

Nitrogen is a very interesting element. It is the seventh element of the periodic table, with seven electrons in its atoms. The somewhat unique combination of electronic structure and small atomic ... Continue reading

NitrogenGasandCompounds
Chemistry

Carbon Dating

As isotopes break down, or decay they give off radiation. Materials that decompose in this way are said to have a 'half-life'. As the quantity of material present decreases, so does the actual rate at ... Continue reading

CarbonDating
Geology

Our Most Abundant Fossil Fuel

Coal is our most abundant fossil fuel. The US has more coal than the rest of the world has oil. There is still enough coal underground in this country to provide energy for the next 200 to 300 years. ... Continue reading

OurMostAbundantFossilFuel
Chemistry

It's Crying Time Again

If you've ever spent any time in the kitchen, you know that slicing, chopping or dicing raw onions makes you cry. This vegetable has been doing this to humans for a long time. The onion is believed to ... Continue reading

Crying

Neptune: The Basics

NeptuneTheBasicsThe eighth planet from the Sun, Neptune was the first planet located through mathematical predictions rather than through regular observations of the sky. When Uranus didn't travel exactly as astronomers expected it to, two mathematicians, working independently of each other, proposed the position and mass of another, as yet unknown planet that could account for Uranus' orbit. Although 'the establishment' ignored the predictions, a young astronomer decided to look for the predicted planet. Thus, Neptune was discovered in 1846. Seventeen days later, its largest moon, Triton, was also discovered. Nearly 4.5 billion kilometers from the Sun, Neptune orbits the Sun once every 165 years, and therefore it has not quite made a full circle around the Sun since it was discovered. It is invisible to the naked eye because of its extreme distance from Earth.

Interestingly, due to Pluto's unusual elliptical orbit, Neptune is actually the farthest planet from the Sun for a 20-year period out of every 248 Earth years. Voyager 2 captured this convergence of atmospheric features on Neptune. Neptune has the smallest diameter of our solar system's giant gas planets (including Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus), so called because they have no solid surfaces. Even so, its volume could hold nearly 60 Earths. Neptune's atmosphere extends to great depths, gradually merging into water and other 'melted ices' over a heavier, approximately Earth-sized liquid core. Neptune's rotational axis is tilted 30 degrees to the plane of its orbit around the Sun. Its seasons last an incredible 41 years. During the southern summer, the south pole is in constant sunlight for about 41 years, and in northern summer, the north pole is in constant sunlight for about 41 years.

Neptune's atmosphere is made up of hydrogen, helium, and methane, the last of these giving the planet its blue color (because methane absorbs red light). Despite its great distance from the Sun and lower energy input, Neptune's winds are three times stronger than Jupiter's and nine times stronger than Earth's. The planet has several rings of varying widths, confirmed by Voyager 2's observations in 1989. Neptune has 11 known moons, six of which were discovered by Voyager 2. The largest, Triton, orbits Neptune in a direction opposite to the planet's rotation direction, and is gradually getting closer until it will collide with the planet in about 10 to 100 million years, forming vast rings around Neptune that will rival or exceed Saturn's extensive ring system. Triton is the coldest body yet visited in our solar system; temperatures on its surface are about -235 C. Despite the deep freeze, Voyager 2 discovered great geysers of gaseous nitrogen on Triton.