Welcome to another article of Gimmick Command Periodically! Today’s article covers an astronomical “Festival of Lights” due to coinciding with Hanaukkah 2017 and the discovery of a “Super Earth” in the constellation of Leo.
The “Festival of Lights” . . . add Meteors and a Super Moon!
As 2017 draws to a close, there will be two notable astronomical sights that take place, coincidentally starting the same night as Hanukkah 2017 and continuing to through the night of December 14 (or Thursday).
Geminid Meteor Shower
On December 12 (Tuesday) the annual Geminid meteor shower will occur.
This meteor shower occurs when Earth moves through remnants of what is believed to be an extinct comet (called 3200 Phaethon).
The meteor shower effect occurs when the fragments of the comet enter Earth’s atmosphere and burn up leaving large streaks across the sky.
None of these meteor fragments are expected to be a threat to earth according to NASA, as they are small enough to burn up in Earth’s atmosphere before getting close to Earth’s surface. It’s recommended that the best time to see them is before daybreak on Wednesday (December 13).
To learn more about the Geminid Shower, visit HERE to visit SkyandTelescope.com.
Supermoon
December 14 will see another occurrence of a Supermoon, which is a phenomenon that occurs when the moon (which has an elliptical orbit) is closest to our planet at the same time it appears to be full from our vantage point here on Earth.
NASA says this effect makes the moon look brighter by nearly 33%, and the best time to see the effect is early to mid evening on the 14th.
Super Earth
Scientists believe they have found a large-scale Earth-like planet that could be within the “habitable” zone of a star orbit (meaning the atmosphere is neither too hot or cold for humans).
The planet’s been named K2-18b that orbits a star similar to Earth’s sun (named Sol, as in Solar System). And it’s orbit positions it in an orbital spot that makes it likely possible to host life-giving liquid water . . . and potential alien life.
The planet has a neighbor planet named K2-18c but due to it’s closer proximity to the neighboring star it is not believed to hold life.
Both planets orbit a red dwarf star in the Leo constellation, which is over 111 lightyears (meaning that the light seen from the star took 111 years to arrive at earth).
Tools and equipment used were at the European Southern Observatory with a High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (Harps) instrument.
This device can calculate the mass / radius density of a planet to work out its density. It is speculated, pending further research, that the planet is mostly rock in composition with a gaseous atmosphere.
The Journal of Astronomy And Astrophysics will publish the research being conducted.
On behalf of the Great Galactic Space Gimmick, we wish those celebrating the Festival of Lights a Happy Hanukkah 2017, and hope it’s a great one for you . . . latkes, dreidels, menorahs, and all! I myself might watch Fiddler On The Roof with family (as I have Jewish relatives and friends).
For The Great Galactic Space Gimmick, I’m Gimmick Commander Ben Faltinowski! 🙂
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