photo credit: PermanentTraveller

Because of the nature of the cosmos, there are celestial events that are remarkable because of how much different from the norm they happen to be. Full moons are often fascinating and many legends have come to be associated with the phenomenon. Even rare is the blue moon, an extra full moon that happens once every three years or so, and it is infrequent enough to have led someone to coin the saying “once in a blue moon”. Also fascinating are eclipses, where one celestial object moves into the shadow of the other. Whether they are a solar eclipse, where the moon is between the Earth and the sun, or a lunar eclipse, where the Earth is between the sun and the moon, eclipses are transfixing and rare. An occurrence that happens twice a year is the equinox, where the sun is positioned directly over the Earth’s equator, causing the day and night to be precisely the same length.

Everything in the universe is moving in some level. On a minute level, atoms move around quickly or slowly, depending on the object’s state of matter, the temperature of the object, and other such variables. A movement that we are very familiar with is the revolution of the planets around the sun, as well as the rotation of the planets and the sun around their respective axes. The time it takes for Earth to revolve around the sun is known as a year, while the time it takes for the Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis is referred to as a day. When the Earth has completed its journey around the sun once, it has rotated on its axis about 365 times; hence, the reason why a year is known as 365 days long. Because of this phenomenon, the Earth is never in a fixed position relative to the sun: both objects are always moving in some fashion. This rotation and revolution explains many concepts that may boggle children and adults alike, such as the reason why seasons exist, the concept of night and day, and so on. It also explains the phenomenon of the autumnal equinox.

This year’s autumnal equinox will occur on September 22 at 11:44 AM EDT, or Eastern Daylight Time, which encompasses the East Coast of the United States during the summer. The time will also mark the beginning of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, the event from which the autumnal equinox derives its name. At this point in time, the sun will appear to be directly above the Earth’s equator, but the definition of what this means and its implications are a bit more complex. Three astronomy terms are used in the textbook definition of the autumnal equinox: celestial sphere, celestial equator, and ecliptic.

The celestial sphere is an imaginary rotating sphere that shares the Earth’s center and the Earth’s axis, rotating with the Earth as it goes about its normal movement. The purpose of the celestial sphere is to serve as an aide to visualizing the rest of space from our perspective, because one could perceive the rest of space as being points on the celestial sphere. As it moves around the Earth, the stars move in such a way that allow us to see different stars at different times of the year, which is most notable stargazers attempt to find constellations.

Conceptually similar is the celestial equator, which is similar to the Earth’s equator in that it is situated around the widest point of the Earth, but differs in that it is the projection of this imaginary line into space. When a celestial object, such as the sun, is located near the celestial equator, it is visible throughout the whole world, although the revolution of the Earth only allows each part of the world to see it briefly due to the cycle of night and day. Because of the way that the Earth tilts on its axis, the celestial equator is actually at a 23.5 degree angle from the vertical.

The final term is the ecliptic, which is the perceived route that the sun takes throughout the sky during the year. As we all know, the sun does not actually revolve: we are revolving around it. But because of our vantage point from the Earth, it seems to revolve around us in a path that is more or less flat: that is, without the incline that the celestial equator has. Putting the terms together, the autumnal equinox is the moment when the ecliptic intersects the celestial equator on the celestial sphere, meaning that the sun is equidistant from the two poles. Because of the sun’s orientation relative to the Earth, night and day will be roughly the same length in some parts of the world. In the Northern Hemisphere, this marks the passage of summer to autumn.

Although the mysterious workings of the cosmos are rather fascinating, so are the ways that humans throughout history have interpreted these events. One of the most prominent testaments to the interest of mankind in the patterns of the cosmos is Stonehenge, which was reputedly created to allow the ancient inhabitants of Britain to mark events like the autumnal equinox. Ancient Irish structures were created in such a way to let sunlight illuminate certain writings within the structure only when the equinox was occurring: these writings were early astronomical symbols. Astrologers throughout history know the autumnal equinox as the time when the sun enters the Libra sign. The equinox, and other such celestial phenomena, was diligently recorded by the Mayans, whose elaborate temples sometimes contained extensive methods to determine when things like the equinox were occurring. Temple inscriptions also contained important dates and directions that hinged upon the movements on the cosmos, such as the beginning of harvest or the need for a religious ceremony.

Some cultures continue to have celebrations that are either a result of the autumnal equinox or at least associated with it. In Japan, some celebrate the three days before each equinox and the three days after as part of a ritual that includes repentance for sin and prayers for enlightenment in the next life. It is said that the reason for the festivals is the temperate weather that comes during the time of the equinox, the best climate in which to reflect and meditate on the meaning of life. A rumor that persists even today in many parts of the world is that the equinox marks the time when one can actually balance an egg on its end. The explanation often ties back to the perceived balance during the equinox, that day and night are equal, but there is no scientific proof that the passage of seasons has anything at all to do with the ability to balance an egg on one end.

Whether you recognize the autumnal equinox as a time to balance eggs on their end, reflect on the meaning of life, or just an indicator that summer is on its way out, it is always interesting to learn about the intricate coincidences that the cosmos create. For centuries before us, people have been fascinated by the autumnal equinox, and although science has spoiled much of the mystique of the autumnal equinox, it is nonetheless a very special occurrence.

credit: dodoco

Since the beginning of man’s observations of outer space, there have been many attempts to apply patterns to the cosmic workings of planets and galaxies. One of these patterns is the rotation of the Earth and the revolution of the Earth, and the other planets in the Milky Way, around the sun. The combination of these two things is what causes the phenomenon known as the summer solstice, when the Earth’s axis is pointed as much as it can toward the sun, causing the longest day of the year. It also marks the first day of summer, and over time, has become part of many religions as an event that marks either celebration, transition, transformation, or something else depending on the religion and culture themselves.

In 2008 in the Northern Hemisphere, the solstice occurs and summer begins at 23:59 UTC (one minute before midnight) on June 20th, which is 7:59 p.m. EDT. The first day of summer is considered the following day, June 21st.

It is common knowledge that the Earth and the other planets in our solar system constantly revolve around the sun. During this time, the planets are also revolving about the imaginary axis that runs through the center of the spherical planet. Every planet is also at a tilt, not orbiting at a perfect vertical slant, which is what creates the seasonal variations between the northern and southern hemispheres. When the Earth has revolved to the position when the northern hemisphere is closest to the sun, it is summertime, and because of it, the southern hemisphere must be further away, thus causing wintertime. This same tilt of the planet is what causes solstices. Because of the tilt, there has to be a point in the sun’s orbit where the sun is at extremes relative to the position of the Earth. Therefore, there comes a point in time where the sun, relative to the Earth, is at its northernmost point, furthest from the equator of the Earth. This point is called the Tropic of Cancer, the arc of latitude at 23.44° north. If you were to go somewhere that falls on the Tropic of Cancer during the summer solstice, the sun would appear to be directly overhead, which is certainly a stunning sight.

Several other things happen because of the summer solstice, both directly and indirectly. The position of the sun at its northernmost orientation from the equator makes the day on which the solstice falls have the longest day, and shortest night, of the year. This marks the beginning of summer. For a couple of days before and after the solstice, the sun seems to stand still, not moving in noontime elevation. That makes sense, because the term “solstice” comes from the Latin words for “sun” and “to stand still”. In the southern hemisphere, the same day that is the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere is actually the winter solstice because if the sun is at its furthest northern location, then it is also the first day of winter.

Throughout time, the summer solstice has had great cultural significance for many groups of people. The uniqueness of the event, as it happens only once per year, has traditionally been cause to celebrate. It also heralds change and transformation, the passage of one season to the next, and many cultures have associated the passage of seasons to come to mean many important things, religiously and symbolically. Some cultures regarded the stand-still of the sun to be magical in nature, which would have contributed to some of their rituals or, perhaps, would have legitimized some of their beliefs about sun deities or natural spirits.

In pre-historic times, the midsummer solstice would have been a time of joy and celebration. It would have meant that the cold would be retreating and the snow would be melting, allowing for more comfortable temperatures. Trees would be regaining their leaves, flowers would be blooming, food would be been easier to find and there would be plenty of reason to be hopeful for the rest of summer. Not the least of which would be the fact that the crops had already been planted and the people only had to wait until harvest season in order to indulge once again in the fruits of their labor. This enthusiasm persisted throughout time, culminating in summer festivals and the like, some of which are still celebrated today in various incarnations.

credit: rfmphotography

Many cultures regarded June as the most favorable time for couples to get married. This was because the union of the Goddess and God was supposed to have occurred in May during Beltane, and it would have been presumptuous and rude to schedule a marriage that would compete, so marriages were delayed until the following month of June. To this day, June is still a desirable month for marriage, because summer allows for more agreeable weather and tends to be more compatible as far as allowing the maximum amount of visitors to be able to travel to the wedding. Still, one wonders if the past religious association factors in subconsciously through generations of avoiding the month of May purposefully.

Many cultures had their own specific way of acknowledging the summer solstice. Ancient Celts would celebrate the “apex of Light”, referring to the sun reaching its highest peak in the sky. Led by the Druids, religious leaders of the Pagan Celts, people would celebrate the passage from spring to summer, associating it with the crowning of the appropriate summer deity. In Ancient China, the summer solstice brought about a time to celebrate the Earth. Everything about the Earth, from its feminine association as Mother Earth to the yin forces, complemented by the yang forces of the wintertime, were reverently celebrated and paid due respect. Called the “Feast of Epona”, festivities in Ancient Gaul, which was comprised of modern-day Italy, France, and several other European countries, were based on the qualities of the horse deity for which the feast was named. Fertility, sovereignty, and agriculture were all celebrated as part of this grand feast. Ancient Rome celebrated with the festival of Vestalia, which lasted from June 7 to June 15. During this time, married women were allowed to enter the shrine of Vesta, the Roman goddess of the hearth, whereas the rest of the year, only virgins would be permitted to enter.

Today, there are still certain festivities and events that occur near the summer solstice. Catholic and Nordic Protestant cultures congregate for the feast of St. John, which is from June 23 to June 24. Across the world, there are instances of summer celebrations, which is another way of referring to the summer solstice. These celebrations may or may not match up directly to the incidence of the summer solstice and its cultural significance, but they do occur near it in timing. The culture of Wicca observes Litha, which is a term for midsummer.

The summer solstice is an interesting event, not only because of its regularity, but because of the effects that it has both visually and on cultures. Many people have marveled at the apparent stand-still of the sun and its high peak in the sky, and back before a tidy scientific explanation existed, cultures would have associated their own explanation with the event. Regardless, it is the beginning of summer, and, for schoolchildren, pre-historic peoples, and certain cultures alike, it is a time for celebration.

Take the quiz and test your knowledge on environmental facts, like whether buying a brand new, gas-powered car is better than driving a well-maintained old car, the environmental impact of replacing just one incandescent lightbulb for a fluorescent, and just how environmentally-unfriendly air travel really is.

After testing your knowledge, calculate your actual ecological footprint or check out your impact on bio-diversity. See how you measure up on food habits, trash generation, and energy consumption.

The results may surprise you – I know they surprised me. Though I live in an apartment building, eat little meat, and don’t own a car, my footprint is a whopping 8.52 global hectares. Learn what you can do to treat your world even better and hopefully, many generations to come will be able to enjoy the beautiful green environs that we all love.

You can check out star cluster occulations and in August, you might be able to spot the annual Perseid meteor shower. Space.com’s Night Sky column will let you in on upcoming events just in time to whip out your telescope all year round, including the following:

• February 1 – Venus-Jupiter conjunction, Part 1: The two brightest planets in the sky will meet on the morning of Feb 1, and will be best seen about 45 minutes before sunrise. Three days later, the crescent moon will join the two, creating a beautiful sight.
• February 20 & 21 – Total eclipse of the moon: Though less than 6 months after the last total lunar eclipse, much of North America will be able to see this one from their own back yard. It will last for about 50 minutes, and promises to be spectacular.
• August 1 – Total solar eclipse: Though only viewable from distant locations like Siberia, this total eclipse will cause Earth’s sun to be blocked for a total of 2.3 minutes.
• August 16 – Partial lunar eclipse: Believe it or not, our moon will eclipse yet again, though only partially, this time giving our global neighbors in Europe, Africa, and Asia a good view.

Clearly, if you love the night sky, 2008 is a going to be a great year.

Scientists at NASA are excited by the new images and information they’ve received about Mercury. Thanks to the MESSENGER probe, scientists got their first good look at Mercury in over 30 years.

At a total price tag of nearly $450 million for the entire mission, the MESSENGER probe was sent into space in August of 2004. The probe is schedule to travel nearly five billion miles in total.

This close-up flyby of Mercury is one of three close-ups scheduled for the MESSENGER probe. The second pass is schedule for October, while the third pass is to be made in September of 2009.

The MESSENGER probe flew by Mercury at just under 125 miles from the planet’s surface. The probe photographed much of the never before seen terrain of Mercury. In total, over one thousand images and countless analytic readers where taken as the probe flew by the planet.

The last time NASA was able to get a good look at Mercury was in 1975 thanks to Mariner 10. These new photographs and information have NASA scientists understandably excited.

“I just can’t wait,” exclaimed Mark Robinson, a scientist close to the MESSENGER project. “I want to see what’s around the corner.”

Photo credit: NASA

You know that no two snowflakes are alike and that your fingerprint is unique. But did you know that the iris of your eye is also unlike any other in the world? Researchers are working on technology that can recognize the unique pattern of your iris. This could mean that one day you’ll only need to look at your front door or your computer to open it up or turn it on.

Why lift a finger to swipe an ID card when you need only look directly at the object and have it do what you want? Scientists working with the technology believe that it’ll be less than 20 years before we see this becoming a regular part of our every day lives.

One of the main problems scientists have encountered in developing the technology is that the iris of the eye is sometimes altered by a change in pupil size. Technological equipment has so far had difficulty reading these differences so different light can make the technology ineffective. New equipment can now to counteract this problem; it can predict what changes the iris would make in different light and read the iris despite the change in pupil size. (Learn more here.)

We’re already using fingerprint recognition on many of our everyday machines including personal computers. Before you know it, we could be just using our eyes to communicate with the machines around us!

(Photo via flickr cc)

The event kicks off on the afternoon of Wednesday, September 26th at 3:30pm with seminar sessions on capital strategies and other methodologies, followed by the Founders Reception from 6:00pm to 8:00pm.

In addition to keynote speakers and workshops, the event will also feature interactive breakout sessions where women will share their innovations and achievements.

The conference celebrates the empowerment of women through technology and attendees have the opportunity to make connections and learn about invaluable technology resources and opportunities.

Hall of Fame Awards

The event also includes the 12th Annual Women in Technology International (WITI) Hall of Fame Awards. The dinner and awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, September 27th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm.

In 1996, the WITI Hall of Fame was established to recognize the outstanding contributions of women in science and technology communities. The first inductees included Ruth Leach Amonette, the first female vice president of IBM; Dr. Eleanor Baum, the first female dean of engineering in the United States; and eight other deserving woman.

Since that time, each year between three and ten women have been inducted into the Hall. In 2006, the inductees were Maria Azua, Vice President of Technology & Innovation CIO Office, Distinguished Engineer, IBM; Francoise Barre-Sinoussi, Director of the Regulation of Retroviral Infections Unit, Institut Pasteur; Kim Jones, Vice President of Global Education and Research, Sun Microsystems; Nor Rae Spohn, Vice President, Business Imaging and Printing, Hewlett Packard; and Been-Jon Woo, Director, Technology Integration, Intel.

Summit Registration

The basic WITI Expo is free and you can get a pass on the WITI website. The pass gives you entry to the exhibit floor only.

Expo hours are as follows:

• Thursday: 1:45pm – 6:00pm
• Friday: 7:00am – 10:30am
• Friday: 2:30pm – 4:00pm

Tickets for the Hall of Fame Dinner & Awards Cermony are $300 each.

Full VIP Conference Registration, which includes the Founder’s Reception, the Hall of Fame Dinner & Awards Ceremony, Career Expos, Keynotes, Breakout Sessions and Workshops, is $899.

The Saturday Workshop, ” Powerful and Connected: Women Transforming Technology Organizations” with Patricia Shafe is $599.

If you want the Full VIP Conference Registration and the Saturday Workshop, the price would be $1,299 total.

To register for any of the events, please visit the registration page at WITI.com.

Event Location

The Women and Technology Summit will take place at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara, located at 5101 Great America Parkway. You can reach the hotel at (408) 200-1234.

Click here to get more information on group hotel rates during the conference.

Avis Rent-a-car is also providing special rates for WITI Conference attendees.

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