star stuff

Okay, so in last week's star stuff post I mentioned how I always tend to skip over videos on blogs, and I'm pretty sure everyone does too, but please just watch this little 4 minute video, yadda yadda. Well, this one today is one hour and 42 minutes long. I know, I'm asking a lot. But TRUST ME, it is soooo worth watching. And you can actually just listen to it, you don't even need to sit still and watch... hit play, and fold the laundry or make dinner while it plays. I was actually sad when it was all over, I enjoyed it so much!

Now I guess I should add what "it" is, right? It is Stephen Colbert - out of character - interviewing Neil deGrasse Tyson. And it is brilliant, informative and hilarious! Fast forward about 6 minutes to skip over the hosts introducing the event and doing obligatory "thank you's" to everyone who made the event possible ;)

a trip to the moon on gossamer wings

Did anyone brave the cold to catch the eclipse last night? I went out periodically from 1:30am - 3:30am to see it in progress .. around quarter to 3 I decided to just stay outside for a while. I set up the cot in the backyard, bundled myself up in blankets, grabbed my ipod and laid down to just stare at the moon and the stars for about 20 minutes. It was so wonderful! At first I wasn't even cold, and with my music on I couldn't hear the cars (I live on a pretty busy street) so the world seemed very still. I don't know if I've ever felt as serene as I did last night. There's something so majestic about outer space. To stare up and know that it just goes on forever.


You could say I was a tad bit bundled up ;-)
I even had on earmuffs under my hat!
hat-f21 / scarf-uo / coat - h&M

If you missed the eclipse, or like my dad you were just too tired to roll out of bed and look, (he's as gaga about astronomy as I am, so I think that one day he's definitely going to regret choosing sleep over science..) here's a time-lapse from vimeo. It's really incredible!

ps. The photo of the moon was taken by my brother. He actually made me promise I'd give him credit before he'd send me the file :p

we are star stuff

I can't even begin to describe how much I adore Carl Sagan. I'm a huge fan of his Cosmos series, and probably learned more from watching it than I did during my 12 years of science classes in school. He had such a passion for science and history that you couldn't help but be fascinated by the subjects yourself. In fact, if I wasn't so awfully backwards when it comes to math I'd be ditching the pencils & brushes and picking up a telescope this instant. I wish so badly I could spend my life contemplating the universe, looking at the stars and following in Carl Sagan's footsteps.