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I can see Earth's curve from here! --and the dark seas of Titan
There were two space-related news stories I loved this week. One was the story of the M.I.T. students who sent a point-and-click digital camera into space and got photos of the curvature of the earth, for total cost of just under $150 dollars, and the other was the story of the proposal to explore the oceanic surface of Titan by ship. Not sailing ship, of course (though who doesn't have that image at first?), seeing as the temperature on Titan is almost three hundred degrees below zero Fahrenheit, but some kind of Major-Tom-esque tin can, floating on it.
The liquid on Titan is methane, not water, but the news story talked about how liquid methane behaves like water, raining down from the sky, forming rivers, filling up the seas.
Titan's much farther away from the sun than Earth is, so it must be rather dark there, though. If you could get out of the capsule (if you could stand on the deck of the weatherized sailing ship), would the light from the distant sun be enough to let you see the waves? Would they shine by the light of the stars, or by Saturn?
The liquid on Titan is methane, not water, but the news story talked about how liquid methane behaves like water, raining down from the sky, forming rivers, filling up the seas.
Titan's much farther away from the sun than Earth is, so it must be rather dark there, though. If you could get out of the capsule (if you could stand on the deck of the weatherized sailing ship), would the light from the distant sun be enough to let you see the waves? Would they shine by the light of the stars, or by Saturn?
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"farmer in the sky"
is set on ganymede which is not as far
out as titan but far enough out to be
different than around here.
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Re: "farmer in the sky"
Re: "farmer in the sky"
a juvenile ,read half a lifetime
ago perhaps most recently.
it might have some good science as to
how the earth would be perceived etc
and as to living at such a remove
it is this I thought of in relation to yours.
it does,refreshing my memory from wikipedia,
retall stories of old american pioneer days
in this new setting and that is perhaps in
a sense anachronistic although of course
not perhaps entirely as pioneering may
have certain constants...
heinlein is a story teller and also in a way
a relentless moralist and usually there are
points where that annoys me a little... patently
they are usually more annoying still to liberals
but I have not achieved that level and yet still
find him off and on grating.
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I'm going to link this too. Thanks!
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I just looked at the video--it was neat to see it come back down to earth. They plan to post step-by-step directions so anyone can try it.
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(but my snail's speed may mean it takes a while...)
Seeing by the light - with calculations
Do calculations spoil poetry? Saturn's about 10 times as far from the sun as Earth is; so light is dimmer by two orders of magnitude, or 6.6 stops. But our eyes' dynamic range is six orders of magnitude, or 20 stops. We should see handily on Titan, even if clouds cost another four stops or so (would that be about right?). And surely Saturn-light would help.
Why not sail? It would be wonderful to explore that sea. You'd need lightweight hull and rigging; methane's about 40% as dense as water. I wonder what waves in methane would look like?
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Using Wikipedia articles "Saturn", "Human eye", "Methane"
Re: Seeing by the light - with calculations
I knew that our eyes can perceive very minute amounts of light, but I wasn't sure how that stacked up against the distances involved. Though, as you suggest, Saturn would be quite a brilliant counterbalance.
If the protective suits were good enough, then I'd totally opt for sailing!
"Blue Planet"
Blue Planet To John Berryman Bless true and foolish, pointless things. I'd brood a breed of ships for you paper planes with hieroglyphs -- John, Neptune is blue! This galaxy took out a new cerulean crayon hurled and flung. Keats true, and beautiful. Toast the silver light of celebration. All I can do is write toward you, a fool for words' small order, a boarder in a windowed room, dreaming you.Re: "Blue Planet"
Re: "Blue Planet"
I loved "I'd brood a breed of ships for you"--how gorgeous. Also, "a fool for words' small order"
Thanks so much for this.
Re: "Blue Planet"
It reads well out loud. I'm remembering, now, reading it at her funeral.
I loved "I'd brood a breed of ships for you"--how gorgeous. Also, "a fool for words' small order"
I haven't read it aloud for years, but now I feel again that line's roundness in my mouth.