February 16, 2015 Physical Science
From the first solid fuel, gunpowder filled bamboo rocket to the giant Saturn moon rocket, history records the interest and use of rockets from early civilization. For thousands of years, documents record the progress of rocketry by China, France, Germany…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
An eclipse, also known as an occultation, is the temporary blockage of either sun or moon as seen from earth. Although an occultation occurs any time three celestial bodies move into direct alignment, we commonly use the term “eclipse” to…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
“Fly me to the moon.”How those words must have run through the mind of 36 year old Christa (Sharon) Corrigan McAuliffe as the Space shuttle lifted off from its cradle on that fateful day in 1986, 28 January, little realising…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
Hydrogen Hydrogen was the first element created after the big bang. It holds first place in the periodic table with the atomic number of one. Robert Boyle produced hydrogen gas as early as 1671 during an experiment with iron and…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
The alcohol ethanol, C2H5OH, can be produced in two ways, by fermentation and from crude oil. In ethanol fermentation, yeast is used to break down glucose and other sugars into ethanol and carbon dioxide. The glucose and other sugars used…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
The history of the V-2 rocket hails back to the times leading up to the outbreak of the Second World War. Preparations were under way on the German side for the development of a terrifyingly effective new super weapon. By…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
Something floats because it is less dense than whatever it is floating on. A denser substance displaces something less dense, responds more strongly to gravity, and sinks right through the less dense substance like a basketball through a hoop. Generally…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
Boyle’s Law states that at a fixed temperature and within a closed system, the volume of a fixed quantity of a gas is inversely proportional to the pressure it exerts: PV = k, where k is a constant. For example,…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
The engines roar, the vibration in the passenger compartment can be felt. We are depending on this big mass of metal to take us to our destination safely. What goes into making our journey safe? A jet engine takes about…
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February 16, 2015 Physical Science
The acronym “DNA,” stands for “Deoxyribose Neucleic Acid.” If you are a chemist, biologist or associated with some other scientific discipline which deals with such terminology, then you know exactly what I am talking about when I make reference to…
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