Astronomy & Our Lives
What could
learning about
the planets
and stars
possibly have
in common
with my life
now??
Astronomy & Our Lives
There are more connections between
our lives & astronomy
than you might realize…
Seven Days of the Week
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
- the Sun’s day, of course
- the Moon’s day
-?
- ??
- ???
- ??#$
- ???%^?
Seven Days of the Week
Seven Days of the Week







Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wed
Thurs
Friday
Saturday
Domingo
Lunes
Martes
Miercoles
Jueves
Viernes
Sabado
Dimanche
Lundi
Mardi
Mercredi
Jeudi
Vendredi
Samedi
Sun
Moon
Mars
Mercury
Jupiter
Venus
Saturn
Seven objects are easily seen to move in regular patters in
front of the stars across the skies during the year
Moonths of the year…
A “month” is around the same time as it
takes the moon to repeat its phases from
full to full.
Moonths of the year…
A “month” is around the same time as it
takes the moon to repeat its phases from
full to full.
Many cultures still use lunar calendars for
religious festivals
Chinese New Year (second new moon after winter solstice)
Tết
Ramadan (starting and ending with the spotting of the crescent moon)
Easter (first Sunday after full moon after vernal equinox)
Time itself…
Where does “Clockwise” come from??
Time itself…
“Clockwise” = from the motion of the sun’s
shadow over a sundial in the northern
hemisphere!
E
Early morning sun casts a
shadow towards the “9” side
of a clock face…
Time itself…
By noon, the overhead sun
casts a (smaller) shadow
towards the “12” side of a
clock face…
S
Time itself…
By afternoon, the setting
sun casts a (longer) shadow
towards the “3” side of a
clock face…
W
Words, words, words…
Words, words, words…
 “aster” = star (from Latin)
 Astronomy, Astrology
 Disaster! “dis-aster” – going against the stars can be bad!
 Catastrophe!
 Asterisk ***
 “cosmos” = order
 Cosmology – the study of the order of the universe
 Cosmetics – putting your face “in order”
 “Meteorology” – the study of weather?
Products, products, products!
 Cars
 Ford: Taurus, Galaxy, Mercury Comet…
 Chevy: Astrovan, Nova, Vega…
 Plymouth Satellite, Pontiac Sunfire, Oldsmobile Starfire…
 Subaru, Saturn…
 Food
 Sunchips, Sunny Delite, Mars bars, Moon cakes, Starkist
 Products & Companies
 Comet cleanser, SUN mirosystems, Visa STAR network…
 TV & Movies galore…
A sense of who we are…
Culture
A sense of who we are…
Astronomy allowed us to develop
agriculture, create calendars, maintain our
history, navigate, explore…
A sense of who we are…
Literature
“Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.”
― William Shakespeare, Hamlet
“But, soft! what light through
yonder window breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the
sun.”
― Romeo and Juliet
"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings."
Julius Caesar (I, ii, 140-141)
A sense of who we are…
Technology
A sense of who we are…
Trying to understand nature led
us to develop technologies
absorbed into our culture…
Lasers, GPS, Cell Phones,
Computers
Weather Satellites, Velcro, Tang…
Astronomy & Our Lives
There are more connections between
astronomy than you realize…
Days of the Week?
Months of the Year?
Time itself!
Words, words, words,
Products, products, and more products
A sense of who we are
Key Questions for YOU…
Key Questions for YOU…
How does science work?
What do we gain, as humans, by asking
questions of Nature?
Is the quest for knowledge worth the
costs?