Extra Credit Event 2- Griffith Observatory

-Extra Credit Event 2- Griffith Observatory- 6/05/2017-

A picture in front of the Griffith observatory (I am on the
far right)

     By far, one of the subjects I am most fascinated in is space. The possibilities for endless discoveries, creation, injinutiy, mixing of different fields and so many other reasons, space and astronomy is one of the few things I choose to spend my own time learning about, away from the classroom.  This is why a trip to the Griffith Observatory was too good to pass up.  The first thing you see when you arrive is a beautifully designed white exterior with two small brown domed roofs on the outside, and a large one in the center. This is one of the parts I was most fascinated in, as it is where the discovery takes place; the telescopes. Therefore already, the beautifully designed building is coupled with a very practical aspect for the scientific research. Art and science working together. As you enter into the building, there is a giant (and that's and understatement) pendulum that was slowly swaying side to side.

This quickly became one of my favorite parts of the exhibit even as I explored more later on.  We stood by the wall of the pendulum for probably 10 minutes or so, getting ever and ever closer to one of the many dominos that lined the floor.  The intention of the exhibit was to show the rotation of the Earth, and how this pendulum, not effected by friction, would slowly rotate 360 degrees around the circle after a completely day. However, it felt almost like a pendulum used for hypnosis, drawing us in to its methodical back and forth rhythm.  For me, the reason why this exhibit is my favorite is because it so clearly demonstrated something that otherwise would be very hard to believe. On the floor of the pendulum, along with the pegs, there as an arrow on the ground, pointing in the direction the pendulum would be going at noon. Considering, at this time, the pendulum was swinging at almost almost a perpendicular angle to this line, it really put into perspective the rotation of the Earth, although it is not something that we ever really consider.  
From here, we walked through a hall of science displays, demonstrating different phenomenon's in the solar system including a variety of different celestial occurrences, but the one that I liked the best out of these would most likely be the one about eclipses.  

Not only did it have a screen with a great animation that showed how an eclipse occurs and the likelihood of an event like that happening, it also had a moving model overhead that demonstrated the same process as well.  Being able to see an actual physical demonstration of an eclipse in an artistic manner was really unique because I had never been able to experience something like that before, and it really helped solidify the process of an eclipse occurring.  

From here, we walked over to what is most definitely the largest exhibit in the observatory; a representation of the planets, and some information about all of them. If I had to choose a second favorite exhibit, this would be it. Not only did it present really cool models that made the planets seem as if they were actually there in front of you, it really show just how massive planets like Jupiter and Saturn are compared to Earth.  

One of the interactive parts was a set of scales next to each planet, which you could step on and see how much you weigh on each planet.  Both of these things, the scale models and the weight measuring scales really give you an idea about perspective, a word which artists certainly like to use often.  You feel like Earth is absolutely massive, as it takes approximately 70 hours to fly around the entire globe. Compared to planets like Jupiter and the Sun however, that is nothing. This really solidified what we learned in Week 9's lecture. When the presenter discussed the power of 10, and just how big things really are when you put them in perspective, it was a cool idea. However, seeing it in a physical form made it just that much more impressive and absorbed into my mind.  Walking back this exhibit, we past by a model of the moon. The first word that came to mind was beautiful. The color, the shadows, the shape of the creators...It was battered and worn down over billions of years from meteors, but yet it somehow just looked simply beautiful.

Almost as if an artist had purposely made it imperfect; to show its normalcy by giving it flaws.  As we left the side exit, we walked into an absolutely gorgeous view of the city and the hills. The picture below doesn't do the panorama justice, because it was unable to capture the coolest part. The stars. In a city filled with light, the few specs of stars visible in the sky we're a reminder of just how new everything on Earth is. Being reminded that some of these stars, 400 million light years away were essentially telling us about the past, as the light had not yet reached us.  
While the pendulum was my favorite exhibit, the stars and space was my favorite part because they are the one thing I can think of right now that can contain every aspect of what we have learned.

Week 2's mathematics help us calculate distances, Week 3's robots help us build machines to explore the lunar surface, Week 4 medical technology help us experiment if lee could colonize outside of Earth, Week 6's biotech could help us create plants that could survive in the harsh environment of space, Week 7's Neuroscience could help explain and conquer a humans inability to sustain isolation, Week 8's nanotech could help create smaller and smaller devices to send up to explore space, and Week 9 speaks for itself. Therefore, that just leaves Week 1. And if there's something that can combine multiple cultures and multiple fields, its space. With drawings, pictures, discoveries, calculations, exploration....there isn't one person who doesn't have a chance to experience all that space can offer.