In July of 1964, the Houston Museum of Natural Science opened its new museum in Hermann Park with modest exhibit space and the Burke Baker Planetarium. A state-of-the-art Spitz Space Transit Planetarium dominated the theater’s center with its flat floor and a few slide projectors. Two star balls connected by cages, swinging in a yoke, […]
by Kaylee Gund What’s in a number? They’re symbols we use to quantify the world around us, the basis for astrophysics and time measurement, and among the first things we learn in language. 5: right angle meets curve. 1: straight as a ruler. Using some mental glue, stick these together and the result is 51, […]
Saturn sets in twilight for the first week of November and is lost in the sun’s glare the rest of the month. Venus, Mars and Jupiter are still close together in the morning sky this month. Right now, Venus is close to Mars, with Jupiter above them. Venus and Mars are 0.68 degrees apart the morning […]
Hey, Scouts! Spend the day at HMNS this weekend and work on earning your Nova Award during STEM/Nova Day! The Houston Museum of Natural Science is the perfect place to complete your badge requirements. Visit our permanent exhibit halls, watch a Burke Baker Planetarium or Wortham Giant Screen Theatre movie, and ask some of our […]
Saturn is now in the southwestern sky at dusk. It outshines the stars around it, so it’s also easy to see. Mars is a little higher in the morning sky this month. Look for it low in the east at dawn. Mars remains dimmer then average, though, and won’t rival the brighter stars until next […]
Pluto has a heart. A big, icy heart surrounded by a sea of red. It was more of a fluke of photographic composition, a perfect angle for the shot that astronomers and engineers waited for more than nine years to receive, but nonetheless the image has served to anthropomorphize the dwarf planet enough to make […]
On Feb. 15, 2013, with no warning, an asteroid 20 meters in diameter and weighing more than the Eiffel Tower plunged into the Earth’s atmosphere over the Russian city of Chelyabinsk at speeds in excess of 19 kilometers per second. At such a high speed, the 14,000-ton object exploded at altitude, creating a flash 30 […]
Venus is in the west at dusk. At dusk, look high over the point of sunset for the brightest thing there; it outshines everything but the Sun and the Moon. Jupiter is also in the west as soon as night falls. Jupiter outshines all stars we ever see at night, so it will be obvious […]
Mercury is low in the west-northwest, below and slightly to the right. It remains visible for the first half of May before returning towards the Sun. Venus is in the west at dusk. Look high over the point of sunset for the brightest thing there. Jupiter is now high in the west as soon as […]
Editor’s note: This post was created by HMNS Concierge and Discovery Guide Corey Green. Our good friend Einstein came to visit the museum and went through many of our exhibit halls. Can you name the halls he’s pictured in? (Click the pictures for answers!) Want to go on a scavenger hunt with your very own […]
