Sharp speculative stories with a side of science
Fifty years ago today, emissaries from Earth--riding in a command cabin the size of a car, and guided by a computer less powerful than a modern smartphone--landed on our Moon and left Homo sapiens' first footprints on another world. In honor of the Apollo 11 anniversary, I chose this date to launch the print edition of my lunar-based... Continue Reading →
Syzygy V: Red Shift went live this week! Like every title in my Syzygy hexalogy, this one is an astronomy term that implies various levels of significance for the story. What is red shift in the scientific sense? When an object in space (like a star) moves away from us, its light wavelength stretches out, "shifting" the... Continue Reading →
As if 2016 hadn’t already stolen enough of our beloved icons, this week we said goodbye to a pair of women who changed the face of science and science fiction, respectively: astrophysicist Vera Rubin, whose work confirmed the existence of dark matter, and actress Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in Star Wars. Rubin made tremendous... Continue Reading →
Wednesday. I hit the alarm, staggered to the bathroom to get ready for work…and gasped as a cosmic pearl dazzled my bleary eyes. At 5:45 AM, the moon still hung over the field behind my house, shrouded in lavender dawn clouds. The sight was breathtaking, and appropriate: it’s not just Wednesday, it’s Moon Day! July... Continue Reading →
The Martian hits theaters today! I’m suspending my usual policy of avoiding opening-day movie crowds and going this afternoon: Andy Weir + Ridley Scott x Matt Damon = too good to wait. But there’s also some exciting non-fiction news from the Red Planet this week. On Monday, NASA confirmed that its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)... Continue Reading →
Don't forget about the rare super moon eclipse tomorrow night! Since the next one won't occur until 2033, it's worth trying to capture on film. Sure, you're no Hubble Telescope, but with a little camera savvy, you'll can capture the celestial show with any level of photography equipment. Here are a few tips for (literally) shooting stars: Long exposures... Continue Reading →
