Olomouc University’s Sundial

A sundial commemorating the quatercentenary of Olomouc University (1573–1973) on the facade of the Faculty of Philosophy

Astronomical Clock Series - Germany

 Rathaus, Worms, Germany

Mars during the Noachian Epoch

Mars today

Mars during the Noachian Period

The view is centered around the area called the Ares Vallis (below right, the water filled basin). This area shows variety of water related features, e.g. sediments, river canyons, and flat-bottomed crater (characteristic of an ancient water-filled craters). Some water overflowed from the crater that contains them, creating flood across the plain.

Also shown are some meteors impacting the Martian surface. 

I am not very sure what is that volcano on the left. Volcanism is important in forming water in Mars. Volcano produces material for a thicker atmosphere, in this visualization, you can even see there’s a plume of gas coming out from the volcano. This process makes the planet warmer and makes it possible for water to form. That volcano is probably part of the Alba Mons volcanic system, although I think Alba Mons should be a little bit to the north. 

The color of Mars is not red during that time, because the oxidation of the soil happens when the volcanism stops.

 Floods in Kasei Vallis, caused by volcanism in the Tharsis Bulge

Source:

http://www.marssociety.org/portal/c/society-tools/mars_art

One of the Oldest Globe from the Islamic World

 

"this globe comprises all of the constellations mentioned in the Almagest, after modification according to the time elapsed between the calculations of Ptolemy and year 540 [of the Hejira] (...), the work of Yûnus Ibn al-Husayn al-Asturlabî." © R.M.N./H. Lewandowski

No functional celestial globe has come down to us that predates the coming of Islam. This celestial globe is a three-dimensional model of the universe, and is the third-oldest globe from the Islamic world. Only two others, created by an Andalusian astronomer, are older, and this is the oldest known globe from the eastern part of the Islamic world.

The globe differs from its Andalusian predecessors by the use of an alphanumeric system of notation (abjad) for numbering the stars within each of the 120 Ptolemaic constellations. Each of the 1,025 stars depicted is represented by a dot of inlaid silver, a technique that was unknown in the West. The diameter of the point varies depending on the magnitude of the star. The two hemispheres that make up the globe are joined along the Milky Way. The globe represents the final celestial sphere, that of fixed stars - a very precise version of Ptolemy's Almagest, a catalogue of stars written in Alexandria in the 2nd century AD. The difference between Islamic globes and what we know about ancient globes lies in the fact that Islamic globes represented the constellation from the front, instead of from the back.

Scientifically, this globe is exceptionally precise. It was created by a master astronomer who was capable, as the inscription engraved in the vicinity of the South Pole indicates, of recalculating astronomical calculations: "This globe comprises all of the constellations mentioned in the Almagest, after modification according to the time elapsed between the calculations of Ptolemy and year 540 of the Hejira: that is, fifteen degrees and eighteen minutes. Created by Yûnus Ibn al-Husayn al-Asturlabî in the year 539." The iconography of the constellations faithfully follows the model presented in the Book on the Constellations of Fixed Stars (kitab suwar al-kawakib) by 'Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi. The original of this work was lost, but we have been able to reconstitute it through a copy made by al-Sufi's son in 1099 and a manuscript from 1125 that explicitly refers to it. In addition to its remarkable scientific precision, the work is equally captivating due the quality of the engraving. Many of the clothed figures, including Cassiopeia, feature drapery comparable to figures in manuscripts. Their sinuous and stylized folds are characteristic of the art of the book that continued to develop into the mid-13th century, and even beyond, in the Arab part of the Islamic world.

Full figure Gemini, Cancer, Canis Major.

 Centaurus and Lupus. In above left is part of Hydra’s coil.

 Scorpio and Libra, legs of Virgo and the head of Lupus is also seen here.

Source:

http://www.louvre.fr

The Star Wars Galaxy – More Science than Fiction

 The Star Wars Galaxy. Can you find the beautiful planet Naboo?

“If there's anything I like more than space it's fake space. That's why this map of the Star Wars Galaxy, from Coruscant to the Wild Space region, has me fascinated this morning. High res inside.”

Planet Bespin	In the Star Wars sci-fi saga, the fictional planet Bespin is an immense gas giant surrounded by a number of moons. It contains a band of habitable atmosphere among the clouds. This is where Cloud City is located, a mining colony set up to extract valuable Tibanna gas. "I don't know what Tibanna gas might be," said Seth Shostak, a real-life astronomer with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in Mountain View, California. "Gas-giant planets seem to be swathed in ammonia, methane, and other vapors that, frankly, are neither rare nor particularly valuable. They are useful for cleaning the bathroom or cooking dinner, of course."
Planet Coruscant	Situated in the heart of the fictional Star Wars galaxy, the planet Coruscant is completely covered by one massive city and is the seat of government for both the Galactic Republic and later the Empire. "In general, you don't want to be quite in the 'heart' of any large galaxy, as that's almost invariably the site of a massive black hole, and an active nucleus that will fill nearby space with corrosive radiation guaranteed to ruin your whole day," said Seth Shostak, a real-life astronomer with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in Mountain View, California.
Planet Dagobah	Dagobah is a forgotten world where Luke Skywalker trains with the Jedi master Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. Its huge lagoons and mist-shrouded swamps are teeming with life. "This swamp planet is really only a [stand-in] for Earth during the Pennsylvanian period, when swamps were common, vegetation was lush, and coal was being formed," said Seth Shostak, an astronomer with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in California. "It's our planet as it was 300 million years ago, before things got a bit colder."
Planet Hoth	In the Star Wars films, the fictional planet Hoth is a world of snow and ice. Although small meteorites from a nearby asteroid field constantly pelt its surface, the planet has developed several life-forms, including the tauntaun snow lizard ridden by rebel soldiers in The Empire Strikes Back. "A nearby asteroid field? Hmm, it would be tricky to keep it in place. … said Bruce Betts, a scientist at the Planetary Society in Pasadena, California. "Perhaps it's early in that solar system's development and the planet, like early Earth, is under bombardment. But then it would be odd to have very advanced life evolved there."
Planet Mustafar	In Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, the fictional planet Mustafar serves as a volcanic backdrop for the final duel between the characters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. "To make this compatible with contemporary life is a challenge. It's really tricky to imagine that you would have oxygen here," said Bruce Betts, a scientist at the Planetary Society in California. "But, hey, they're Jedi—they can probably control their breath."
Planet Naboo	In the Star Wars movie saga, the fictional planet Naboo serves as the home of Queen Amidala. It's an idyllic world populated by peaceful humans and a species of intelligent amphibians, the Gungans. "We have rather few examples of two or more intelligent species simultaneously sharing a planet, but it has happened. The Neanderthals coexisted with Homo sapiens for millennia," said Seth Shostak, a real-life astronomer with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in Mountain View, California. "So maybe it's possible to share, as long as neither species has the technology to obliterate, enslave, or merely cook and eat each other."
Planet Tatooine	The large and dusty planet Tatooine is the fictional home of Anakin and Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars sci-fi saga. "You can develop a really arid world, like Mars, but once it is mostly arid, it is hard to keep any liquid water," said Bruce Betts, a scientist at the Planetary Society in Pasadena, California, and an expert on things extraterrestrial. "Liquid water is one of three things needed for life on Earth, so it's probably not a terrible assumption to make that it's needed for life elsewhere too."

 

source:

Trukstop via Wookieepedia via Dark Roasted Blend via gizmodo.com/tag/astronomy/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/06/photogalleries/starwarsgalaxy/index.html