Astronomers observe the sky!

Astronomy is the study of:• the sky & the stars• galaxies, cosmology, the solar system

(With thanks to Mark Clayson & Mark Ritter)

Visions of the Heavens

Marcus Aurelius : "He who does not know what the world is does not know where he is, and he who does not know for what purpose the world exists, does not know who he is, nor what the world is."

• a little math…• the numbers we

use are astronomical , so…

• you must understand

scientific notation!

• you should know it already; it just makes enormous and infinitesimal numbers easier to deal with

• solar system: the sun, planet family, all the other little stuff

• planets: small, non-luminous bodies

• sun: self-luminous ball of hot gas that generates its own energy

• astronomical unit (AU): average distance between sun and earth (93 million miles)

Solar System Montage by Voyager: planets & Jupiter’s Galilean moons

• light-year (ly): the distance light travels in a year; almost 1013 km

• galaxy: great cloud of gas, stars, dust bound together by gravity

• Milky Way: the galaxy we live in

How Matter is OrganizedOrganization of the Universe:

– Superclusters of galaxies• Clusters of galaxies

– Galaxies• Clusters of stars (globular, open in spiral

arms)• Clouds/Nebulae (stars coming or going)

– Stellar systems• Stars (single, binary,...)• Planets (terrestrial, Jovian)

– Moons• Minor objects (comets, asteroids,...)

Worlds Without Number

Do you knowour universal

address??

Azusa Pacific University, CA, USA,

North America,Northern Hemisphere

Earth, the Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, The Local Group,

The Local Supercluster, The Universe!

How Little We Know

“For by Him were all things created...visible and invisible...

in Him all things hold together.” ~ Colossians 1:15, 17

“He...stretches out the heavens as a curtain... as a tent to dwell in,” Isaiah 40: 21, 22

Big Bang & Expanding Universe

Our Sister Galaxy – Andromeda(~2 million LY away)

Stars Orbiting Milky Way’s Supermassive Black Hole

A Face-On Spiral Galaxy

Edge-On Spiral Galaxy

The Eagle Nebula

Pillars of Creation – Eagle Nebula

Orion Nebula Stellar Nursery & Protoplanetary Disk

Sun in UV(why we wear sunscreen and

sunglasses)

First Photo of Planet Around Another Star

First Extra-Solar Rocky Planet Discovered & Announced Sept.

16, 2009

Habitable (“Goldilocks”) Zone Around Stars

The Lives & Classes of Stars: The Hertzsprung-Russell

Diagram

The Sun’s Life Story

A Very Brief History of Natural Science• Natural Philosophy: study of unanswered questions about nature.• The search for understanding through study of the physical world• Scientists look at the world with curiosity

– Curiosity makes us ask questions about the world around us:• Why does the sun shine?• What makes the sky blue?• How old is the earth?• How were the planets formed?• Why do things fall?• What are things made of?

• Scientists make observations, do experiments, create models/theories to answer questions, in an iterative process…– GOAL: to obtain a compelling explanation describing observed phenomena,

which makes accurate predictions, and leads to a better understanding of the universe.

• Scientists try to understand the multitude of nature’s attributes as resulting from the action of a relatively small number of elemental (basic) things and forces acting in an infinite variety of combinations.

• Physics (the basis for ASTRONOMY) is the most basic of all sciences; it’s about the nature of such basic things as motion, forces, energy, heat, sound, light, and atoms.

Science and Theology• Search for order and meaning takes different forms…• Science is concerned with discovering and understanding

natural phenomena– The domain of science is natural order

• Theology is concerned with the source, purpose, and meaning of everything– The domain of theology is nature’s purpose

• Science and theology complement, rather than contradict, each other.

• Lack of understanding about either science or theology can make people feel they must choose one or the other, but a deeper, more complete understanding of each enables us to embrace them both without contradiction.

• God is the author of both creation and scripture!“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities

- his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” - Romans 1:20

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands…” - Psalm 19:1

Science and Theologycan enlighten and inform each other as we

seek to know ultimate TRUTH

“For now we see through a glass, darkly, but then we shall see face to face; now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I

am known.” I Corinthians 13:12

THEOLOGY

SCIENCE

SCIENCE IS THE TOOL WE USE TO INVESTIGATE GOD’S

CREATION!

FAITH INTEGRATION

The Scientific MethodI Thessalonians 5:21 – “Test everything…Hold onto the good.”

Psalm 34:8 – “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”