Baby Got Back

Jupiter and its moons Io and Europa rendered in Celestia 1.7.0. Europa is closest, Jupiter is furthest.

After a short detour into prehistoric reptiles, it’s time to return to our tour of the Solar System. When we left off, we had just crossed the asteroid belt, which means we’ve finally reached the outer Solar System. This stage of the journey is especially exciting, because it brings us to Earth’s two giant siblings: Jupiter and Saturn. The voluptuous rump of the Solar System, if you will. […]

Read More… from Baby Got Back

Short Skirt/Long Jacket

Life reconstruction of Brontosaurus excelsus, showing a group of long-necked sauropod dinosaurs walking across an open plain.

The Land Before Time (1988) played a huge role in sparking my early love of dinosaurs. Born in the early ’80s, this movie was made for my generation, and it absolutely hit the mark with me. It was one of the few VHS tapes I owned, since most of what we watched back then was either rented or recorded off of TV, and I watched it constantly. To this day, I still find myself quoting […]

Read More… from Short Skirt/Long Jacket

Crocodile Rock

Triassic forest scene with Placerias in the foreground, a Postosuchus in the midground, a group of small theropods running, and pterosaurs flying overhead

If you were suddenly teleported back to the Triassic period and found yourself being chased by a terrifying meat-eating reptile, you might struggle to tell whether it was a dinosaur or not. While dinosaurs did rise to dominance in the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, they were just one of many archosaur groups thriving in the Triassic, a world still recovering from the worst […]

Read More… from Crocodile Rock

Walking on Sunshine

Illustration of the solar system showing the Sun at the centre, surrounded by the eight planets with their orbital paths. The inner rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are shown close to the Sun, while the gas and ice giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are farther out. The asteroid belt is shown between Mars and Jupiter, and a comet with a long tail appears to the left. The background grid suggests the curvature of space.

I’ve always felt it’s worth exploring closer to home before venturing too far out. It’s not a hard rule or anything, just a belief that local gems deserve a look before you start chasing treasures abroad. With that in mind, let’s turn our eyes to the Sun and the many planets, moons, and other cosmic neighbours that surround […]

Read More… from Walking on Sunshine