Talk about science of astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Talk about science of astronomy - Essay Example It is from these humble beginnings that astronomy takes off to become one of the important sciences, as it provides the means to look back to the origin of all life including human kind, as well look forward to provide glimpses of what could happen in the future to the universe that we all live in. Early astronomy made known to the ancients the existence of five planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter besides the sun, moon and the stars with their visibility to the naked eye. To the Egyptians and the Chinese go the initial credits in astronomy. The Egyptians divided the stars into constellations, but in a different manner than what is known today, and the Chinese with their keen observation came to understand eclipses. However, early astronomy was affected significantly by the limitations of the vision of the naked eye. This gave rise to many fallacies that were to remain a part of early astronomy. These fallacies included the belief that the earth was flat and the earth was the centre of the universe, around which all other objects in space went round and round. That was what they saw and hence the believed it. It was not until development of astronomy in its true form, in Greece from approximately 600 B.C. onwards that there was a better understanding of the universe we lived. It was Aristotle who, based on his observations, suggested that the earth was round. Eratosthenes in 240 B.C. calculated the circumference of the earth, and Hipparchus drew up an accurate catalogue of the stars. Amidst these contributions from the Greeks was also the contribution of Ptolemy towards extending the false geo-centric belief, as he devised an ingenious system to explain observations on earth from a geo-centric perspective. The Church was to extend support to this theory and it remained in place for many centuries, right up to the fifteenth century. In the sixteenth century Nicolas Copernicus based on the observations of the movements of the sum moon and

Renewable Energy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Renewable Energy - Research Paper Example Since the beginning of industrial revolution, the consumption of energy in the world has been rapidly increasing. The need for renewable sources of energy has resulted from two factors: 1. The pollution resulting from burning of petroleum fuels 2. The inevitable decrease of oil reserves The use of renewable sources of energy as opposed to fossil fuels has led to the reduced rate of carbon emission. Most of the renewable energy is not produced directly from the source for use but has to use some equipment for it to be useful. There are various types of renewable energy. The type of renewable energy used in any particular country depends on its relative geographical location. Types of renewable energy Hydropower Water is denser than air and thus small amount of water is capable of producing a good quantity of energy. Energy gained from water is in different forms; micro hydro, ocean energy, hydroelectric energy and hydro without using dams. Water has a lot of power in it and contribute s the largest percentage of all renewable energy. Its energy is produced using mechanical energy of flowing water. The water is piped through a penstock pipe which turns the generator thus producing electricity. Solar Power Solar energy is among the oldest renewable source of energy. It consists of the energy which comes from the sun inform of solar radiation. Sun energy can be used in three different ways. One of them is the use of solar cells. In solar cells, photovoltaic or photoelectric cells directly transform light into electricity. The second one is solar water heating. Here, heat from sun is used for warming water in glass panels. This glass panels are set at the top of the roof for direct heating by the sun. Therefore, there is no further need of gas or electricity for warming the water. The last is the solar furnaces. They make use of the mirror to which captures the sun radiations to small area thus producing high temperatures. The solar furnaces are commonly used for coo king food. Biomass It is the most versatile form of renewable energy. Biomass fuel includes everything starting from wood to all trash in landfill. This is currently converted into methane for producing natural dry gas. Biomass fuel is burned in boilers thus heating water which turns a stream turbine creating electricity. Recent research has shown that animal waste especially manure is being used for by the dairy forms for energy production. Wind power Wind is one of the oldest sources of energy. As source of energy it involves a very simple process. Wind turbines are used to convert wind motion (kinetic energy) to the form of mechanical energy. This is in turn used for electricity generation. According to Maczulak (2009), the energy converted the second time using he generator to electrical energy. The converted energy is again passed through a grid where it is then transferred to power stations. The best position to establish the turbines is along the coastal areas, open fields an d hill tops. The biggest wind farms that have ever existed in the world are found in West Texas. Geothermal Power This involves the process of trapping underground heat. Energy that rises almost to the surface in heat form is then built. After the heat naturally forms steam, it is thus used for turning a steam turbine hence generating electricity. The decision on the type of energy source used by each country is based on the countries economy, resources and the willingness of the citizens to corporate. For instance, as suggested