Eclectic Perambulations in the Noosphere
image by Kandis Elliot : UW Botany Art and Photo Studio
"A native of the tallgrass prairie, this perennial giant sports wonderfully cheerful yellow daisy-like flowers on long, stout stalks reaching up to 8' in height! Its color is a welcome sight in our hot, humid Midwestern summers, providing some distraction when little else is blooming.
Even more interesting than the flowers are the coarse leaves from which this species gets its name. Borne opposite one another on the stem, the large leaves fuse together at their bases to form a "cup" of sorts. Even on the hottest summer days one can usually find water from the morning dew collected within these miniature green receptacles.
Although Silphium perfoliatum is rarely seen in the garden, it should still be considered for those with lots of sunny space. The clean, dark green foliage makes an excellent backdrop for smaller perennials, and the bright yellow blooms are airy enough to not compete with any neighbors for visual prominence."
NASA image captured March 29, 2011
"Twice a year, SDO enters an eclipse season where the spacecraft slips behind Earth for up to 72 minutes a day. Unlike the crisp shadow one sees on the sun during a lunar eclipse, Earth's shadow has a variegated edge due to its atmosphere, which blocks the sun light to different degrees depending on its density. Also, light from brighter spots on the sun may make it through, which is why some solar features extend low into Earth's shadow."
"Although they aren’t particularly fond of the comparison, scientists from the GOCE satellite team had to admit that new data showing Earth’s gravity field – or geoid — makes our planet look like a rotating potato. After just two years in orbit, ESA’s sleek and sexy GOCE satellite (Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer) has gathered sufficient data to map Earth’s gravity with unrivalled precision. While our world certainly doesn’t look like a spinning tuber, this exaggerated view shows the most accurate model of how gravity varies across the planet."
