Fact or Fiction: Debunking Myths about Space

Many people believe that a solar eclipse is a rare and amazing phenomenon that occurs once every few decades. However, solar eclipses actually happen much more often than we think. Every year, there can be 2 to 5 solar eclipses on Earth, with no more than two being total or annular. On average, over a hundred years, this amounts to about 237 solar eclipses: 160 partial, 63 total, and 14 annular.

So why does it seem that eclipses are rare? The fact is that the visibility zone of a solar eclipse covers only a small part of the Earth's surface. Therefore, in the same place, a total solar eclipse can be observed very rarely — sometimes once every few hundred years. But if you look at it globally, eclipses occur regularly and predictably. This means that somewhere on the planet, people witness this impressive phenomenon almost every year.

Thus, solar eclipses are not so rare from an astronomical point of view, although for each individual person, the opportunity to see one may seem unique. This makes observing an eclipse an even more exciting and valuable experience.

Many people mistakenly believe that the North Star is the brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere sky. In reality, it doesn't even make the top ten brightest stars in the night sky. Its brightness is significantly less than stars like Sirius, Vega, Arcturus, and Capella.

Why, then, is the North Star so famous? It's all about its unique position in the celestial sphere. It is located almost directly above the Earth's North Pole, which makes it almost stationary relative to other stars. This feature has long been used by sailors and travelers for navigation and determining the direction north.

Interesting fact: The North Star is not a single star but a complex triple star system. At the center is the supergiant Polaris A, which is about 2,000 times brighter than our Sun and 6.4–6.7 times more massive. Its radius is about 47–50 times that of the Sun, making it a truly giant luminary. Orbiting around it are two companion stars, Polaris B and Polaris C, which are also important components of this system.

The brightness of a star in our sky depends not only on its own luminosity but also on its distance from us. A very bright star located far from Earth may appear dim to us, while a less bright but closer star will look much brighter. Therefore, despite its enormous luminosity and size, the North Star is not the brightest for an Earth observer.

Thus, the significance of the North Star is due not to its brightness but to its unique position and physical characteristics. It remains an important object for both scientific research and astronomy enthusiasts, continuing to impress and amaze with its grandeur and mysteries.

Many people believe that comets are huge cosmic bodies that pose a serious danger to Earth. However, a comet's collision with our planet will not necessarily be the most catastrophic event. Despite their impressive visible sizes, most of a comet's mass is concentrated in the nucleus, which is essentially a "dirty snowball" — a mix of ice, cosmic dust, mineral particles, and rocks.

French physicist Jacques Babinet aptly called comets “visible nothingness.” When a comet approaches the Sun, the heat causes gases and dust to erupt from the nucleus in the form of impressive fountains. These expelled substances form the coma — a glowing cloud around the nucleus — and the comet's famous tail, consisting of gas and dust.

Therefore, while comets may look frightening and imposing in the night sky, their actual mass and density are relatively small. This means that the potential damage from a comet collision with Earth could be significantly less than that from denser and more massive objects like asteroids. Comets are more impressive for their beauty and mystery than for posing a real threat to our planet.

Many people believe that since the Moon rotates around its axis, we can see all its sides from Earth. However, this is not true. The Moon has a so-called "far side" — a part of the surface that we never see. Why do we always observe only one side of the Moon?

The fact is that the period of the Moon's rotation around its axis and its orbit around Earth are almost the same. This phenomenon is called synchronous rotation and arose due to the tidal interactions between Earth and the Moon and the irregular distribution of mass within the Moon. As a result, the Moon is always facing us with the same side.

Interestingly, this coincidence is not absolutely exact. Due to slight oscillations in the Moon's motion, known as librations, we can see a bit more than just half of its surface. As a result, about 59% of the lunar surface is visible from Earth.

Many people think that the unseen side of the Moon is never illuminated by the Sun and is constantly in darkness. However, this is a misconception. In reality, any spherical body, including the Moon, receives an equal amount of sunlight on all sides as it rotates.

The Moon rotates around its axis and orbits Earth in about 29.5 Earth days — this is called a synodic month. Therefore, each section of the lunar surface is illuminated by the Sun for almost 15 Earth days, then goes into darkness for the same period. During the lunar day, the surface heats up to extreme temperatures, reaching more than +115 °C. When night falls, the temperature drops sharply, cooling to –170 °C, and in some places, such as deep craters at the poles, up to –240 °C.

Thus, the so-called "dark" side of the Moon is not permanently dark or cold. It receives as much sunlight as the side facing Earth. The difference is that due to the Moon's synchronous rotation, we never see this side from our planet. But it experiences the same day and night cycles, making it equally interesting for study and exploration.

Many people believe that the stars in the night sky are stationary and maintain their positions. However, this is not the case. The sky is dynamic and constantly moving, but these changes occur on time scales that far exceed a human lifetime. Everything happening in space lasts hundreds, thousands, and even millions of years, making these movements practically imperceptible to us — our lives are but a moment in cosmic terms.

While the movements of galaxies are not visible even over centuries, some stars move at such high speeds that changes in their positions become noticeable after just a few years of observation. For example, Barnard's Star flies through space at about 110 km/s. For comparison, our Sun moves relative to other stars at about 20 km/s.

This means that stars are not stationary but rush through the universe at incredible speeds. Due to the vast distances to them and the scale of their movement, we cannot notice these movements with the naked eye. However, with modern telescopes and long-term observations, astronomers record these changes, revealing a dynamic picture of the cosmos.

In reality, this is nothing more than a fiction, and there will be no "explosion." Human tissues are strong and elastic enough to withstand the pressure drop of one atmosphere that exists between our body and the vacuum of space.

So what will actually happen to a person in such a situation? The main threat will be suffocation due to the lack of oxygen. In the vacuum of space, there is no air to breathe, and a person will lose consciousness within 10–15 seconds due to the lack of oxygen in the brain. Without timely assistance, death will occur within a few minutes.

The temperature conditions in space also pose a danger but not as often shown in movies. A person will not freeze instantly because in a vacuum, heat is transferred only by radiation, not by convection or conduction. This means that heat loss will occur much more slowly than one might expect.

Finally, cosmic radiation and solar radiation can damage the cells of the body, but this will only become a problem with prolonged exposure. In the short term, the main danger remains the lack of oxygen.

Many people believe that stars forming a single constellation are close to each other in space. However, this is a misconception. This impression arises because we see stars projected onto an imaginary plane of the celestial sphere, creating recognizable patterns in the night sky. In reality, stars within a constellation can be separated by vast distances and lie at different depths in space.

For example, take the constellation Ursa Major, known for its bright part — the "Big Dipper," consisting of seven stars. From Earth, these stars appear to be close to each other, forming a familiar silhouette. However, in fact, they are located at different distances from us and from each other. Some of these stars are 60–80 light-years away from Earth, while others may be even farther.

It's important to note that for astronomers, the constellation Ursa Major includes many more stars — over 100, each with its unique position in space. These stars are not gravitationally bound to each other and move in their own orbits around the center of the galaxy. Constellations are, in essence, a product of human imagination and a convenient way to navigate the sky, not actual clusters of stars located in close proximity.

In fact, meteor streams consist of particles that are mostly no larger than a grain of sand. These microscopic fragments — remnants of comets or asteroids — are scattered along orbits, creating peculiar "cosmic dust trails."

When Earth crosses such areas, we observe meteor showers, and these particles burn up in the atmosphere, creating the effect of "shooting stars." In space, however, the density of these particles is so low that a spacecraft passing through a meteor stream hardly feels their impact. Modern spacecraft are equipped with protection against micrometeoroids — special screens and materials capable of absorbing the energy of minor collisions.

Only a tiny fraction of meteor particles are comparable in size to "real" rocks a few centimeters across. The likelihood of colliding with such objects is extremely low, and spacecraft trajectories are usually calculated in such a way as to minimize these risks.

Therefore, a spacecraft that encounters a meteor stream will pass through it without any issues. This allows scientists and engineers to confidently plan interplanetary missions without fearing catastrophic consequences from meteor streams.

Many people believe that the concepts of "space" and "weightlessness" are practically inseparable and are synonyms. However, a state of weightlessness can be experienced on Earth, and you don't have to be an astronaut to do so. Just jump off a chair! Of course, in this case, weightlessness will last only a fraction of a second, but you will still feel it.

Parachutists jumping out of airplanes also experience moments of weightlessness, especially in the first seconds of free fall. Athletes such as jumpers and trampolinists feel this state at the peak of their jump when the forces of gravity and inertia balance each other.

On Earth, it is impossible to create conditions for prolonged weightlessness due to the constant pull of our planet. However, brief sensations of this unique state are available to all of us. This shows that weightlessness is not an exclusive phenomenon of space and can be experienced even in everyday life.