Eugene Shoemaker - Blog Posts
New Zealand was lovely, but I already touched on what I’d be tempted to talk about with my Southern Stars episode. A person I interviewed as a potential new housemate gave me the idea for this episode because the joy of outer space is truly everywhere and anywhere. The field of astrogeology was not something I had heard of before, though I had indirectly heard of Eugene Shoemaker. I knew the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 was named after him (and Carolyn Shoemaker, his wife). It turns out he basically founded the modern field of astrogeology! So I talk about him for quite a while, too.
Below the cut are the glossary, transcript, sources, and music credits. Send me any topic suggestions via Tumblr message (you don’t need an account to do this, just submit as anonymous). You can also tweet at me on Twitter at @HDandtheVoid, or you can ask me to my face if you know me in real life. Subscribe on iTunes to get the new episodes of my semi-monthly podcast, and please please please rate and review it. Go ahead and tell friends if you think they’d like to hear it, too!
(The next episode is going to be famous comets, and I’m shooting for an April release.)
Glossary
aeolian processes - the wind’s ability to shape the surface of a planet by eroding, transporting, and depositing materials. Most effective in desert regions, where the sparse vegetation, dry soil, and loose sediments mean these processes have the greatest impact.
albedo features - the International Astronomical Union term for an area of a planet that has a high contrast in color with the surrounding area on a planet’s surface.
chaos terrain - the International Astronomical Union term for where ridges, cracks, and plains on a planet’s surface appear broken and smashed up against each other.
chasma - the International Astronomical Union term for a long, steep-sided, deep surface indentation in a planet’s surface.
colles - the International Astronomical Union term for collections of small, knob-like hills on the surface of a planet.
dorsum - the International Astronomical Union term for a wrinkle-like ridge on a planet’s surface.
facula - the International Astronomical Union term for a bright spot on planets or moons.
fluvial processes - the ways in which rivers and streams impact a planet’s surface by eroding or creating deposits and landforms out of sediment. Sometimes, streams or rivers are associated with glaciers, ice sheets, or ice caps, and then they are called glaciofluvial or fluvioglacial processes.
fossa - the International Astronomical Union term for a long, narrow depression in a planet’s surface.
lacunae - the International Astronomical Union term for irregularly shaped depressions that look like dry lake beds on the surface of Saturn’s moon, Titan.
lobate scarp - the International Astronomical Union term for a curved slope that is probably formed by compressive tectonic movement.
mare - the International Astronomical Union term for a large, circular plain on a planet’s surface.
terra - the International Astronomical Union term for an extensive landmass like a plain or highland.
tesserae - the International Astronomical Union term for regions on the planet Venus that are tiled, polygonal shapes.
vallis - the International Astronomical Union term for a valley on the surface of a planet.
Script/Transcript
Sources
Planetary geology via Wikipedia
Lunar Lobate Scarp via the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera
Eugene M. Shoemaker Biographical Memoirs via NASA
Dr. Eugene Shoemaker, 69; Set Record for Finding Comets via The New York Times (July 1997)
Eugene Shoemaker (1928-1997) via NASA Jet Propulsion Lab
Eugene Shoemaker (1928 - 1997) via American Astronomical Society
Gene Shoemaker - Founder of Astrogeology via US Geological Society
Eugene Shoemaker via the Planetary Society
Eugene Shoemaker Ashes Carried on Lunar Prospector via NASA Jet Propulsion Lab
Eugene M. Shoemaker and the Integration of Earth and Sky via GSA Today (April 2001)
Destination Moon by Carolyn C. Porco (Feb 2000)
“I wanted to include something to commemorate Gene’s scientific legacy. It seemed appropriate to choose his favorite photo of Meteor Crater and a photo of the last comet that he and his wife saw together, Comet Hale-Bopp. And somehow, I extracted from the dusty realm of dim memory a passage I had read from Romeo and Juliet long ago that seemed perfect for the occasion.”
Who is an Astrogeologist? via Space Awareness
Careers via the USGS Astrogeology Science Center
“Public Service by contributing to the public knowledge about our Solar System.”
Lunar Calibration via USGS
“The unmatched stability of the lunar surface reflectance (better than one part in 108 per year) makes the Moon attractive as a calibration light source; its radiance can be known with high precision and accuracy. The lunar irradiance is similar in brightness to sunlit land masses on the Earth.”
Video: Astrogeology 1963-2013: Fifty Years of Exploration via the USGS Astrogeology Science Center
Intro Music: ‘Better Times Will Come’ by No Luck Club off their album Prosperity
Filler Music: ‘Muddy Waters’ by LP off her album Lost On You
Outro Music: ‘Fields of Russia’ by Mutefish off their album On Draught