Corpus Christi Geological Society

Geology is the science and study of the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth. The field of geology encompasses the study of the composition, structure, physical properties, dynamics, and history of Earth materials, and the processes by which they are formed, moved, and changed. The field is a major academic discipline, and is also important for mineral and hydrocarbon extraction, knowledge about and mitigation of natural hazards, some engineering fields, and understanding past climates and environments with reference to present-day climate change.

Etymology
The word "geology" was first used by Jean-André Deluc in the year 1778 and introduced as a fixed term by Horace-Bénédict de Saussure in the year 1779. The science was not included in Encyclopædia Britannica's third edition completed in 1797, but had a lengthy entry in the fourth edition completed by 1809.[1] An older meaning of the word was first used by Richard de Bury to distinguish between earthly and theological jurisprudence.

-Source: Wikipedia.

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Star Light Reports

March 2010

“Star light, Star bright...

the first star you see at night..." is Venus in the western sky.

Mars, Saturn and Venus are the planets for March. Venus at sunset cannot be missed. Mars is reddish high in southeast in Cancer, the Crab. And Saturn is back and showing rings—first to be seen since 1995.

Daylight Shifting Time is March 14th—we are not really saving time we are shifting it. March 15th used to be the first day of the year and it was also the day Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. The Kalends of March were on the 1st, the Nones of March were on the 7th and the Ides of March were on the 15th—all part of the complex Roman calendar.

March 16th -17th watch for Venus near the Moon.
March 20th Spring begins at 12:33 p.m. on the Vernal Equinox.
March 21st Saturn is at opposition and at its brightest for the year.
March 24th watch an equilateral triangle of the Moon, Mars and Pollux (star in Gemini).

Don’t you normally think of noon as the middle of the day and that the sun is as high as it is going to be for the day? That is seldom the case. Astronomers call the time that the sun is at the highest for the day local noon or the time that the ‘sun transits the meridian’. As the Earth rotates, local noon is always on a longitude exactly below the Sun—so local noon for Corpus Christi comes earlier than for Alice or Laredo and after that of Port Aransas or Houston. Before the railroads were running across our country, every town had their own time for noon. But once we had railroads and telephones, a standardization of time was needed and time zones were implemented. All cities in the Central time zone have noon at the same moment but the local noons will still vary based on the longitude of each city.

Speaking of meridian. What do the terms a.m. and p.m. mean? We know those are terms for morning and afternoon. Ante meridian and post meridian are Latin words for before and after the Sun is on the meridian. A meridian is an imaginary plane that passes through the north point on the horizon through the zenith (point directly above) and down through the south point of the horizon. As the Sun rises in the morning, it is before the meridian. When the Sun is exactly on the meridian, that is called local noon. And once the Sun is past the meridian it is called afternoon or post meridian or p.m.

Watch the moon rise out of the bay. What a difference a Bay Makes!

Monday March 29th 7:40 p.m. Exactly full at 9:27p.m.
Tuesday March 30th 8:46 p.m. waning gibbous 99%
Wednesday March 31st 9:51 p.m. waning gibbous 96%

Owen Hopkins March 2010

Fun Video About Our Planet Packed With Info

Origin of the Days of the Week

What Happened to the Dinosaurs 65 Million Years Ago

Last Updated January 27th, 2010
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