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Arts & Entertainment

Residents Star Gaze with an Astrophysicist

Former NASA consultant Kevin Manning introduced residents to a closer image of Jupiter and its moons and educated locals about comets, asteroids and meteors.

Bellport resident and former NASA consultant Kevin Manning educated residents about space on Monday evening through his decorative presentation, "Movers in the Sky: Comets, Meteors and Asteroids," given at the

Manning said most people are curious about the universe and its objects, but don't know much about it. "Many people have seen a comet or meteors before and don't have a clear understanding of what they are," he said. 

Some people have superstitions about space and believe astronomical events are omens. In 1997, a group of 39 people planned a mass suicide because of the comet Hale-Bopp. Members of this Heaven's Gate cult believed that if they committed suicide, they would be transported to a spaceship trailing behind the comet's tail.

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Manning said he hopes educating the public accurately about space will prevent such things from occurring. His goal is "to demystify and prevent superstitions concerning these natural phenomena and perhaps prevent another Heaven's Gate Cult from arising."

Before the presentation, Manning took residents out into the back of the library to view Jupiter and set up his homemade 8-inch Newtonian reflector telescope. This telescope uses mirrors in an arrangement designed by Issac Newton. Being a fairly large telescope, residents had to use a step stool to reach the eyepiece.  He said, "Anyone can build a telescope just like this one. I've built around seven telescopes over the years as a hobby."

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When looking through the telescope, Jupiter looked like a large off-white dot, with visible lines. Those lines were actually the layers of gas engulfing the large planet. Residents gazed through the telescope at Jupiter and four of its moons, continuously praising the planets beauty.

Manning explained that comets and asteroids are large rocks with orbital patterns, and meteors, or more commonly, "shooting stars," are pebble-sized pieces of debris from comets.

He eased some other concerns during his presentation, such as theories of the apocalypse in 2012 and extra-terrestrial life. "False claims not based on science are running wild about 2012," Manning said. "The recent blockbuster movie stated, 'Know the truth,' but that was Hollywood's version of anything but the truth. We are not doomed in 2012."

Contrary to popular belief, Manning said the planet will not be hit by another planet and knocked off its axis. He also knocked down the Armageddon theory of an asteroid hitting the Earth and killing everyone. NASA and other scientists have the technology to predict an asteroid or comet's trajectory approximately 20 to 30 years before impact.

Manning said if an asteroid was predicted to hit Earth, astronauts and the government have enough time to change its path. Altering its path even a fraction of a degree, by use of lasers or nuclear warheads, would save the Earth. "There is nothing scientifically valid to worry about," he told the crowd.

As far as aliens, Manning said he is open-minded, yet skeptical. He said interest in extra-terrestrial life pervades because of the law of probability. "Neither myself, nor my peers have observed any such phenomena leading to this conclusion, and we are armed with instruments that detect far beyond the ability of the human eye alone," Manning said. "There is no proof one way or the other, and scientific interest in the possibility has received much support through projects and the search for earth-sized extra-solar planets."

The astrophysicist concluded the presentation with a Walt Whitman poem and an H. Jackson Brown quote, which exemplified his admiration for all things space. It was easy to see Manning loves what he does.

"My laboratory is the universe, and what I see out there is captivating in its beauty, mystery and enormity," he said. "Though the night sky may appear calm and serene, what's actually happening in space is anything but, with violent stellar explosions, entire galaxies colliding, and radiation that can deep-fry planets. Here, safe at home on earth, we have the opportunity to witness such spectacles and to ponder their existence and how they function using powerful detectors. For me personally, much of the evidence points to an incredible symmetry and harmony, leading to thoughts of the possibility of an intelligent design by a supreme being, and that God is in control of such things."

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