Author Archives: John Pullen

Saturn is the one planet almost everyone will recognise. And what is it that makes it stand out? It is its ring system orbiting the planet. But before we talk about the rings, let’s first discuss the planet itself. Saturn is the second largest planet in the solar system and it is over 886 millionContinue reading “Saturn – a Rare Beauty in the Solar System”

Everything about Jupiter is big, very big. It is the first of the gas giants and next to the Sun, it is the largest object in the solar system with a diameter of just under 88,850 miles. If you were to lump all the other planets together, Jupiter would still be over 2.5 times biggerContinue reading “Jupiter – The King of Planets”

Between Mars and Jupiter is a region of space we call the Asteroid Belt. It consists of millions of rocks of all sizes, from the microscopic to the very large. And like the planets, they orbit the Sun. But what is an asteroid?     Quite simply, it is a lump of rock floating in space.Continue reading “Asteroid Belt – Mass Extinction or Not?”

The second planet out from the Sun is Venus. And Venus is bright, very bright. In the night sky it is second only to the Moon. And because it is closer to the Sun than the Earth, it always appears in the same region of space as the Sun. In practice, this means it isContinue reading “Venus – the Warning of Doom”

If we move outwards away from the Earth we will eventually encounter a planet which has been the focus of interest, mystery and on occasion, fear. It is Mars, the Red Planet. Named after the Roman god of war, Mars justly earns its descriptive title of red planet. If you look at it with theContinue reading “Mars – the Planet of Mystery and Fear”

With the news that Space-X has been given the contract to build the new lunar landing vehicle for NASA, the intention of returning both male and female astronauts back to the Moon in 2024, looks even more likely. Therefore, it may be a good time to take a closer look at our nearest astronomical neighbour.Continue reading “Secrets of the Moon”

It’s obvious that aircraft need fuel or else they wouldn’t be able to fly. But when an airline captain is calculating how much fuel will be required for a flight, he or she will never say, “Just fill it up.” Why? Surely the sensible thing is to take as much fuel as necessary? Well, no.Continue reading “Why Pilots never say “Fill Her Up””

The River Thames flows through the centre of London and is known pretty much the world over. However, not so many people know that there are a lot of smaller rivers and streams which feed into it. Some no longer exist and many others are built over and now flow underground before reaching the Thames.Continue reading “A Hidden River of London”

London is known for many things and one of them is its shopping. It is home to many famous stores including Harrods and Selfridges. Another world-famous shop is just off Regent Street and is called Liberty. You couldn’t fail to recognise it as it looks like a huge Tudor mansion. But there is a lotContinue reading “HMS Liberty – the Shop made from Ships”

The modern City of London is built on the site of the Roman settlement of Londinium when the Romans had conquered Britain close to 2,000 years ago. Whenever excavations are undertaken in the city, it quite often uncovers echoes from the past. And when the structure known as the Gherkin was being built, the remainsContinue reading “The Grave of a Roman Girl”