It's All Stars!

On an average clear night you can see a few thousand stars. Every one of them belongs to our galaxy, the Milky Way---which by the way, was thought as late as the 1950’s to be the entire universe.

The Milky Way Galaxy has more than a few thousand stars in it. It is estimated to contain approximately 100-200 billion stars. The one’s we see with our naked eye happen to be close enough or bright enough to be seen. Even a modest pair of binoculars will show you thousands more.

So, how many stars do you think you could see if you could see them all?

Well, the astronomers tell us that they estimate there are at least 100 billion galaxies in the universe each with at least 100 billion stars. That’s 100 billion times 100 billion which equals—a lot.

This sort of begs the question--- if there are so many stars—are we alone?

Re-Cycle

Once we establish a colony on the Moon we will be dealing with the same problems of human input and output as the ISS. We eat and drink and then as a result we have--output. The ISS is already trying out a urine recycler, still a source of controversy among the spacies. One has been know to remark he didn’t mind drinking his own purified urine; he just didn’t want to drink some other guys.

I got to wondering what kind of quantities we’re dealing with and found these data in a book titled ‘The Moon’.

Input in pounds

Oxygen 1.84
Food 1.36
Water in Food 1.10
Food Prep Water 1.58
Drinking Water 4.09

Wash Water 12.5

Total 24.47

Output in Pounds

Carbon Dioxide 2.20
Respiration & Persperation Water 4.02
Urine 3.31
Feces Water 0.20
Sweat & Urine Solids 0.17
Feces Solids 0.07
Hygiene Water 12.00

Total 24.47

So, about 25 pounds in and out per day. Looks like a lot of that stuff out can be recycled or used for plant fertilizer-the Chinese have been using ‘Black Gold’ in rice patties for centuries.

But, ya know, I keep wondering about the guy who didn't want to drink his buddie's recycled urine. Wonder how he'd feel about his buddie's, uh-you know.

How do plant stems know to grow toward the sun?

They don't, it's built in.

Stems grow toward the sun because that is how the leaves they bear get the energy to produce the sugars they need for food. If they grew the other way they’d be roots. Important, yes, but not what we’re up to today.

Plants contain hormones (special cells release chemicals-hormones-which travel to another part of the organism to cause an effect). Light causes the plant hormone-auxin-to travel to the shadier side of a stem. Only blue, white or ultraviolet light will do, green, yellow or red don’t work. Obviously a pigment is involved to absorb those particular colors.

The auxin causes the plant cells on the shady side to grow somewhat longer. If the cells on the shady side of the stem grow longer while those on the sunny side don’t, then the stem is forced over toward the sun.

Many chemical weed sprays are actually synthetic auxins. When they are sprayed on growing plants they accelerate the growth to the point where the plants grow too fast and die.

Ooopppsss!

Thanks for your comment, Patrick, and thanks for reading. Unfortunately when I tried to publish your comment--it vanished. Again, my apologies.

Lyle

Sorry

I've got a deadline for an article I'm writing and won't make my Wed blog deadline. I'll try to have something on what makes plants grow toward the sun by Friday.

Lyle