Post

Phil BoR
@bringerofreger.bsky.social

The one thing in astronomy that doesn't blow my mind (compared to sizes and distances) is the age. We have meteorites that are a third of the universe old. I find that almost kinda pedestrian

Clewin Stÿrer
@cstyrer.bsky.social

Same with my with astronomy. Looking at something as it was when dinosaurs ruled the earth and still will be there, when earth is swallowed by the sun, absolutely in different to all the 'problems' I think the universe should care about, so I have to solve them. I like it.

Compton Scatterbrained
@comptonscatter.bsky.social

It's complex, but igneous rocks are (generally) dated from when they cooled into actual rock (only way to date it)—complex because non-surface rock can take a long time to solidify and they can experience re-melting (ask paleomagnetists about this one)

Compton Scatterbrained
@comptonscatter.bsky.social

he never does or did. Long ago, the most popular internet browser, IE6, showed alt text like title text (on mouseover) and Monroe started adding additional commentary in there... anyway, nowadays a cadre if volunteers write alt text for him but it's posted on a website. bsky.app/profile/xkcd...

xkcd title text@xkcd-titletext.bsky.social

Title text: "These rocks are from a time before eyes, brains, and bones, pieces of a land warmed by an unseen sun." Alt text: https://explainxkcd.com/3008#Transcript

@brx0
@brx0.bsky.social

One of the stranger way to experience this is encountering billion-year-old granite as a kitchen countertop, while on a Hawaiian island that didn't exist yet when Australopithecus was wandering around East Africa.