Bad Astronomy: Saturn Lord of the Rings

Saturn's many moons have shaped its beautiful rings. And now we have an amazing collection of close up photos courtesy of the Cassini Spacecraft.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Saturn
• rings
• bad
• astronomy
• solar
• system
• planets
• aviation
• space

[Ramshobraja]

I'd give up everything to travel there.

[sucky53]

So that's where they made the film ''Lord Of The Rings''

[jimbxb]

@Ramshobraja ... you would have to give up everything to travel there...

[PutItAway101]

What's "bad" about this?

[sbergman27]

@Usagi393 "Novice" is a very good term to apply. "Keystone Cops" might be equally applicable. We all laugh at drills, don't we? We get overconfident and lax. You're right. People talk about the lack of life-boats. But there were enough boats to save over 50% of the passengers. & yet 70% died. It gets uglier when one considers the survival rates of 1st, 2nd, and particularly 3rd class (steerage) passengers. Then again, the crew didn't trust the ratings regarding the boats' capacity on lowering.

[Usagi393]

@sbergman27 True, and I just meant the way they handled everything was novice at best, especially considering the crew were supposed to be seasoned veterans. Their preparations, their handling during the hit, and the aftermath of it, were all just evidence of the arrogance they had in themselves and how unexpected the hit was for them. They honestly believed nothing could have happen to them, and that is always dangerous thinking to believe you are 100% safe.

[sbergman27]

@Usagi393 Probably the best summary of the facts is Walter Lord's book "A Night To Remember". A fascinating read, and a very good 50's movie. He's very "just the facts, ma'am" in his approach. I followed, with interest, the rediscovery of Titanic, in 1985. Though I must confess that I only did that after the fact. I didn't develop an interest in Titanic until 1988, and a friend directed me to Bob Ballard's work. Titanic's was a freak accident. Iceberg collisions were rare before and after.

[Usagi393]

@sbergman27 delusion that they DID know everything about sailing and their new technology, something like the Titanic was only a matter of time. The Titanic, unfortunately, just got the “honor” of being the first person to the party. They had the proper technology to make the voyage, but lack the wisdom and knowledge to use it properly. Thanks for the reading suggestion!

[Usagi393]

@sbergman27 Fantastic! I have always been fascinated with the Titanic too! I am not sure why, there are plenty of other shipwrecks throughout history. The Titanic story does read like a tragic novel, so I am not surprised that a novel was written similar to the events of the sinking before it actually happened. In my opinion, I have always believed, given the time period of new and sudden industrial advances, combined the gaps in nautical knowledge, but still operating under the arrogance and

[sbergman27]

@Usagi393 There's a remarkably prophetic 1898 novela that I would like to dig up and read. The details of the sinking of the Titanic have always been of interest to me. And Morgan Robertson's work, published 14 years previous and titled 'Futility', is eerie in its accidental similarity to the real event. See 'Futility, or the Wreck of the Titan' on Wikipedia for a good description.

[Usagi393]

@sbergman27 because I know individuals in my life just like the people in that novel, even though it is set in the 1920s, and I could still learn from its themes as result. I haven’t read “The Stranger,” yet, although it is on my list of books to read. I’m afraid my European literature is limited when it comes to French. For European novels, I typically read German, Russian, and English origin books.

[Usagi393]

@sbergman27 I like novels that are set in any country during WWI, up till the Great Depression (1914-1929.) I am not sure what literary subject that falls under, but that’s my favorite type of novel. I do like science fiction too, but I would say it’s my 3rd my favorite type of novel, (although one of my favorite TV shows is “The Twilight Zone” ^_^) Lol, yea, a lot of the characters WERE futile pple and pple today would probably considered it a futile book. I liked Gatsby though, because