Galaxies

The universe if full
Of stars for us to see.
They hang around in
Groups called galaxies.

There are three types of galaxies,
Always on the go.
Spiral, elliptical and irregular
Are the one you need to know.

Spiral galaxies are made
Of trillions of stars.
The bulge in the middle
Helps create the spiral arms.

Elliptical galaxies
Have little gas and dust.
This means their stars are old
And study them we must.

Irregular galaxies
Don’t fit in any class.
Smaller and shapeless
They are lacking in much mass.

We live in a spiral galaxy
Called the Milky Way.
You can see its arm
During the night, but not the day.

Now as I look upon the stars,
Each and every night,
I dream of far away galaxies
Beyond our human sight.

Click here to view pictures of spiral, elliptical and irregular galaxies.


The Solar System

Our solar system
Orbits around the sun.
There are at least nine planets,
And to study them is fun!

Mercury and Venus
Seem to have no moons.
And the Greenhouse Effect on Venus
May be coming to Earth soon.

Mars may be the planet
Where other life exists.
And since we are destroying Earth
We need to visit it.

As we go beyond
The vast asteroid belt,
We find Jupiter and Saturn
So cold nothing melts.

The giant gas planets
All surrounded by rings,
Have many natural satellites
Orbiting as on wings.

And then there's tiny Pluto
Revolving out of place.
Sometimes it crosses Neptune
As they seem to have a race.

And now they say
There's planet number ten.
How will the solar system change
As this planet struggles to fit in?

Click here for a list of pictures of our solar system.


Comets and Meteroids

Within our solar system
Are many stray creatures.
The comets and the meteroids
Have many unique features.

Comets are dirty snowballs
Made of dust, rock and gas.
Their glowing tails must face away
From the sun as they do pass.

Scientist think a comet hit the Earth
65 million years ago,
Causing a mass extinction,
And the dinosaurs did go.

Meteroids are smaller
Than the asteroids beyond Mars.
When they burn in our atmosphere
We call them "shooting stars."

Yes, our atmosphere is dense
And air pressure gives it weight.
So friction causes sparks to fly.
For some meteors, it's too late.

But if the rock was large enough
Through our atmosphere it dives,
Then it will strike the Earth
And the meteorite survives.

So now I ponder
This question night and day.
What will happen to life on Earth
If another object comes our way?

Click here for pictures of comets.


--ST Click here to return to poetry index.

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