Bad Astronomy: Myths And Misconceptions

With a lack of information, “Even the ordinary can seem extraordinary” (Plait). Phil Plait is an astronomer dedicated to increasing our understanding of the ordinary when it comes to astronomical phenomena. In Bad Astronomy: Myths and Misconceptions, Plait attempts to debunk some common astronomical misperceptions with plain science—thus, turning extraordinary beliefs back into the ordinary. For instance, it is highly unlikely that we will encounter extraterrestrial UFOs, that NASA faked the moon landing, or that most spacecrafts depicted in movies are realistic. While UFOs are spotted quite frequently, the chances of them being an extraterrestrial spacecraft are highly unlikely. UFO stands for unidentified flying object. Anytime one sees an object floating in the air, they do not understand or cannot identify, it is legitimately called a UFO. UFO sightings are continually reported and subsequently explained away by meteors, planes, military jets, hot air balloons, and even blimps. In 1947, Kenneth Arnold reported seeing flying saucers while flying his small airplane. As the only witness to the strange sighting, it was later concluded

For instance, spacecraft depicted in film is usually geared for its entertainment value, rather than for its scientific accuracy. The sound effects heard in the movies, as spacecraft exchange fire in a battle, is not actually possible. Simple science explains that without air molecules, there is nothing for sound to travel through, therefore, nothing can be heard in space. Wings on aircrafts are designed to hold airplanes on the air. Without air in space, there is no need for wings on spacecrafts. In addition, the laser beams shooting through space is another misconstruction. Light beams traveling through dust-free space would be