Songs

Lunar Exploder

31 Comments
Image from NASA
Image from NASA

Super speedy space chunks regularly slam into the moon – that’s why it has so many lovely craters. An exceptionally big one fell recently and hit at 56 thousand miles per hour, liquefying rock and ejecting tons of dust. Sound awesome?

Here’s the good news: It was recorded on video.

Here’s the bad news: Perspective is everything.

If we had been standing within sight of this on the Lunar surface, we’d have had a “shock and awe” moment easily rivaling the kind of explosive mayhem we’ve become used to in all our action films and thrillers. From our vantage point here on Earth, however, this major collision is just a brighter-than-usual pinprick of light.

There are indications that both the Earth and the Moon were pelted by a series of asteroids on March 17th, the date of the observed lunar explosion. We might have wound up with a much-too-close-for-comfort view of the festivities, had it not been for our protective atmosphere.

Scientists think tracking the frequency and location of explosive lunar impacts will come in handy should we ever attempt to have an extended human presence on the moon’s surface. Being able to predict the size, speed and trajectory of incoming boulders should give us a chance to leap out of the way. In theory.

There are plenty of famous moon songs, but they always depict our satellite as remote, mysterious and peaceful. I don’t know of any of them speak the to the constant threat of sudden violence that hangs over the dusty landscape there. Until now.

Cue Astronaut Tony Bennett!

Fly Me To The Moon
Help me dodge explosive bombs.
Drop me in a quiet spot
the universe becalms.
In other words, Asteroids!
In other words, help them miss me.

Walking on the moon
I’m seeing craters all around.
I’m afraid to look up
I’m afraid to turn around.
In other words, how’s your luck?
In other words, learn to duck!

How are your reflexes?

31 thoughts on “Lunar Exploder”

  2. Good morning. I’m sure my reflexes are not all that good. I try to keep out of they way of other people and don’t do much of any thing that requires a fast reaction. I am being careful because I am getting older and have lost some of my speed due to aging. I don’t think of myself as being all that old, but I know that age is catching up with me. I was never a sprinter.

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  3. my reflexs are getting slower as time goes on. the excersize youdo where you hold the dollar bill between someones fingers and let it go to see if they can put theie fingers together before it is too late is always good for a laugh.
    i was at a golf course with a years ago when it started to rain hard. i like playing in the rain but this was too hard to play in. it was pouring, we headed back to the clubhouse and went in for coffee while we waited out the rain. on the way the lightning started up and it was pretty close. the lightning flashes you count a thousand one a thousand two and boom there was the thunder. we got back into the clubhouse pulled up at a table right next to the 10th tee and began talking smart and telling lies. the flash went off and the tree right outside the window cracked, the boom was simultaneous and the cart path that was next to the tree exploded and sent asphalt flying up in the air. i was looking at it as it hit and was wowed by the fact that it was hitting 10 feet from where i sat. the guy i was with was a former offensive lineman who was 6’7 and 300 pounds and it was memorable as he went flying off his chair and screaming like a girl to g et to the furthest point away from the lightning he could as quickly as he could. those big guys move pretty funny in a moment of panic and the look on his face as he came back was as memorable as the look as he was scrambling to get away. the scream going away, sheepish and explaining the reaction to the lightning coming back. i was impressed. you dont see a big guy lke that move that quickly too often. it was a memorable reflex reaction for sure.
    we did go back out and finish the round after a 45 minute wait.

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      1. I was taken with the spectacle
        I hadn’t ever seen lightning hit 10 feet away before. I didn’t occur to me to be scared . I felt no voltage or anything.
        Not bravery or slowness just a perspective of the moment that may be a bit different.

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  5. If something were coming at me at 56,000 miles per hour, what good would it do to be faster than a speeding hockey puck? Like others here, I’ve slowed down considerably but have managed to dodge most of the disasters headed my way…so far.

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  6. At my age the issue isn’t how fast my reflexes are. I’m just grateful to have a pulse and any kind of reflexes.

    This morning’s question reminds me of a story I once read. A guy named AJ McClane was hired to be the fishing editor of a sports magazine. Before he started he went with the staff on some kind of retreat, and of course he wanted to make a good impression. His boss approached him, saying, “McClane, I hear you have amazing reflexes. Let’s do a little test.” The boss held a nickel in his hand while McClane held his hands just below that, a few inches apart. The boss challenged McClane to snap his hands shut on a nickel that the boss dropped. If he was fast enough, nobody would even see the nickel. They did the test three times, but someone always thought he’d seen the nickel. By this time, McClane was keyed up and fiercely focused. They did the test again, and McClane didn’t see that the boss had pocketed his nickel and instead was dropping an egg.

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    2. Yes, I think fast reflexes and fast thinking go with each other. Does thinking slow down as reflexes slow down? Well, let me think about that. I might have an answer in a day or two.

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      1. Okay, Dale might be right. If you are fast you can do it without thinking. I guess slow goes with too much thinking. Is that right? I need more time to think about that.

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  8. reflex: adj. – [see reflect] designating… an involuntary action, as a sneeze, due to the direct transmission of a stimulus to a muscle or gland. n. a reflexive action.

    I think mine are pretty good still, trying to think where I use them most – driving, dancing, cooking – I burn myself fairly frequently, but if not for quick reflexes it would be a lot worse.

    OT: They keep lying about the weather – no way is it getting to 70 degrees today. My reflexes are telling me it’s still cold here in this house, or rather it the house is still at its winter temp (67). I refuse to put on more heat – I keep trying to dress for spring, and freezing, so I have just put on my winter clothes again.

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    1. Yesterday I physically turned OFF the circuit breakers for heat in our house. I didn’t tell my wife. (But I also left on the bathroom heat that I know she uses). And today I am cold at work. …course sleeves might help…
      Quicker reflexes and working harder / faster might help, too.

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      1. Glad I didn’t pack my winter clothes away just yet. I’m pretty sure it’s warmer outside than it is in the house. Perhaps I should open the windows.

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      2. I noticed a couple days ago I like the outdoor temp better than the indoor
        Today too
        Don’t know of its male menopause or what but 60 and no sum is fine with me. I had my mom over this weekend for dinner with in laws. They talked about medication and prescriptions. Dale are you asking old questions on purpose or are we as a group all in the stage of life where walking slower up the stairs is a topic of conversation no matter what the question
        My son home from college turned up the heat to allow for shorts and a tablet in his basement domain. I pointed out 75 is where he wants it and will hold him to it in June July and august.

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  9. I just took someone through a guided imagery script, and I got very sleepy while doing it. My reflexes are kind of slowed right now (warm and heavy, warm and heavy).

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  10. Hey all … sorry I haven’t been on the trail. Nonny is here so I’m not spending as much time online. What good stuff have I missed?

    I’ve had to use quick reflexes just today. This morning, dogs found baby bunnies in the yard… I knew immediately what was going on so had to charged out to call them off. Unfortunately 3 of the babies didn’t survive the encounter. I put the 4th baby back in the little nest, figuring if it didn’t die of shock while we were doing our errands, we’d take it to the Wildlife Rehab Center. Luckily for us, mom bunny came and took the baby out while we were gone.

    Any discussion of reflexes has to include this bit from one of my favorite movies of all time. The whole clip is good, but the reflexes part starts at about the 2 minute mark!

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