Dr. Brian Keating
👤 PersonAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
And I was like, I don't know, there's a street light outside. This is crazy. Let me look outside and see what it is. And it was the moon. And I had never seen it was near a moon set, which is near sunrise, full moon. And I looked at it and I kept staring at it. And there was a star next to it that kind of looked like a piece of the moon had broken off. It was that bright and that clear.
And I was like, I don't know, there's a street light outside. This is crazy. Let me look outside and see what it is. And it was the moon. And I had never seen it was near a moon set, which is near sunrise, full moon. And I looked at it and I kept staring at it. And there was a star next to it that kind of looked like a piece of the moon had broken off. It was that bright and that clear.
And it's unusual to see these kinds of things together. They're actually known as syzygies, which is a great Scrabble word. If you're ever pressed for a win in Scrabble, use the word syzygy. I think it's like 80 points. And that just means a conjunction, an alignment of astronomical objects. I was like, what the hell is this? This is 1984, Andrew. You're younger than me.
And it's unusual to see these kinds of things together. They're actually known as syzygies, which is a great Scrabble word. If you're ever pressed for a win in Scrabble, use the word syzygy. I think it's like 80 points. And that just means a conjunction, an alignment of astronomical objects. I was like, what the hell is this? This is 1984, Andrew. You're younger than me.
And it's unusual to see these kinds of things together. They're actually known as syzygies, which is a great Scrabble word. If you're ever pressed for a win in Scrabble, use the word syzygy. I think it's like 80 points. And that just means a conjunction, an alignment of astronomical objects. I was like, what the hell is this? This is 1984, Andrew. You're younger than me.
But Google did not exist for another 16 years. And I was kind of impatient. I wanted to know what this thing was. What is this thing? It's not moving. It's not flashing. It's not a drone. Back then, it's not Southwest Airlines, right? So I'm looking at it. It's not moving. And day after day, it was like that. And I was like, how am I going to find this out? Like imagine existing.
But Google did not exist for another 16 years. And I was kind of impatient. I wanted to know what this thing was. What is this thing? It's not moving. It's not flashing. It's not a drone. Back then, it's not Southwest Airlines, right? So I'm looking at it. It's not moving. And day after day, it was like that. And I was like, how am I going to find this out? Like imagine existing.
But Google did not exist for another 16 years. And I was kind of impatient. I wanted to know what this thing was. What is this thing? It's not moving. It's not flashing. It's not a drone. Back then, it's not Southwest Airlines, right? So I'm looking at it. It's not moving. And day after day, it was like that. And I was like, how am I going to find this out? Like imagine existing.
We're so blessed that we have the internet and we have these LLMs. It's so easy now to be a scientist or do research. And anybody can do research. Science is for everybody, right? You always highlight that fact.
We're so blessed that we have the internet and we have these LLMs. It's so easy now to be a scientist or do research. And anybody can do research. Science is for everybody, right? You always highlight that fact.
We're so blessed that we have the internet and we have these LLMs. It's so easy now to be a scientist or do research. And anybody can do research. Science is for everybody, right? You always highlight that fact.
So I realized the only way to find out about it was to wait for the New York Times to get delivered on Sunday because they did have a section back then that they don't have now called Cosmos. And in it, it depicted what the night sky looked like that night, which is a Sunday. And that was like three or four days after what – I had this observation, which was incredibly observant.
So I realized the only way to find out about it was to wait for the New York Times to get delivered on Sunday because they did have a section back then that they don't have now called Cosmos. And in it, it depicted what the night sky looked like that night, which is a Sunday. And that was like three or four days after what – I had this observation, which was incredibly observant.
So I realized the only way to find out about it was to wait for the New York Times to get delivered on Sunday because they did have a section back then that they don't have now called Cosmos. And in it, it depicted what the night sky looked like that night, which is a Sunday. And that was like three or four days after what – I had this observation, which was incredibly observant.
And I looked at it and it was the moon. It showed the moon and it showed Jupiter. I was like, what? You can see a planet with your naked eye? This was around the time Voyager was going by the planets on the grand tour of the solar system, never been done before. I was like, I thought you needed a spaceship. And I realized that was my first bit of astronomical research. I looked up.
And I looked at it and it was the moon. It showed the moon and it showed Jupiter. I was like, what? You can see a planet with your naked eye? This was around the time Voyager was going by the planets on the grand tour of the solar system, never been done before. I was like, I thought you needed a spaceship. And I realized that was my first bit of astronomical research. I looked up.
And I looked at it and it was the moon. It showed the moon and it showed Jupiter. I was like, what? You can see a planet with your naked eye? This was around the time Voyager was going by the planets on the grand tour of the solar system, never been done before. I was like, I thought you needed a spaceship. And I realized that was my first bit of astronomical research. I looked up.
I had a hypothesis. What is it? I was wrong. I thought it was a star. It was a planet. I was like, this is insane. Imagine what I could see if I had a telescope. But I couldn't afford a telescope. We were pretty modest means back then. I had a job working on a delicatessen down the street. And I'd do that once a week.
I had a hypothesis. What is it? I was wrong. I thought it was a star. It was a planet. I was like, this is insane. Imagine what I could see if I had a telescope. But I couldn't afford a telescope. We were pretty modest means back then. I had a job working on a delicatessen down the street. And I'd do that once a week.
I had a hypothesis. What is it? I was wrong. I thought it was a star. It was a planet. I was like, this is insane. Imagine what I could see if I had a telescope. But I couldn't afford a telescope. We were pretty modest means back then. I had a job working on a delicatessen down the street. And I'd do that once a week.