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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Medford: Most dangerous city in Oregon? Emergency Services GMO vote recount still shows little change Ashland police confirm missing teen Sylvia Davis found safe in Northern California Former Ashland police chief listed as dispensary owner Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Medford: Most dangerous city in Oregon? Emergency Services Ashland police confirm missing teen Sylvia Davis found safe in Northern California California man jailed on Measure 11 assault charge after Friday hit-and-run Former church camp staff member faces sex abuse charges Politics and Elections GMO vote recount still shows little change GMO labeling votes recounted under careful watch in Jackson County Kent Bush: First Amendment doesn’t mean what you think it means East Medford's the charm Pot, GMOs unite south Jackson County Education Eagle Point superintendent invited to White House Eagle Point secures perimeter of Table Rock Elementary with new fence Medford school administrators get pay boost Students put their hearts into AIDS event Kitzhaber calls for early education spending in budget proposal Environment Bighorn sheep reintroduced along Klamath River Jackson County judge dismisses one Mt. View Paving case Advisory warns of blue-green algae bloom at Lost Creek Lake County calls for local control of federal lands Most dredging banned under new proposed guidelines State News Teaching assistant strike goes into weekend Corvallis chamber: Just say no to panhandlers Nike expansion plans hint at dramatic design Uber launches in Portland without city OK Unearthed rail line a reminder of O&C logging boom Nation - World Grand jury won't indict Ferguson cop in shooting Obituaries Lucille (Smith) Allen Duane Cheney Cory Davis Robert R. Talbott Robert Archie Ferns Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Sports Latest Stories Pettis chokes Melendez, defends belt at UFC 181 Young Panthers take first step in win Eagles hold on for Yreka title Spartans win seventh straight North crowns four champs in victory Varsity 541 College Sports Raider women earn triumph Payton has double-double as OSU rallies for win SOU Raiders get first shot at national title Helfrich enjoys big payday with Pac-12 title Oregon all but cements spot in playoff with rout of Arizona Pro Sports Pistons become Sixers' latest victims Spieth opens seven-shot lead at Isleworth James, Love power Cavs to sixth straight win Aldridge, Lillard lead Blazers past Pacers, 88-82 Murray, Romo lead Cowboys over Bears, 41-28 Community Sports Keeping Fit: Runners need to do more than run to stay in shape RESULTS/STANDINGS LOCAL EVENTS Business Latest Stories Jackson County judge dismisses one Mt. View Paving case Blog: A Time for Tradition SOU business students seek research projects Downtown property owners would fund economic development district in Medford MBA candidates lend their talents to clients for free Real Estate News More sales, but no change in residential housing median price Dear Monty: Violation of HOA rules creates conflict Farmers file suit over GMO crop ban People In Business People in Business, Dec. 3 People in Business, Nov. 18 People in Business, Nov. 8 Transportation Allegiant Air will resume Medford-Phoenix service May 22 Medford airport passenger counts sky high in October Agriculture Southern Oregon wine industry had a robust 2013 Farmers file suit over GMO crop ban Lawsuit seeks to overturn Jackson County's GMO ban or net $4.2 million for farms Latest count shows Measure 92 supporters narrowing deficit Opinion Latest Our View: Land takeover a sincere but empty gesture Letters to the Editor, Dec. 7 Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Dana Milbank: Eric Garner case offers Obama a moment to seize Editorials Our View: Land takeover a sincere but empty gesture Other Views: OSU rape case is a teaching opportunity Our View: Oregon budget should plan for rain Our View: Cheers and jeers Our View: Stay flexible on kindergarten hours Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Dec. 7 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 5 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 4 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 3 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 2 Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Guest Opinion: It's time Oregon put a price on carbon Guest Opinion: Are we the preferred path to global devastation? Guest Opinion: Fight for the rights of independent voters will continue Lifestyle Latest stories Creating memories with classic movies A green light for the flying train Stay connected as you grow older Stylish on the Snow Duck stamp increase closer to reality Food Community blog: Merry Christmas 10 Barrel! (Big Brewery vs Small Independent Brewer) Community blog: Lentil cooking water doubles as soup stock 'Amazing' Soup Roxy Ann winemaker has roots in Napa Valley Community blog: Post-holiday soups easy on the budget, waistline Home and Garden Troubleshoot common water boiler problems Dear Monty: Ten helpful home-listing tips Home Help: Luxurious upgrades don’t have to break the bank 9 ways to green your gift wrap Dear Monty: How to find a good real estate attorney Health Dr. Murray Feingold: Say it like you mean it Community blog: Guiltless Holidays Better for our Health HealthStyle: Develop an attitude of gratitude Health Watch: Fuel up on carbs before workouts Health insurance enrollment help available Hiking Biking Faith Religion news: Pope aims to expedite sex abuse rulings Religion news: Seattle-based mega-church dissolves Religion Briefs Milestones and Achievements Hire 'em and pray for snow Madi-Stiles A New Song Rogers-Horn New Arrivals Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Bedford Falls comes to life at Randall SOU presents all-percussion concert Soroptimist holiday home tour features four houses this weekend Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Theater Bedford Falls comes to life at Randall Camelot presents 'Fiddler on the Roof' OCT's holiday show is a wonderful play New 'Alice' has some for kids ... and adults 'It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play' opens at Oregon Cabaret Theatre Music SOU presents all-percussion concert Shae Johnson releases 'Can You Feel the Music' Jeff Kloetzel releases 'Long Time Coming' A new guitar slinger in town Peter Chianca: Top 40 songs even a dad could love Community Events Soroptimist holiday home tour features four houses this weekend Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists 2014 Providence Festival of Trees A grand illumination at the Commons Lighting up memories Dining Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Brunch at Loft Brasserie The Bohemian Club Thanksgiving comes early at Taprock Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Our View: Land takeover a sincere but empty gesture ... Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted ... Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark ... Our View: Land takeover a sincere but empty gesture ... Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted ... Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark ... Looking Up: As the worlds turn MailTribune.com Writer Posted Oct. 17, 2014 @ 12:01 am Posted Oct. 17, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News By Peter Becker More Content Now It seems the universe has been put on spin cycle. Most everywhere we look, planets, moons, stars and galaxies are rotating. In fact, nothing seems to sit still. If they’re not rotating, they are still revolving around something. Like a merry go-round, everything on the Earth rotates along with our world, and the atoms making up all matter keep whirling about like tiny figure skaters. While each of the planets in our Solar System rotate, they do so at various rates. The Earth, at nearly 8,000 miles wide spins in 23 hours, 56 minutes. Giant Jupiter, which is 88,846 miles wide, rotates once in 9 hours, 56 minutes. This fast rotation causes the largely gaseous planet to flatten at the poles. The planet is seven percent wider at the equator, distinctly visible with a small telescope. Rather than a perfect sphere, Jupiter is an "oblate spheroid," wider at the equator. Some of us have known this all too well but our excuse is not that we spin too fast! Actually, Earth is somewhat flattened at the poles as well, for the same reason. Some bodies close in orbit, such as the moon, still rotate but are "tidally locked." That is, the time of rotation becomes linked to the time of revolution, and the same side of the moon always faces the Earth. For hundreds of years, astronomers suspected Mercury rotated synchronously, keeping once face to the Sun. Its actual rotation, however, turns out to be exactly one and a half times the 88 earth-days the planet takes to go around the sun. The result is that the time the sun is up on Mercury is twice as long as its year. Even odder, Mercury is orbiting faster than it is rotating at perihelion- its closest passage to the sun - making the sun appear to briefly move backwards in the Mercurial sky! Venus is definitely a rebel. Its period of rotation, 243 earth-days, is lightly longer than its year. Even worse, the planet rotates retrograde, or exactly opposite the other planets. If the perpetually cloudy skies on Venus allowed you to see the Sun, you would see it rise in the west and set in the east. Mars is practically Earth’s cousin, in a variety of ways. A day on Mars is just a few minutes longer than on Earth, spinning once in 24 hours, 40 minutes. Like Jupiter, Saturn is distinctly oblate, whipping around in 10 hours, 47 minutes. Uranus spins in 17.9 hours; Neptune, 16.11 hours. Note that Jupiter through Neptune are all giant planets and move around the quickest. Little Pluto spins once in 6.38 Earth-days. Stars rotate as well. The sun, our nearest star, turns around in approximately 27 earth-days. Other stars rotate very quickly. The bright bluish star Vega, visible in the northeast on a springtime evening, spins so fast, the star is 23 percent wider at the equator. Vega spins in 12-1/2 hours. The fast spin also causes the equatorial region to be cooler and darker making the star looks like a very squat, blue ball, with a dark blue band. The fastest known stars, however, are pulsars. Highly magnetized, these stars are so compressed that they whirl around in a matter of seconds, and emit beams of electromagnetic radiation from the poles. In contrast, our vast Milky Way Galaxy also spins, whipping its stars and dusty, gaseous nebulae into beautiful spiral arms. The Milky Way rotates once around in about 225 million years. The galaxy is so huge, however, that in an hour’s time, the galaxy moves about 600,000 miles. Astronomers remain perplexed with the observed rotation rates of galaxies. With the observed amount of matter in a galaxy, they should be moving slower than they are. Making up the difference is what for now is referred to as "dark matter," a mysterious component of the universe keeping theorists busy. New moon is on Oct. 23. Keep looking up! 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