STARS AND BEER

/ The Coastal Crone

Image from Freepik.com

StarDate is the public education and outreach of the University of Texas McDonald Observatory heard daily on my local public radio station KEDT 90.3.   Sometimes I listen to it on my morning walks.   I am sharing the full episode from June 18 titled “William Lassell.”  Stars and Beer seemed an appropriate title for this post.

“Building the Albert Dock in Liverpool gave a man a powerful thirst. Workers drank up to a dozen pints of beer a day — and that was during the work day, with beer provided by the company. And while the workers drank, beer baron William Lassell got rich.

Texas beer courtesy of Husband

Lassell used some of that wealth to study the stars. He designed and built one of the world’s largest telescopes, and used it to make many important discoveries.

Lassell was born 225 years ago today. He made his first telescope by age 21. In the 1830s, he built an estate in Liverpool and called it “Starfield.”

At the time, there were few professional astronomers anywhere. Much of the leading research was done by wealthy amateurs like Lassell. In the 1840s, he designed a steam-powered machine to grind the mirror for a 24-inch telescope — one of the largest in the world. The telescope was a trendsetter, because it could track objects across the entire sky.

Using this new instrument, Lassell discovered Triton, the largest moon of Neptune, plus two moons of Uranus and one of Saturn. Later, he moved the telescope to the Mediterranean to escape Liverpool’s rainy, polluted skies. And later still, he built an even bigger telescope.

William Lassell died in 1880. But his contributions remind us of an important era for astronomy — an era made possible by the thirst for knowledge — not to mention the thirst for beer.

Script by Damond Benningfield”

 

28 thoughts on “STARS AND BEER”

    • Clever of you to make that connection. Husband prefers Shiner beer so that was all I had to photograph. The brewery in small town Shiner is a fum place to visit and tour the brewery if you are out that way. The history of the Albert Docks in Liverpool named for Prince Albert is an interesting story. Thanks for sharing your clever wit with us!

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      • You may not be old enough to remember one of our old tricks from the days of old fashioned telephones. We’d pick a number at random from the phone book, and call. When someone answered, we’d ask,”Do you have Prince Albert in a can?” If they said no, we’d say “Well, you’d better let him out.” Then, we’d hang up the phone and giggle for an hour. The variation, of course, was “Is your refrigerator running?” If they said yes, we’d say, “You’d better go catch it.”

        It was a different time.

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      • Oh, I remember those days and am sure I am older than you. It was harmless fun but we thought it was quite daring. I also remember “party lines” usually out in the country where someone on your party line could pick up and listen in on your conversation. I remember listening to the radio before we got a tv that was mostly snowy. Yes, it was a different time.

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      • Back in the 1980s I worked in a small rural Texas town where the post office, Texaco Station, and Lutheran Church still were on the same party line. I suspect most of the best gossip remained person-to-person, rather than on the phone lines!

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      • Thanks! I think I remember that song. I still love listening to the radio when I walk or am driving. I am just now getting around to comments. Life gets in the way. Have a good weekend. May be some cooler weather on the way.

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  3. While Jim Benton and I were married, he ground a mirror for a telescope that he built. I think it was probably more like 8″.  Phil and I like Shiner Bock….! Nita

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    • I am impressed that Jim would grind a mirror and build his own telescope. The brewery at Shiner is a fun place to visit. I am not much of a beer drinker but I like an ale or stout once in a while. And the Shiner Bock is not bad – Bill’s favorite. Take care!

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      • I know! I was really surprised that Jim would attempt such a thing and actually complete it. Remembering back, though, I think he had to have it professionally finished. He did buy a tube and mounted the mirror and we actually looked through it at the stars.

        Phil and I did go to Shiner and take a tour of the brewery, some time ago. (We have been married 44 years now!) My mother went with us. She loved beer. We all did….. I’ve mostly changed over to wine now but I do still drink a beer now and then.

        I send your blogs to various friends and relatives if I think it is one they will like. My oldest step-son just told me that I should do a blog since I am always sending them interesting things. (I’ll just not call it a blog….)

        Nita

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    • I am surprised that you can get it there. The brewery in small town Shiner doesn’t seem that large but it is a fun place to visit the brewery. They do produce a variety of beers with some being seasonal, especially in the fall. Thanks for chiming in!

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