Yes, fresh off the presses...
I will be lobbying against the designation of 3 new planets to our solar system this week. As many of you know a meeting of the 2,500 world renowned astronomers from some 75 nations is currently taking place in Prague, Czech Republic. These scientists are the arbiters of just what is and is not a planet. Hmmm, what a meteor-sized chip on their shoulders! Sorry :)
But, to get to the point, there is a very serious draft resolution before the International Astronomical Union pressing for the inclusion of 3 new planets. According to their distance from the sun, these would include: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Charon, and what is for the time being called 2003 UB313.
Of course, there is also an anti-Pluto designation in representation, too. Could you imagine stripping Pluto of its 1930-bestowed title of "planet"? What a cataclysmic shock to the system... one day a planet, the next a has-been? Well, these are very decisive days in Prague. In fact, it could mean the changing of billions of school text books of children throughout the world. What more, the MIT discoverer of 2003 UB313 has a soft spot in his heart to call this new planet Xena. (Yes, after the Princess Warrior).
Several constituents of mine in both Maryland and Virginia have brought this matter to my attention. Please rest assured that I will share your concerns with every astronomer-esque looking individual I run into on the Prague metro. :)
Unfortunately, no pictures of any planets to add here, but I want to honor my sister Stephanie and brother Mark who are currently in South Africa. Aren't they cute?
1 comment:
Seems that you've arrived in Prague at just the right time! Now's the time to prove those keen promotional skills by lobbying the powers-that-be about the planets-that-will-be. Maybe Pluto could be spared the axe if it were renamed "Gabrielle"?
(And not that we don't care about Prague, but some of us would like to see more pictures of South Africa...)
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