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The Planetary Society WeblogGuest Blogger: Bill NyeOctober 16 - 22, 2006
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Bill Nye spent several years working as an engineer until he combined his dual love of science and comedy to create his on-screen persona, "The Science Guy." Nye’s mission for many years has been to turn on the public in general, and kids in particular, to the "way cool" wonders of science. From 1992 to 1998, Nye was the writer, producer and talent for the Emmy award-winning Bill Nye the Science Guy TV series. His latest TV program was 100 Greatest Discoveries. |
My Favorite Day
by Bill Nye
Next time the scene around starts to quiver, buck, and shake, get outside if you can or at least under a strong table or other piece of furniture. You're in a earthquake. We had one in Hawaii yesterday. According to reports from one of your Society's board members, Heidi Hammel, the place became a mess in a about a full minute of shaking. Now she says, there have been 50 aftershocks. Yikes. But Hawaii being a young volcanic island with a history of volcanism and Earth shaking episodes, we have set up flexible structures and emergency procedures, which are built up and built in most places. So she says, she's okay, although, no pun intended, a bit shaken... (Well, that one was too easy.)
I'm very pleased indeed that Heidi is okay. She along with a handful of other scientists and business people have become dear friends who have changed my life. Every six months, I get to experience one of my favorite days. It's the meeting of your Board of Directors. If you've ever seen It's a Wonderful Life or if you work for a big corporation, your view of a board of directors' meeting might be one of staid old people (all men?) sitting around complaining about the state of things. Well, at your Society's board meeting there's a little of that. But mostly, it's passionate world-class scientists working to find ways to engage people all over the world in the exploration of space and the joy of discovery.
Last week, I spent some time with colleagues at the Division of Planetary Sciences. I still, after perhaps 27 years of reflection, can't get over it. Our species, a humble carbon jumble on an ordinary world in the suburbs of our galaxy commits resources to exploring the science of other worlds. Bear in mind that during my brief lifetime, we discovered plate tectonics. That discovery was driven in part by comparing our world to others nearby, Mars especially. They, if there are any of them, no longer have plate tectonic movement. It changed that world. Plate tectonics drives ours, as Heidi and the other astronomers at the Keck Observatory can tell you today. It's a discovery so fundamental to understanding the science of planets that it astonishes me that it took our diligent little species all these centuries to be sure of it.
As I do every day, and today especially, I am excited about what's next. What will be the next fundamental discovery that will be made on account of planetary exploration? We'll see. In the meantime Spirit and Opportunity continue to rove on Mars. Have you seen Victoria Crater!? Wow, who knows what we'll find there as the images and data come down and get sorted out. It excites me every time I think of it, which is many times each day. I hope you get a little of that feeling as you click around here.
 Opportunity Observes Layers in Victoria Crater This view of "Victoria crater" is looking southeast from "Duck Bay" towards the dramatic promontory called "Cabo Frio." The small crater in the right foreground, informally known as "Sputnik", is about 20 meters away from the rover, the tip of the spectacular, layered, Cabo Frio promontory itself is about 200 meters away from the rover, and the exposed rock layers are about 15 meters tall. Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell |
If you want to do something about space, visit this site often. With your support, we influence those who control the funds in space exploration. We spread new knowledge about our place in the solar system and our relationship to the Cosmos. We work in our space-faring niche, to change the world. Thanks for your support. There will be more from me as the week goes on.
Tuesday...
Yesterday's Board of Directors meeting was all that I hoped it would be: several professional rocket scientists, planetary geologists, astrobiologists, astrophysicists, and educators arguing with each other (in generally constructive fashion) about future space exploration missions and projects to engage the public. That would be you. After all these years on Earth: as a kid with rockets, as an engineering student, as a member of the Society, and now as Vice President, I still find it all thrilling. We, that's you and I, as members of The Planetary Society are involved in space exploration. I was with experts all day, and to be sure they have given these matters a great deal of thought about the technical aspects of the missions and especially about the politics of space. But fundamentally, we all share the same passion for exploring that we had as kids. We meet and argue (discuss in disciplined fashion) about Mars, Apophis, Ceres, and Pluto. These are real places that our ancestors could not know the way we do. Humans living today know the Cosmos in ways completely alien to previous generations. We are in this sense privileged.
So ask yourself, should humans send human representatives to Mars? Or, are there more worthy uses of those resources here on Earth or elsewhere? You as a member can influence the future of all human kind. We went to Washington and petitioned several members of Congress to "Save Our Science." We distributed S.O.S. buttons and spoke passionately to members and staffers about our need to continue funding for space science. To do anything else, is short-sighted and a betrayal of the explorers that have come before us.
As a member, mull a few of these over as well: Should humans leave Earth by rocket for a rendezvous with an asteroid and feel its gentle gravitational attraction? Should we embrace the International Space Station? Or, is it a case where humans are Timidly Going Where 500 Others Have Gone Before? That's right about 500 people have flown in space. How much exploration have they (we) done of late? How big or small a deal is it that Pluto is currently called a "dwarf planet" instead of just a "planet?" These are fantastic, if you will, "story-like" ideas to ponder. And as a member, you're among the few of our species who don't take it all for granted.
Set aside some time to think about space today. I'll be mulling more for tomorrow.
Asking for Trouble, Creepy, and Weird
Yesterday, the United States government established new laws for its "space policy." It declares that the U.S. has the self-proclaimed right to deny access to space to anyone it (the U.S. government) feels is "hostile." Yikes. My fellow Society members, this is on one level asking for trouble. On another level, it's creepy. On yet another level, it's just weird. To couch it in diplomatic terms, it's "disturbing" and "a cause for concern."
On the "asking for trouble" level, what are other governments going to think of such a declaration? Well, probably that the U.S. has someone in mind. Most likely, people in the U.S. intelligence communities are buying the hype that shows up on some websites that other governments are constructing killer satellites, and that these governments are putting these devices in orbit so that they can, at a moment's notice, destroy U.S. spacecraft. In the military, these orbiting machines are called "assets." I, for one, am very, very skeptical of such claims. Very skeptical. I don't think other governments have any such thing(s). Look at all the trouble the U.S. went to in verifying that North Korea set off something that produced radioactivity. Putting rockets in space is hard to do and remain unnoticed. Also, I am pretty sure that if the Russian government had such a capability, they'd brag about it. If the Chinese government had such things, they'd have put a lot more taikonauts in orbit. If the Japanese government did such a thing. Every one would know. It would be my cell phone's start-up image. I am skeptical, as I mentioned a few sentences ago.
On the "creepy" level, this may be the work of people in the U.S. government who really don't know any better. The anti-ballistic missile (ABM) treaty was signed in 1973 in recognition of this fundamental fact: If you shoot down 99% of the incoming nuclear missiles, you lose. One warhead landing in New York, or Moscow, Beijing, or Pyongang and it's, as we say these days, "game over." Everyone could see that 33 years ago, and it's still true. Is it possible that we have people in the U.S. government, who don't know this?
Many of us rely on Global Positioning Satellites or Systems (GPS) to get around. That system was originally for the military. I hope they're still using it -- all the rest of us are. It means that weapons are already in space. Everyone using weather data, positioning data, solar flare activity data from space has the ability, in some way, to use those data for military means. I wonder if those who drafted this policy have that in mind.
From outside the halls of power, it looks like contractors, who want to continue to develop dead-end never-to-become-useful systems have bent enough ears in our government to get their representatives to support huge spending. So, we will lose more resources, more time, and cause more unease in the world out of some kind of baseless paranoia. It's creepy.
On the "weird" level, why announce this now? There's an election coming right up, but this is so far from what most of us concern ourselves with every day. Weird.
Fundamentally, our goals as members of The Planetary Society are to help humans know our place in the universe by exploring the heavens, especially planets that may have other life. It's inspirational. It's worthy of our species. It brings out the best in us. This new policy brings out the worst. It is disturbing and a cause for concern.
What's in a Name?
Many friends and people I hardly know ask me about Pluto. Is it a planet? Most people are somehow disappointed or angry. Pluto, they feel, has lost its status. If nothing else, it's lost its unequivocal status. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has declared Pluto a "dwarf planet" and therefore not a true "planet." Yikes. This nomenclature will never work. They are going to have to revisit this issue, I'm sure. It's like saying a paperback book is not a true book, or something. When it comes to words, keep in mind they include more than they leave out. The word "frog" refers to an amphibious animal, a fastener for a coat, and mucus in your throat. And, we all pretty much know what we're talking about. So, the word planet may end up describing a variety of objects. Read on.
Everyone loves Pluto; kids often say Pluto is their favorite planet. This may be in large part, because Pluto has a dog. By the way, we all know that Disney's Pluto is an animal not a person, because Pluto the Dog doesn't have any clothes on. Mickey and Mini, for example, do. Pluto the Dog has led to a familiarity with Pluto the outer solar system object. Pluto the object is also mysterious. It's way out there, cold, and dark. It holds fascination for many of us.
The thing-of-it is that if Pluto were discovered today, it probably wouldn't be a called a planet. If you could somehow bring Pluto close to the Sun, it would develop a tail like a comet. Hmm. Nevertheless, when it was discovered, the word "planet" was the state of the art. And, people for a short while apparently thought Pluto might be quite large, maybe larger than Neptune. So, the word planet has stuck for Pluto.
In all scientific classification, often one must ask oneself, "Am I a lumper
or a splitter?" That is, to I group things or split them off. Bear in mind that
this exercise is just for humans (as far as we know). Pluto is going to be there
no matter what we call it. For those of you familiar with the Bill Nye the Science
Guy show, you might notice that I'm a lumper. I'm always looking for patterns
and ways to generalize. And of course, I may be wrong about some things. But,
let's consider the downside of calling anything with enough gravity to be a ball
that orbits the Sun primarily rather than orbiting something that orbits the
Sun, the way our Moon orbits the Earth. This lumping would render Ceres a
planet as well as Pluto and Sedna
and maybe Xena and Quaoar planets. Well, that might not be so bad. Perhaps
Ceres is too small to be a planet, because it doesn't have enough gravitational
influence to clear its orbital path -- perhaps. But the proliferation of names
I don't see as much of a problem. One has no difficulty at all meeting kids,
who can name several dozen ancient dinosaurs -- not just several, but several
dozen. Having a lot of planet names would or will be fine.
With all manner of objects being called planets, what value does the word have anymore? Well, it has all kinds of value, if we're allowed to add some adjectives. I find the expression "Main Plane" very useful. The traditional first eight, Mercury to Neptune would be those that are observed in the plane of ecliptic -- the main plane. Also, this expression has the charm of assonance (consecutive similar vowel sounds) akin to the baseball description of a throw from the third baseman or shortstop to first base: the toss across.
If we want to distinguish planets further, we can use further descriptors: the terrestrial planets, the gas giants, the icy crusts. All this adds meaning and pedagogy to the happy and familiar word planet. The most appealing description of Pluto might be "ice dwarf." Better yet, I'd like Pluto to be the first among a class of objects called the "Plutonian" planets. What fun would that be. There'd be a lot of planets, but still eight in the Main Plane with who yet knows how many beyond. That's the charm of Pluto isn't it. It's so far away and yet we share a star.
We've got a few years to mull this over before the New Horizons flies by Pluto and brings us to a new level of understanding. It will show us pictures which will no doubt amaze us. New Horizons will produce these images in 2015. Meantime, let's all keep thinking about an appropriate classification system. It's one more way we can consider and know our place among the planets and among the stars.
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