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A Cry Heard Round The World: Kim Sun-Il died desperate and alone, but he did not die unheard.
Looking At And Longing For Mars: Reflections on a childhood dream.
A Robot May Not Harm a Human Being. Is The Opposite True?: Thoughts on the future rights of artificial intelligence.
Long After The Boys Of Summer Have Gone: What makes a relationship work?
Winter Of Our Feline Discontent: What the cat wants, the cat gets. But what DOES it want?
To Tell The Truth: There may be no honor among thieves, but can't we find it even in a few good men and women?
Should The Human Brain Retire?: We know that we cannot win forever. We know that machines will continue to improve. So why don't we let the human brain retire gracefully now, with honors?
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Published: Sep 16, 2005 01:41 PM
Thu - September 18, 2003
Star Light, Star Bright, Don't Eat The World Tonight
A remarkable photograph reminds us all
why the space program isn't just a convenience.
The
image on the right isn't a particularly unappetizing Danish pastry; it's a
photograph of our future—a billion years from
now.
You're looking at three planets being devoured by their star, V838 Monocerotis, which is about 20,000 light years from Earth. In January 2002, it temporarily became the brightest star in the Milky Way, 600,000 times more luminous than the Sun.
Now space scientists believe that light emissions from the star indicate that it was a red giant that expanded and successively swallowed three planets in quick succession. The time between the first and the last engulfment? Just two months.
No one expects our Sun to explode for at least a billion years, but now might be the time to cash in early on breach front property in Antarctica. While it lasts.