August 27, 2003

DESTROY THE PLANET OF REDS

At last ... Mars is within shooting range:

Tonight's the night for millions of stargazers throughout Australia and the world. Astronomical history will be made at 7.51pm when our neighbouring planet, Mars, makes its closest approach to Earth in 60,000 years. It will never be closer in our lifetime.

Posted by Tim Blair at August 27, 2003 01:57 PM
Comments

Where is my Irradium Q Space Modulator?

Posted by: Marvin at August 27, 2003 at 02:15 PM

Probably surrendered to the government after Port Arthur.

I love you, Marvin!

Posted by: kaelene at August 27, 2003 at 02:29 PM

Is there any oil on Mars...?

Posted by: Jerry at August 27, 2003 at 02:59 PM

its closest approach to Earth in 60,000 years. It will never be closer in our lifetime.

Unless you live to 120,000 or so. Duh.

Guy's got a talent for stating the obvious.

Posted by: mojo at August 27, 2003 at 03:02 PM

mojo,

It is a bit more complicated that simple symmetry - just because the last near approach was 60,000 years ago it doesn't mean we will be at the same distance from Mars in 60,000 years. If I remember correctly we will be a similar distance from Mars every few hundred years for a while and then there will be another big gap.

Posted by: Russell at August 27, 2003 at 03:22 PM

On a completely unrelated subject, I'd like to dig some dirt on Che Guevara and Fidel Castro - are there any reliable resources on the web where I can find this stuff? If you type the names into Google, all you get is a tonne of worshipful Socialist websites.

Posted by: TimT at August 27, 2003 at 03:40 PM

You have got to love Russell's 'Similar Distance for a Few Hundred Years then Another Big Gap' theory of proximity to Mars.

Every scientific theory should have a name like that.

Posted by: pooh at August 27, 2003 at 03:50 PM

Just remember to duck as it passes over.

Posted by: Evil Pundit at August 27, 2003 at 05:07 PM

What happened to the "Ka-Boom!" There's supposed to be an almighty "Ka-Boom!"

Posted by: Ferg at August 27, 2003 at 05:45 PM

If it's anything like Halley's Comet '86 I'll be sadly disappointed.

However, the Leonid showers (01), viewed far away from a city, were sensational.

Posted by: ilibcc at August 27, 2003 at 07:06 PM

I took six shots at it with my 30/30 and I think I wounded it. It seems to be wobbling in the sky.

Posted by: Perfectsense at August 27, 2003 at 07:10 PM

Oh great Perfectsense. Didn't your Daddy teach you to use enough gun for the job? If you've just wounded it...

Posted by: gmc at August 27, 2003 at 08:02 PM

TimT:

Don't know what's available on the Web but Georgie Anne Geyer's ``Guerrilla Prince'' (Castro biography) is a good place to start.

And it's cloudy in Chicago, so we can't see Mars or anything else :(

Posted by: AdaKizi at August 27, 2003 at 09:33 PM

Any chance we can get more Californians to "follow it" (i.e. off themselves) as it passes? The Darwin Awards are due just around the corner...

Posted by: Jerry at August 28, 2003 at 12:01 AM

"Where's the kaboom? There's supposed to be a Mars-shattering kaboom.

Mars obscures my view of...umm...Uranus. On second thought, I'll leave it where it is.

Posted by: David Perron at August 28, 2003 at 12:21 AM

This is when they'll launch their invasion fleet.

Guard your women.

Posted by: LB at August 28, 2003 at 12:25 AM

TimT: grab a copy of "The Perfect Latin American Idiot" at Amazon.

Posted by: tim at August 28, 2003 at 12:25 AM

It just looked like a big star. It was pretty small, too. There can't be life on there. I mean, how would they all fit?

Posted by: Gabor at August 28, 2003 at 12:44 AM

TimT: For Castro, start with this post. It has links to some academic papers. Also check out these figures from Twentieth Century Atlas - Death Tolls. Pinochet was a piker compared to Castro. And yet who does the left praise?

Posted by: scott h. at August 28, 2003 at 01:19 AM

That almighty Ka-Boom in the form of a Barret fifty cal. Gee...Perfectsense, makes that 30/30 seem kinda pussy

Posted by: A Texas shootin solution at August 28, 2003 at 01:20 AM

I'm not worried about Mars. I'd be worried if it was that eeeevil Planet of the Apes...

Wait a minute... Statue of Liberty?!

That's Earth!

You maniacs!!! You blew it up!!! DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU ALL TO HELL!!!

Posted by: Homer J. at August 28, 2003 at 02:10 AM

IIRC, Mars will make another close pass in 2060, or something like that. The "won't be this close again within our lifetime" phrasing wasn't that absurd.

Posted by: Harry at August 28, 2003 at 03:16 AM

2060? Hmm. I'll be only 98. That sounds doable.
Anyway, I have to be in good enough shape to get to England in 2066 to observe the millennial of the Norman Conquest at the battlefield of Hastings. My friends and I made a deal to do this back in 1980, and I intend to keep my word!

Posted by: Mary in LA at August 28, 2003 at 04:50 AM

Interesting link about Cuba, Scott. I think one can infer that the authors are not fond of Castro-haters from the use of "ax to grind" in the summary:

ANALYSIS: The dividing line between those who have an ax to grind and those who don't falls in the 5,000-12,000 range.
Posted by: Ken Summers at August 28, 2003 at 11:02 AM

Thanks guys, will check out those links ASAP. I'm sure they'll be useful.

Posted by: TimT at August 28, 2003 at 02:45 PM