Go.

Read.

Now.

http://kepler.nasa.gov/news/nasakeplernews/index.cfm?FuseAction=ShowNews&NewsID=16

http://kepler.nasa.gov/Mission/tableofdiscoveries/

To the people working the Kepler orbital telescope detail over the years to get to yesterday's point?

Congratulations, people!

http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=27004

This makes for the fifth in little over a week, I believe...?

Got this from james_nicoll:

They got pictures in infrared via telescopes in Hawai'i of three planets orbiting HR 8799!

Actual pictures!

(And yes, there's a Canadian connection. Go. Read. Party!)

Whirlwind of sorts.

Finished putting my latest APAzine for Legends together. It's being printed as I type this, although there's some weird and interesting font glitches occurring in the hardcopy. Random characters that should be bold printing as italic, unexpected font substitutions, and whatnot. Not quite sure why this is happening, but at least the actual text is still there, as are the photos and the map. Must've happened when I saved from Pages to PDF.

Rain's coming down here at the moment. Not too heavy, but just enough to make you go for the umbrella. Gentle film noir rain, if there's such a thing.

OSFS meeting tomorrow at the Dalhousie Community Centre on Somerset West and Empress. Details at ottawa_sf for anyone interested, and the topic is extrasolar planets. Given the current count is a little over 300 such objects...ought to be fun for anyone who shows up!

Short story's past 5,500 and closing fast on 6,000. Here's hoping it's coherent when it's done...

Back to you.

Well, I had a look at exoplanet.eu today.

Announced today: Astrometric comfirmation of a planet orbiting Epsilon Eridani.

Cool news.

Thanks to those responsible for confirming the fact for the rest of us here on Earth!

Well, what do you expect from a comics artist with a science fiction sideline to do but post on exoplanets? ;-)

Take this article on the latest announced and found in the constellation Lacerta, for instance...1.38 x Jupiter in size terms, half a Jupiter in mass. Almost bird-wing-bone hollow, that planet is.

That will get the attention of more than a few astronomers, won't it?