“Ahem.”:http://www.lasvegasmercury.com/2004/MERC-Jul-08-Thu-2004/24250261.html

_(written on the board 50 times)_
I will not make predictions about space tourism.
I will not make predictions about space tourism.
I will not make predictions about space tourism.

Wow! No description can top that headline, so here it is again: “Hubble discovers 100 new planets”:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3856401.stm

Oh, OK, here’s a quote: “_The discovery will lend support to the idea that almost every sunlike star in our galaxy, and probably the Universe, is accompanied by planets._”

This is the _real_ reason why exploring space is important. We may think we know what we’re going to find, but we *don’t*. For example, a “comet in our own solar backyard”:http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/stardust_results_040319.html has “baffled space scientists”:http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/stardust_results_040617.html by refusing to conform to our ideas of how comets should act. Silly comet.

_A detailed analysis of the comet Wild 2 (pronounced “Vilt 2″) has left astronomers astounded at an object that has no known peers in the solar system._

_The comet, examined in a close flyby in January by NASA’s Stardust spacecraft, has towering protrusions and steep-walled craters that seem to defy gravity. More than a dozen jets of material shoot out from its insides. Dust swirls around the comet in unexpectedly dense pockets._

A quickie: The SpaceShipOne folks have announced a “historic launch on June 21″:http://www.spacedaily.com/news/xprize-04e.html: the ship will reach 100 km, generally regarded as the “edge of space”. Apparently this is the first space launch that can be viewed up close by the public, since the rocket itself doesn’t fire until the carrier plane is aloft.

Stunned space scientists were reeling last night after stumbling across a startling new formation on the surface of Mars. I sure hope it’s not advertising…