explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1555: Exoplanet Names 2

2015-07-24T22:45:25Z

141.101.105.213:

{{comic
| number = 1555
| date = July 24, 2015
| title = Exoplanet Names 2
| image = exoplanet_names_2.png
| titletext = I'm going to drive this Netherlands joke so far into the ground they'll have to build levees around it to keep the sea out.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Complete table entries, check all table text (some black entries have changed), add wiki links, add explanations, red text to match comic?, detail on NASA announcement}}

This comic is a continuation of [[1253: Exoplanet Names]], and was published the day after NASA announced the discovery of a number of planets, including an Earth-like planet, Kepler-452b. [[Black Hat]] proposes naming it {{w|Pluto}}, to commemorate the flyby of the {{w|dwarf planet}} of that name by NASA's {{w|New Horizons}} earlier the same month. He admits an alternative reason for the name, which is to add confusion to the debate about the status of Pluto (whether it should be considered a planet, a dwarf planet, or something else); by naming Kepler-452b (indisputably a planet) "Pluto", this means that the answer to the question "is Pluto a planet?" will always be "yes" regardless of the status of the Pluto in our Solar System, which is not a helpful answer.

The {{w|International Astronomical Union}} (IAU) is the organisation which is responsible for naming celestial bodies (planets, stars, etc).`

This table explains each entry in the comic table. The "New" column indicates if an entry is an addition since [[1253: Exoplanet Names]]. "N" means "No", "Y" means "Yes", "U" indicates the entry was updated.
{| class="wikitable"
! Star !! Planet !! New !! Suggested Name !! Explanation
|-
| rowspan=7 | {{w|Gliese 667}} || {{w|Gliese 667 Cb|b}} || N || Space Planet || A very unimaginative name; every planet is in space.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cc|c}} || N || PILF || Pun of {{w|MILF pornography|MILF}}, i.e. ''Planet I'd Like to Fuck''. Planet c is a relatively hot planet, within the habitable zone.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cd|d}} || N || A Star || "A {{w|Star}}" is obviously a bad name for a planet. A* (pronounced "A star") is already used in in astronomy, for example the Milky Way's black hole core is {{w|Sagittarius A*}}. "A star" is also the name for the character {{w|asterisk}} and the name of the popular {{w|A* search algorithm}} in computer science.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Ce|e}} || N || e'); DROP TABLE PLANETS;-- || [[Mrs. Roberts]] is probably trying to use {{w|SQL injection}} like in [[327|Exploits of a Mom]], in which her son [[Robert'); DROP TABLE students;--]] caused the school a lot of trouble when his name was put in. The idea here is that the {{w|IAU}} would enter the name into their system and promptly lose all of their data pertaining to planets. Note that Planet e is located in the habitable zone of the star system.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cf|f}} || N || Blogosphere || rowspan = 2 | Weird ''{{w|blog}}''-related terms are a recurring theme in xkcd. See, for instance, [[181|comic 181]].
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cg|g}} || N || Blogodrome
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_667c_h/ h] || N || Earth || Planet candidate h is about the mass of the Earth, and described as "tantalizing": [http://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2013/08/aa21331-13/aa21331-13.html A dynamically-packed planetary system around GJ with three super-Earths in its habitable zone]. See also ([[1231: Habitable Zone]]). Like several other names below, naming a second planet Earth would be highly confusing.
|-
| rowspan=5 | {{w|Tau Ceti}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_b/ b] || N || Sid Meier's Tau Ceti B || This refers to the game {{w|Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri}}.
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_c/ c] || N || Giant Dog Planet || {{w|VY Canis Majoris}} is one of the largest known stars at our galaxy and belongs to the constellation {{w|Canis Major}}, Latin for "greater dog". The constellation further contains {{w|Sirius}}, the brightest star in the night sky, also called "Dog Star".
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_d/ d] || N || Tiny Dog Planet || cf. {{w|Canis Minor}}, Latin for "lesser dog", another constellation.
|-
|{{w|Tau Ceti e|e}} || N || Phil Plainet || A reference to {{w|Phil Plait}}, a.k.a. The Bad Astronomer.
|-
|{{w|Tau Ceti f|f}} || N || Unicode Snowman || The Unicode character [http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2603/index.htm ☃] may be a reference to the planet's estimated surface temperature of -40 °C (-40 °F). However, this name would be pronounced differently (being a symbol, not a word or name) in different languages. Planets in our solar system are assigned to {{w|Astronomical symbols|astronomical symbols}} like ♁ for Earth or ♂ for Mars.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 832}} || {{w|Gliese 832 b|b}} || N || Asshole Jupiter || This massive planet orbits a {{w|red dwarf}} star at the longest known period of 3416 days at this category. Many exoplanets are described as "Hot Jupiters" because they are high-temperature gas giants; if one were to read "hot" as a description of attractiveness rather than temperature, one might generate names like this one.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 832 c|c}} || Y || Waterworld starring Kevin Costner || [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114898/ Waterworld] is a 1995 film starring Kevin Costner about Earth almost completely covered in water. The surname was previously spelled incorrectly with a 'K'.
|-
| rowspan=6 | {{w|Gliese 581}} || {{w|Gliese 581 b|b}} || N || Waist-deep Cats || {{w|Waist Deep}} is an action film from 2006, and the {{w|Lolcat}} meme does not need explaining. The name may also simply be a reference to being "waist-deep" in (i.e. surrounded by many) cats.
|-
| {{w|Gliese|c}} || N || Planet #14 || About 200th discovered exoplanet (in 2007); reported to be the first potentially Earth-like planet in the habitable zone of its star, though that is in doubt now. The joke might be that like "Space Planet", "Planet #14" is a generic and unoriginal name. Also note that this is the 15th entry in the table so the numbering is {{w|Zero-based_numbering|zero-based}}.
An interesting (?) coincidence is that the 14th and 15th {{w|Definition of planet#Minor planets|Minor planets}} (then called asteroids) were discovered in 1851; see see {{w|List of minor planets: 1–1000}}. If they were to be counted among the planets of the {{w|Solar System}}, as was sometimes done then, the 14th known planetary body would be {{w| 7 Iris|Iris}} (discovered in 1847, a year before {{w|Neptune}}).
|-
|{{w|Gliese 581 d|d}} || N || Ballderaan || A {{w|wikt:balls|crude pun}} on the planet {{w|Alderaan}} from the ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' universe.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 581 e|e}} || N || Eternia Prime || {{w|Eternia}} is a fictional planet, venue of the ''{{w|Masters of the Universe}}'' animated series and toy collection.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 581 f|f}} || N || Taupe Mars || {{w|Kim Stanley Robinson}}'s award-winning {{w|Mars trilogy}} (''Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars'' after various stages of {{w|terraformation}}). {{w|Taupe}} is a brownish-grey colour.
|-
|{{w|Gliese|g}} || N || Jelly-Filled Planet || Possibly a reference to the conjecture that this tidally locked planet has an isolated habitable zone under the substellar point, akin to the pocket of jelly in a jelly doughnut.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Epsilon Eridani}} || {{w|Epsilon Eridani b|b}} || N || Skydot || [http://skydot.lanl.gov SkyDOT] is the Sky Database for Objects in Time-Domain run by {{w|LANL}} for the {{w|U.S. Dept. of Energy}} and includes data for [http://skydot.lanl.gov/nsvs/star.php?num=14831575&mask=32004 Epsilon Eridani] that can be used to constrain the orbital parameters of ε Eri b. It may also refer to how objects in space may appear as bland, bright dots in the night sky.
|-
| {{w|Epsilon Eridani c#Planet_c|c}} || N || Laser Noises || A {{w|Laser}} does not produce {{w|Noise (electronics)|noise}} in the signal sense; it only works at a well defined frequency. In science fiction films, however, laser weapon discharges are usually accompanied by sound. Sun-like Epsilon Eridani became a popular setting for science fiction after its publicity as a target of the {{w|Project Ozma}} experiment.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 176}} || {{w|Gliese 176 b|b}} || N || Pandora || The mythological name {{w|Pandora}} fulfills most of IAU's guidelines and has been popular for planets in science fiction; most recently and famously is {{w|Pandora (Avatar)|the venue}} of James Cameron's ''{{w|Avatar (film)|Avatar}}'' (although actually it is not a planet but just a moon of a gas giant in Alpha Centauri A). It is also a hellish planet from {{w|Frank Herbert}}'s {{w|Frank Herbert bibliography#WorShip novels|WorShip}} series of novels, a jungle planet in Brothers Strugatsky's {{w|Noon Universe}} and the planet used in {{w|Borderlands (video game)|Borderlands Games}}.
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_176_c/ c] || N || Pantera || A near homophone of Pandora, possibly named for the {{w|Pantera|heavy metal band}}, which was named for the {{w|De Tomaso Pantera|Italian sports car}}, which was named for the panther.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-61}} || {{w|Kepler-61b|b}} || N || GoldenPalace.com || A gambling website, known for {{w|GoldenPalace.com|paying to have their name in unusual places}} (like forehead tattoos, species names...).
|-
| {{w|Groombridge 34|Groombridge 34A}} || b || Y || Hot Mess || This is a reference to the phrase [http://arresteddevelopment.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_mess Hot mess] from the popular television show Arrested Development.
|-
| Kepler-442 || {{w|Kepler-442b|b}} || Y || Seas of Toothpaste ||
|-
| Gliese-442 || b || Y || This one weird planet || Most likely a reference to {{w|clickbait}} articles found on the internet.
|-
| rowspan=3 | EPIC-201367065 || b || Y || Sulawesi || {{w|Sulawesi|An island }} in the Indonesian archipelago.
|-
| c || Y || Huge Soccer Ball ||
|-
| d || Y || Geodude || [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Geodude_%28Pok%C3%A9mon%29 Geodude]] is a Pokemon characterised by its ball-like shape. It resembles a clump of rocks.
|-
| rowspan=5 | Kepler-296 || b || Y || Kerbal Space Planet || {{w|Kerbal Space Program}} is a game where model rockets are launched on a scale version of the Earth. It has been referenced in xkcd a number of times ([[1106]], [[1244]], [[1356]]). Note, though, that the actual planet corresponding to the Earth in the game is called "Kerbin".
|-
| c || Y || A$aplanet || Most probably a pun on the rap group {{w|A$AP Mob}} and their most prominent member {{w|A$AP Rocky}}. May also be a pun on {{w|Kesha}}, also written as Ke$ha. In that case the c of the planet's designation would belong to the name.
|-
| d || Y || {{w|Jurassic World}} || Jurassic world is the most recent movie in the Jurassic park series.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-296e|e}} || Y || This Land || Reference to Wash's dialogue in the pilot episode of {{w|Firefly_(TV_Series)}}.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-296f|f}} || Y || Springfield || The name of {{w|Springfield (The Simpsons)|the town}} in which animated sitcom {{w|The Simpsons}} is set; possibly a reference to the running joke that the state in which Springfield is located has never been named.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|HR 7722}} || {{w|HR 7722 b|b}} || Y || Betelgeuse || rowspan=2 | {{w|Betelgeuse}} is a star in the constellation Orion. It is commonly (at least by speakers of English) pronounced as "beetlejuice". {{w|Beetlejuice}}, however is a film directed by {{w|Tim Burton}} from 1988. Similarly to Dune/Arrakis and the two Uranuses, naming two planets with names that are generally regarded to be identical would cause severe confusion in astronomical discussions.
|-
| {{w|HR 7722 c|c}} || Y || Beetlejuice
|-
| EPIC201912552 || b || Y || Netherlands VI || As the title text a reference to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/what_if%3F What if?]'s [http://www.what-if.xkcd.com/53/ 53], [http://www.what-if.xkcd.com/54/ 54] and comic [[1551: Pluto]]. Due to a drain in the Earth's ocean the Netherlands have not to worry about getting flooded, anymore and take the opportunity to conquer the world (including Antarctica becoming South Netherlands) in What if 53, Mars (New Netherlands) in What if 54, and a section of Pluto (again: New Netherlands) in comic 1551. This may also be a possible reference to [[1519: Venus]], but there seems to be no relation to the other conquests of the Netherlands. Maybe it should also be mentioned, that {{w|New Netherland}} was a Dutch colony with {{w|New York City}}, formally known as {{w|New Amsterdam}}, as its capital. So the name "New Netherlands" can be assumed as "historically correct", while "Netherlands VI" isn't.
|-
| rowspan=3 | Gliese 3293 || b || Y || Antispit || In the comic [http://www.mspaintadventures.com/ Homestuck] there is a planet named [http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/Prospit Prospit]
|-
| c || Y || Google Earth || {{w|Google Earth}} is a service, similar to Google Maps, which projects satellite data on a 3D globe that can be zoomed in on. Other features, such as models of buildings, can also appear.
|-
| d || Y || Planet of the Apes (Disambiguation) || The way a Wikipedia article would be titled, for example, to distinguish from the {{w|Planet of the Apes (novel)|the original novel}}, {{w|Planet of the Apes (1968 film)|the first film}}, {{w|Planet of the Apes (2001 film)|the Tim Burton remake}} and {{w|Rise of the Planet of the Apes|the reboot series}}. In each adaptation, a group of astronauts lands on what is believed to be a "Planet of the Apes", which turns out to be a post-apocalyptic Earth.
|-
| rowspan=2 | Kepler-283 || b || Y || ˈjʊərənəs || rowspan = 2 | Two alternative pronunciations (written in {{w|International Phonetic Alphabet}}) for the planet name Uranus; the first one translates as "YU-ri-nus" ("urine-us"), while the second translates as "yu-RAIN-us" ("your anus"). The first pronunciation (being the same as how the {{w|Uranus (mythology)|Greek god}} is pronounced in English) is preferred by astronomers, but both are commonly heard.
|-
| c || Y || jʊˈreɪnəs
|-
! colspan=4 | (right column)
|-
| rowspan=4 | {{w|Upsilon Andromedae}} || b || Y || Fourthmeal || {{w|Taco_Bell}} has an ad campaign adding a meal after dinner. Possibly also a reference to {{w|Hobbit}}s and [http://askmiddlearth.tumblr.com/post/41765286488/the-seven-daily-hobbit-meals seven daily meals].
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae c|c}} || N || Stampy || The name of the elephant from the {{w|Simpsons}} episode {{w|Bart Gets an Elephant}}.
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae d|d}} || N || Moonchild || The name Bastian gives the Childlike Empress in {{w|The Neverending Story}}.
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae e|e}} || N || Ham Sphere || [http://www.hamsphere.com HamSphere] is a {{w|Amateur radio|Ham Radio}} simulator program. Ham radio uses designated radio frequencies for non-commercial exchange of messages and more. A pun of Hemisphere.
|-
| rowspan=3 | {{w|. Eridani|HD 20794}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_b/ b] || N || Cosmic Sands || style="font-family:'Comic Sans MS', 'Comic Sans'" | A {{w|pun}} on the name of the font {{w|Comic Sans}}. (See also: [[590|590: Papyrus]].)
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_c/ c] || N || Legoland || {{w|Legoland}} is a chain of {{w|theme park}}s owned by the {{w|Lego Group}}. Potentially a reference to the movie {{w|The World's End (film)|The World's End}}, in which the protagonist Gary King tells the alien invaders to "get in your rocket and fuck off back to Legoland".
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_d/ d] || N || Planet with Arms || A reference to the [http://www.thecolorsofmysoul.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/The-Hitchhikers-Guide-to-the-Galaxy.jpg early covers] of {{w|Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}?
|-
| {{w|HD 85512}} || {{w|HD 85512 b|b}} || N || Lax Morality || Possibly a parody of science fiction in which certain planets are suggested to be uniformly lax in morals (i.e. full of sex, drugs, etc.). See http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Planetville and related.
|-
| rowspan=6 | {{w|HD 40307}} || {{w|HD 40307 b|b}} || N || Good Planet || Similar to the above, except with good planets. May also be yet another non-descriptive name, like "Space Planet" and "Planet #14".
|-
|{{w|HD|c}} || N || Problemland || See above. Also may be a reference to Iceland/Greenland naming scheme[http://anitasnotebook.com/travelstories/how-iceland-and-greenland-ended-up-with-such-messed-up-names/], where Problemland may actually be a better place to visit than "Good Planet."
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 d|d}} || N || Slickle || This is a reference to "[http://zdarsky.tumblr.com/post/2837139960 The Petals Fall Twice]", which was made as a humorous example of bad fan-fiction. The word itself is a portmanteau of "slowly", "licked", and "tickled".
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 e|e}} || N || Spare Parts || This suggests that the planet is "worthless" or "junk". This is false, of course. May be a reference to the fact it is a planet with nothing much different from the other planets.
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 f|f}} || N || New Jersey VI || Refers to the state of {{w|New Jersey}}; may be an insult to either.
|-
|{{w|HD|g}} || N || How Do I Join the IAU || This implies that the user "got lost" on the IAU website and thought that the "planet name suggestion" input was for general queries.
|-
| rowspan=3 | {{w|Gliese 163}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_163_b/ b] || N || Neil Tyson's Mustache || {{w|Neil deGrasse Tyson}} is a famous American astrophysicist and science communicator who does maintain a distinguished mustache.
|-
|{{w|Gliese|c}} || N || help@gmail.com || Similar to "How Do I Join the IAU", this implies that the user confused the "planet suggestion" text box for a new email they are trying to send
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_163_d/ d] || N || Hair-Covered Planet || Refers to the well-known {{w|Hairy ball theorem}} of topology.
|-
| {{w|Pi Mensae}} || {{w|Pi Mensae b|b}} || N || Moon Holder || {{w|Jupiter}} has more than 60 discovered moons, and still counting... A planet ten times more massive ''must'' also be a Moon Holder.
|-
| {{w|HD 189733}} || {{w|HD 189733 b|b}} || N || Permadeath || A well-characterized "{{w|Hot Jupiter}}" at a temperature range of 973 ± 33 K to 1,212 ± 11 K. The name refers to the feature of {{w|Permanent death}} common in many RPGs and roguelikes.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-22}} || {{w|Kepler-22 b|b}} || N || Blue Ivy || Blue Ivy Carter is the daughter of musicians {{w|Beyoncé}} and {{w|Jay-Z}}.
|-
| KOI-2474 || b || Y || Store-Brand Earth || A {w|Store brand} is a line of products branded by a retailer. They have a reputation for being lower quality than other brands, and are often marketed similarly to other brands. This is implying that this is a cheaper version of Earth.
|-
| Kepler-437 || b || U || Unicorn Thresher || As far as we can tell, Kepler-437b is in the vicinity of the constellation Monoceros, aka the Unicorn. (This was labeled Kepler-3255b in the previous chart)
|-
| KOI-2418 || b || N || Spherical Discworld || {{w|The Discworld}} is the fictional setting for British author {{w|Terry Pratchett}}'s {{w|Discworld}} series of humorous fantasy novels; it consists of a large disc supported by four elephants themselves standing on top of a turtle flying through space.
|-
| Kepler-438 || b || U || Emergency Backup Earth || This candidate planet has an {{w|Earth Similarity Index}} of 0.89, making it one of the most habitable {{w|Kepler object of interest}}. The name suggests that it could be used as a backup in case something happened to our current planet. This entry was labelled as Kepler-1686b in the previous table.
|-
| Kepler-3010 || b || N || Feeeoooooooop || Possibly the onomatopoeia for something getting sucked into a black hole.
|-
| Kepler-442 || b || N || Liz || ...Just a regular name (for a person, not a planet). Maybe a reference to the Magic School Bus.
|-
| rowspan=3 | 82 Eridani || b || Y || Horsemeat Surface||
|-
| c || Y || The Moon || This name would cause confusion with the Earth's moon, which in English is called The Moon. It is also a poor name choice as 82 Eridani c is not a moon, but a planet.
|-
| d || Y || Constant Saxophones ||
|-
| HD 102365 || b || Y || Little Big Planet || This refers to the videogame {{w|LittleBigPlanet}}.
|-
| rowspan=2 | Gliese 180 || b || Y || Dune || rowspan=2 | Both references to Frank Herbert's {{w|Dune_(novel)|Dune}} book series. The planet Arrakis (informally referred to as 'Dune') is the central planet in the mythology, where the mind-enhancing substance 'spice' comes from. Use of spice enables, among others, supercomputing-like mental computation as well as hyperspace navigation. Having two neighbouring planets with names that are historically used to refer to a single planet would sow further confusion in the already extensive catalog of planet names.
|-
| c || Y || Arrakis
|-
| Formalhaut || b || Y || Swarm of Bees ||
|-
| rowspan=5 | Kepler-62 || b || Y || Sporty || rowspan=5 | A reference to [[1554: Spice Girls]], where Megan was unable to list the members of the pop group. In this case the names are correct.
|-
| c || Y || Baby
|-
| d || Y || Scary
|-
| e || Y || Ginger
|-
| f || Y || Posh
|-
| rowspan=3 | HD 69830 || b || Y || Planet.xxx || {{w|.xxx}} is a controversial top level domain (like to .com and .net) that is intended to distinguish porn sites from other types of website.
|-
| c || Y || Novella || A {{w|novella}} is a form of prose with length between a {{w|short story}} and a {{w|novel}}. Common examples of novellas are romance literature centering around intense lustful encounters in cheap paperback books, though also 'serious' literature may be in novella form.
|-
| d || Y || Sexoplanet || Like the other two planets orbiting this star, the "69" in the stars designation has lead to a sex joke: All planets in this comic are "exo-planets", planets not orbiting our sun. Adding a single "s" in front results in immature humor.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 682}} || {{w|Gliese 682 b|b}} || Y || Verdant Hellscape || A contradictory name. "[[wikt:verdant|Verdant]]" usually signifies to be lush with green plantlife, while "[[wikt:hellscape|hellscape]]" describes a desolate landscape destroyed by heat and cataclysm.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 682 c|c}} || Y || Unsubscribe || On YouTube, "subscribers" (people who get updates on a person's channel) are highly valued, and to "unsubscribe" from anyone is deemed to be offensive. "Unsubscribe" is also the command one sends to {{w|Electronic mailing list}}s to stop receiving said mailing list. In this sense it may imply a desire to no longer be bothered with these silly discussions around planet-names. Like "help@gmail.com" and "How do I join the IAU", "unsubscribe" is a frequently seen accidental message on the Internet in contexts where it is not going to work as a command.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-452}} || {{w|Kepler-452b|b}} || Y || Pluto || This is the planet Black Hat is referring to at the top of the table.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

[Black Hat is pointing slide with image of Kepler-452b planet]
:Black Hat: NASA has announced the discovery of a (super-)Earth-sized planet in the habitable zone of a sun-like star.
:Black Hat: I suggest we name this planet "Pluto", both to celebrate the great work by the ''New Horizons'' team, and to make the stupid "Is Pluto a planet" debate a little more confusing

:[Table showing a list of planet names is shown.]

{| class="wikitable" |
While we wait to hear from the IAU, here's a revised and updated list of planet name suggestions (see xkcd.com/1253) New or updated entries in red
|-
|}

==Trivia==
The IPA character for stress is a vertical line ˈ. Randall uses a slanted line similar to acute accent ´ or prime ′.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Exoplanets]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

1555: Exoplanet Names 2

2015-07-24T22:41:25Z

141.101.105.213:

{{comic
| number = 1555
| date = July 24, 2015
| title = Exoplanet Names 2
| image = exoplanet_names_2.png
| titletext = I'm going to drive this Netherlands joke so far into the ground they'll have to build levees around it to keep the sea out.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Complete table entries, check all table text (some black entries have changed), add wiki links, add explanations, red text to match comic?, detail on NASA announcement}}

This comic is a continuation of [[1253: Exoplanet Names]], and was published the day after NASA announced the discovery of a number of planets, including an Earth-like planet, Kepler-452b. [[Black Hat]] proposes naming it {{w|Pluto}}, to commemorate the flyby of the {{w|dwarf planet}} of that name by NASA's {{w|New Horizons}} earlier the same month. He admits an alternative reason for the name, which is to add confusion to the debate about the status of Pluto (whether it should be considered a planet, a dwarf planet, or something else); by naming Kepler-452b (indisputably a planet) "Pluto", this means that the answer to the question "is Pluto a planet?" will always be "yes" regardless of the status of the Pluto in our Solar System, which is not a helpful answer.

The {{w|International Astronomical Union}} (IAU) is the organisation which is responsible for naming celestial bodies (planets, stars, etc).`

This table explains each entry in the comic table. The "New" column indicates if an entry is an addition since [[1253: Exoplanet Names]]. "N" means "No", "Y" means "Yes", "U" indicates the entry was updated.
{| class="wikitable"
! Star !! Planet !! New !! Suggested Name !! Explanation
|-
| rowspan=7 | {{w|Gliese 667}} || {{w|Gliese 667 Cb|b}} || N || Space Planet || A very unimaginative name; every planet is in space.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cc|c}} || N || PILF || Pun of {{w|MILF pornography|MILF}}, i.e. ''Planet I'd Like to Fuck''. Planet c is a relatively hot planet, within the habitable zone.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cd|d}} || N || A Star || "A {{w|Star}}" is obviously a bad name for a planet. A* (pronounced "A star") is already used in in astronomy, for example the Milky Way's black hole core is {{w|Sagittarius A*}}. "A star" is also the name for the character {{w|asterisk}} and the name of the popular {{w|A* search algorithm}} in computer science.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Ce|e}} || N || e'); DROP TABLE PLANETS;-- || [[Mrs. Roberts]] is probably trying to use {{w|SQL injection}} like in [[327|Exploits of a Mom]], in which her son [[Robert'); DROP TABLE students;--]] caused the school a lot of trouble when his name was put in. The idea here is that the {{w|IAU}} would enter the name into their system and promptly lose all of their data pertaining to planets. Note that Planet e is located in the habitable zone of the star system.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cf|f}} || N || Blogosphere || rowspan = 2 | Weird ''{{w|blog}}''-related terms are a recurring theme in xkcd. See, for instance, [[181|comic 181]].
|-
|{{w|Gliese 667 Cg|g}} || N || Blogodrome
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_667c_h/ h] || N || Earth || Planet candidate h is about the mass of the Earth, and described as "tantalizing": [http://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2013/08/aa21331-13/aa21331-13.html A dynamically-packed planetary system around GJ with three super-Earths in its habitable zone]. See also ([[1231: Habitable Zone]]). Like several other names below, naming a second planet Earth would be highly confusing.
|-
| rowspan=5 | {{w|Tau Ceti}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_b/ b] || N || Sid Meier's Tau Ceti B || This refers to the game {{w|Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri}}.
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_c/ c] || N || Giant Dog Planet || {{w|VY Canis Majoris}} is one of the largest known stars at our galaxy and belongs to the constellation {{w|Canis Major}}, Latin for "greater dog". The constellation further contains {{w|Sirius}}, the brightest star in the night sky, also called "Dog Star".
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/tau_cet_d/ d] || N || Tiny Dog Planet || cf. {{w|Canis Minor}}, Latin for "lesser dog", another constellation.
|-
|{{w|Tau Ceti e|e}} || N || Phil Plainet || A reference to {{w|Phil Plait}}, a.k.a. The Bad Astronomer.
|-
|{{w|Tau Ceti f|f}} || N || Unicode Snowman || The Unicode character [http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2603/index.htm ☃] may be a reference to the planet's estimated surface temperature of -40 °C (-40 °F). However, this name would be pronounced differently (being a symbol, not a word or name) in different languages. Planets in our solar system are assigned to {{w|Astronomical symbols|astronomical symbols}} like ♁ for Earth or ♂ for Mars.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 832}} || {{w|Gliese 832 b|b}} || N || Asshole Jupiter || This massive planet orbits a {{w|red dwarf}} star at the longest known period of 3416 days at this category. Many exoplanets are described as "Hot Jupiters" because they are high-temperature gas giants; if one were to read "hot" as a description of attractiveness rather than temperature, one might generate names like this one.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 832 c|c}} || Y || Waterworld starring Kevin Costner || [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114898/ Waterworld] is a 1995 film starring Kevin Costner about Earth almost completely covered in water. The surname was previously spelled incorrectly with a 'K'.
|-
| rowspan=6 | {{w|Gliese 581}} || {{w|Gliese 581 b|b}} || N || Waist-deep Cats || {{w|Waist Deep}} is an action film from 2006, and the {{w|Lolcat}} meme does not need explaining. The name may also simply be a reference to being "waist-deep" in (i.e. surrounded by many) cats.
|-
| {{w|Gliese|c}} || N || Planet #14 || About 200th discovered exoplanet (in 2007); reported to be the first potentially Earth-like planet in the habitable zone of its star, though that is in doubt now. The joke might be that like "Space Planet", "Planet #14" is a generic and unoriginal name. Also note that this is the 15th entry in the table so the numbering is {{w|Zero-based_numbering|zero-based}}.
An interesting (?) coincidence is that the 14th and 15th {{w|Definition of planet#Minor planets|Minor planets}} (then called asteroids) were discovered in 1851; see see {{w|List of minor planets: 1–1000}}. If they were to be counted among the planets of the {{w|Solar System}}, as was sometimes done then, the 14th known planetary body would be {{w| 7 Iris|Iris}} (discovered in 1847, a year before {{w|Neptune}}).
|-
|{{w|Gliese 581 d|d}} || N || Ballderaan || A {{w|wikt:balls|crude pun}} on the planet {{w|Alderaan}} from the ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' universe.
|-
|{{w|Gliese 581 e|e}} || N || Eternia Prime || {{w|Eternia}} is a fictional planet, venue of the ''{{w|Masters of the Universe}}'' animated series and toy collection.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 581 f|f}} || N || Taupe Mars || {{w|Kim Stanley Robinson}}'s award-winning {{w|Mars trilogy}} (''Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars'' after various stages of {{w|terraformation}}). {{w|Taupe}} is a brownish-grey colour.
|-
|{{w|Gliese|g}} || N || Jelly-Filled Planet || Possibly a reference to the conjecture that this tidally locked planet has an isolated habitable zone under the substellar point, akin to the pocket of jelly in a jelly doughnut.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Epsilon Eridani}} || {{w|Epsilon Eridani b|b}} || N || Skydot || [http://skydot.lanl.gov SkyDOT] is the Sky Database for Objects in Time-Domain run by {{w|LANL}} for the {{w|U.S. Dept. of Energy}} and includes data for [http://skydot.lanl.gov/nsvs/star.php?num=14831575&mask=32004 Epsilon Eridani] that can be used to constrain the orbital parameters of ε Eri b. It may also refer to how objects in space may appear as bland, bright dots in the night sky.
|-
| {{w|Epsilon Eridani c#Planet_c|c}} || N || Laser Noises || A {{w|Laser}} does not produce {{w|Noise (electronics)|noise}} in the signal sense; it only works at a well defined frequency. In science fiction films, however, laser weapon discharges are usually accompanied by sound. Sun-like Epsilon Eridani became a popular setting for science fiction after its publicity as a target of the {{w|Project Ozma}} experiment.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 176}} || {{w|Gliese 176 b|b}} || N || Pandora || The mythological name {{w|Pandora}} fulfills most of IAU's guidelines and has been popular for planets in science fiction; most recently and famously is {{w|Pandora (Avatar)|the venue}} of James Cameron's ''{{w|Avatar (film)|Avatar}}'' (although actually it is not a planet but just a moon of a gas giant in Alpha Centauri A). It is also a hellish planet from {{w|Frank Herbert}}'s {{w|Frank Herbert bibliography#WorShip novels|WorShip}} series of novels, a jungle planet in Brothers Strugatsky's {{w|Noon Universe}} and the planet used in {{w|Borderlands (video game)|Borderlands Games}}.
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_176_c/ c] || N || Pantera || A near homophone of Pandora, possibly named for the {{w|Pantera|heavy metal band}}, which was named for the {{w|De Tomaso Pantera|Italian sports car}}, which was named for the panther.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-61}} || {{w|Kepler-61b|b}} || N || GoldenPalace.com || A gambling website, known for {{w|GoldenPalace.com|paying to have their name in unusual places}} (like forehead tattoos, species names...).
|-
| {{w|Groombridge 34|Groombridge 34A}} || b || Y || Hot Mess || This is a reference to the phrase [http://arresteddevelopment.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_mess Hot mess] from the popular television show Arrested Development.
|-
| Kepler-442 || {{w|Kepler-442b|b}} || Y || Seas of Toothpaste ||
|-
| Gliese-442 || b || Y || This one weird planet || Most likely a reference to {{w|clickbait}} articles found on the internet.
|-
| rowspan=3 | EPIC-201367065 || b || Y || Sulawesi || {{w|Sulawesi|An island }} in the Indonesian archipelago.
|-
| c || Y || Huge Soccer Ball ||
|-
| d || Y || Geodude || [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Geodude_%28Pok%C3%A9mon%29 Geodude]] is a Pokemon characterised by its ball-like shape. It resembles a clump of rocks.
|-
| rowspan=5 | Kepler-296 || b || Y || Kerbal Space Planet || {{w|Kerbal Space Program}} is a game where model rockets are launched on a scale version of the Earth. It has been referenced in xkcd a number of times ([[1106]], [[1244]], [[1356]]). Note, though, that the actual planet corresponding to the Earth in the game is called "Kerbin".
|-
| c || Y || A$aplanet || Most probably a pun on the rap group {{w|A$AP Mob}} and their most prominent member {{w|A$AP Rocky}}. May also be a pun on {{w|Kesha}}, also written as Ke$ha. In that case the c of the planet's designation would belong to the name.
|-
| d || Y || {{w|Jurassic World}} || Jurassic world is the most recent movie in the Jurassic park series.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-296e|e}} || Y || This Land || Reference to Wash's dialogue in the pilot episode of {{w|Firefly_(TV_Series)}}.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-296f|f}} || Y || Springfield || The name of {{w|Springfield (The Simpsons)|the town}} in which animated sitcom {{w|The Simpsons}} is set; possibly a reference to the running joke that the state in which Springfield is located has never been named.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|HR 7722}} || {{w|HR 7722 b|b}} || Y || Betelgeuse || rowspan=2 | {{w|Betelgeuse}} is a star in the constellation Orion. It is commonly (at least by speakers of English) pronounced as "beetlejuice". {{w|Beetlejuice}}, however is a film directed by {{w|Tim Burton}} from 1988. Similarly to Dune/Arrakis and the two Uranuses, naming two planets with names that are generally regarded to be identical would cause severe confusion in astronomical discussions.
|-
| {{w|HR 7722 c|c}} || Y || Beetlejuice
|-
| EPIC201912552 || b || Y || Netherlands VI || As the title text a reference to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/what_if%3F What if?]'s [http://www.what-if.xkcd.com/53/ 53], [http://www.what-if.xkcd.com/54/ 54] and comic [[1551: Pluto]]. Due to a drain in the Earth's ocean the Netherlands have not to worry about getting flooded, anymore and take the opportunity to conquer the world (including Antarctica becoming South Netherlands) in What if 53, Mars (New Netherlands) in What if 54, and a section of Pluto (again: New Netherlands) in comic 1551. This may also be a possible reference to [[1519: Venus]], but there seems to be no relation to the other conquests of the Netherlands. Maybe it should also be mentioned, that {{w|New Netherland}} was a Dutch colony with {{w|New York City}}, formally known as {{w|New Amsterdam}}, as its capital. So the name "New Netherlands" can be assumed as "historically correct", while "Netherlands VI" isn't.
|-
| rowspan=3 | Gliese 3293 || b || Y || Antispit || In the comic [http://www.mspaintadventures.com/ Homestuck] there is a moon named Prospit
|-
| c || Y || Google Earth || {{w|Google Earth}} is a service, similar to Google Maps, which projects satellite data on a 3D globe that can be zoomed in on. Other features, such as models of buildings, can also appear.
|-
| d || Y || Planet of the Apes (Disambiguation) || The way a Wikipedia article would be titled, for example, to distinguish from the {{w|Planet of the Apes (novel)|the original novel}}, {{w|Planet of the Apes (1968 film)|the first film}}, {{w|Planet of the Apes (2001 film)|the Tim Burton remake}} and {{w|Rise of the Planet of the Apes|the reboot series}}. In each adaptation, a group of astronauts lands on what is believed to be a "Planet of the Apes", which turns out to be a post-apocalyptic Earth.
|-
| rowspan=2 | Kepler-283 || b || Y || ˈjʊərənəs || rowspan = 2 | Two alternative pronunciations (written in {{w|International Phonetic Alphabet}}) for the planet name Uranus; the first one translates as "YU-ri-nus" ("urine-us"), while the second translates as "yu-RAIN-us" ("your anus"). The first pronunciation (being the same as how the {{w|Uranus (mythology)|Greek god}} is pronounced in English) is preferred by astronomers, but both are commonly heard.
|-
| c || Y || jʊˈreɪnəs
|-
! colspan=4 | (right column)
|-
| rowspan=4 | {{w|Upsilon Andromedae}} || b || Y || Fourthmeal || {{w|Taco_Bell}} has an ad campaign adding a meal after dinner. Possibly also a reference to {{w|Hobbit}}s and [http://askmiddlearth.tumblr.com/post/41765286488/the-seven-daily-hobbit-meals seven daily meals].
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae c|c}} || N || Stampy || The name of the elephant from the {{w|Simpsons}} episode {{w|Bart Gets an Elephant}}.
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae d|d}} || N || Moonchild || The name Bastian gives the Childlike Empress in {{w|The Neverending Story}}.
|-
|{{w|Upsilon Andromedae e|e}} || N || Ham Sphere || [http://www.hamsphere.com HamSphere] is a {{w|Amateur radio|Ham Radio}} simulator program. Ham radio uses designated radio frequencies for non-commercial exchange of messages and more. A pun of Hemisphere.
|-
| rowspan=3 | {{w|. Eridani|HD 20794}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_b/ b] || N || Cosmic Sands || style="font-family:'Comic Sans MS', 'Comic Sans'" | A {{w|pun}} on the name of the font {{w|Comic Sans}}. (See also: [[590|590: Papyrus]].)
|-
| [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_c/ c] || N || Legoland || {{w|Legoland}} is a chain of {{w|theme park}}s owned by the {{w|Lego Group}}. Potentially a reference to the movie {{w|The World's End (film)|The World's End}}, in which the protagonist Gary King tells the alien invaders to "get in your rocket and fuck off back to Legoland".
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/hd_20794_d/ d] || N || Planet with Arms || A reference to the [http://www.thecolorsofmysoul.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/The-Hitchhikers-Guide-to-the-Galaxy.jpg early covers] of {{w|Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}?
|-
| {{w|HD 85512}} || {{w|HD 85512 b|b}} || N || Lax Morality || Possibly a parody of science fiction in which certain planets are suggested to be uniformly lax in morals (i.e. full of sex, drugs, etc.). See http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Planetville and related.
|-
| rowspan=6 | {{w|HD 40307}} || {{w|HD 40307 b|b}} || N || Good Planet || Similar to the above, except with good planets. May also be yet another non-descriptive name, like "Space Planet" and "Planet #14".
|-
|{{w|HD|c}} || N || Problemland || See above. Also may be a reference to Iceland/Greenland naming scheme[http://anitasnotebook.com/travelstories/how-iceland-and-greenland-ended-up-with-such-messed-up-names/], where Problemland may actually be a better place to visit than "Good Planet."
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 d|d}} || N || Slickle || This is a reference to "[http://zdarsky.tumblr.com/post/2837139960 The Petals Fall Twice]", which was made as a humorous example of bad fan-fiction. The word itself is a portmanteau of "slowly", "licked", and "tickled".
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 e|e}} || N || Spare Parts || This suggests that the planet is "worthless" or "junk". This is false, of course. May be a reference to the fact it is a planet with nothing much different from the other planets.
|-
|{{w|HD 40307 f|f}} || N || New Jersey VI || Refers to the state of {{w|New Jersey}}; may be an insult to either.
|-
|{{w|HD|g}} || N || How Do I Join the IAU || This implies that the user "got lost" on the IAU website and thought that the "planet name suggestion" input was for general queries.
|-
| rowspan=3 | {{w|Gliese 163}} || [http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_163_b/ b] || N || Neil Tyson's Mustache || {{w|Neil deGrasse Tyson}} is a famous American astrophysicist and science communicator who does maintain a distinguished mustache.
|-
|{{w|Gliese|c}} || N || help@gmail.com || Similar to "How Do I Join the IAU", this implies that the user confused the "planet suggestion" text box for a new email they are trying to send
|-
|[http://exoplanet.eu/catalog/gj_163_d/ d] || N || Hair-Covered Planet || Refers to the well-known {{w|Hairy ball theorem}} of topology.
|-
| {{w|Pi Mensae}} || {{w|Pi Mensae b|b}} || N || Moon Holder || {{w|Jupiter}} has more than 60 discovered moons, and still counting... A planet ten times more massive ''must'' also be a Moon Holder.
|-
| {{w|HD 189733}} || {{w|HD 189733 b|b}} || N || Permadeath || A well-characterized "{{w|Hot Jupiter}}" at a temperature range of 973 ± 33 K to 1,212 ± 11 K. The name refers to the feature of {{w|Permanent death}} common in many RPGs and roguelikes.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-22}} || {{w|Kepler-22 b|b}} || N || Blue Ivy || Blue Ivy Carter is the daughter of musicians {{w|Beyoncé}} and {{w|Jay-Z}}.
|-
| KOI-2474 || b || Y || Store-Brand Earth || A {w|Store brand} is a line of products branded by a retailer. They have a reputation for being lower quality than other brands, and are often marketed similarly to other brands. This is implying that this is a cheaper version of Earth.
|-
| Kepler-437 || b || U || Unicorn Thresher || As far as we can tell, Kepler-437b is in the vicinity of the constellation Monoceros, aka the Unicorn. (This was labeled Kepler-3255b in the previous chart)
|-
| KOI-2418 || b || N || Spherical Discworld || {{w|The Discworld}} is the fictional setting for British author {{w|Terry Pratchett}}'s {{w|Discworld}} series of humorous fantasy novels; it consists of a large disc supported by four elephants themselves standing on top of a turtle flying through space.
|-
| Kepler-438 || b || U || Emergency Backup Earth || This candidate planet has an {{w|Earth Similarity Index}} of 0.89, making it one of the most habitable {{w|Kepler object of interest}}. The name suggests that it could be used as a backup in case something happened to our current planet. This entry was labelled as Kepler-1686b in the previous table.
|-
| Kepler-3010 || b || N || Feeeoooooooop || Possibly the onomatopoeia for something getting sucked into a black hole.
|-
| Kepler-442 || b || N || Liz || ...Just a regular name (for a person, not a planet). Maybe a reference to the Magic School Bus.
|-
| rowspan=3 | 82 Eridani || b || Y || Horsemeat Surface||
|-
| c || Y || The Moon || This name would cause confusion with the Earth's moon, which in English is called The Moon. It is also a poor name choice as 82 Eridani c is not a moon, but a planet.
|-
| d || Y || Constant Saxophones ||
|-
| HD 102365 || b || Y || Little Big Planet || This refers to the videogame {{w|LittleBigPlanet}}.
|-
| rowspan=2 | Gliese 180 || b || Y || Dune || rowspan=2 | Both references to Frank Herbert's {{w|Dune_(novel)|Dune}} book series. The planet Arrakis (informally referred to as 'Dune') is the central planet in the mythology, where the mind-enhancing substance 'spice' comes from. Use of spice enables, among others, supercomputing-like mental computation as well as hyperspace navigation. Having two neighbouring planets with names that are historically used to refer to a single planet would sow further confusion in the already extensive catalog of planet names.
|-
| c || Y || Arrakis
|-
| Formalhaut || b || Y || Swarm of Bees ||
|-
| rowspan=5 | Kepler-62 || b || Y || Sporty || rowspan=5 | A reference to [[1554: Spice Girls]], where Megan was unable to list the members of the pop group. In this case the names are correct.
|-
| c || Y || Baby
|-
| d || Y || Scary
|-
| e || Y || Ginger
|-
| f || Y || Posh
|-
| rowspan=3 | HD 69830 || b || Y || Planet.xxx || {{w|.xxx}} is a controversial top level domain (like to .com and .net) that is intended to distinguish porn sites from other types of website.
|-
| c || Y || Novella || A {{w|novella}} is a form of prose with length between a {{w|short story}} and a {{w|novel}}. Common examples of novellas are romance literature centering around intense lustful encounters in cheap paperback books, though also 'serious' literature may be in novella form.
|-
| d || Y || Sexoplanet || Like the other two planets orbiting this star, the "69" in the stars designation has lead to a sex joke: All planets in this comic are "exo-planets", planets not orbiting our sun. Adding a single "s" in front results in immature humor.
|-
| rowspan=2 | {{w|Gliese 682}} || {{w|Gliese 682 b|b}} || Y || Verdant Hellscape || A contradictory name. "[[wikt:verdant|Verdant]]" usually signifies to be lush with green plantlife, while "[[wikt:hellscape|hellscape]]" describes a desolate landscape destroyed by heat and cataclysm.
|-
| {{w|Gliese 682 c|c}} || Y || Unsubscribe || On YouTube, "subscribers" (people who get updates on a person's channel) are highly valued, and to "unsubscribe" from anyone is deemed to be offensive. "Unsubscribe" is also the command one sends to {{w|Electronic mailing list}}s to stop receiving said mailing list. In this sense it may imply a desire to no longer be bothered with these silly discussions around planet-names. Like "help@gmail.com" and "How do I join the IAU", "unsubscribe" is a frequently seen accidental message on the Internet in contexts where it is not going to work as a command.
|-
| {{w|Kepler-452}} || {{w|Kepler-452b|b}} || Y || Pluto || This is the planet Black Hat is referring to at the top of the table.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

[Black Hat is pointing slide with image of Kepler-452b planet]
:Black Hat: NASA has announced the discovery of a (super-)Earth-sized planet in the habitable zone of a sun-like star.
:Black Hat: I suggest we name this planet "Pluto", both to celebrate the great work by the ''New Horizons'' team, and to make the stupid "Is Pluto a planet" debate a little more confusing

:[Table showing a list of planet names is shown.]

{| class="wikitable" |
While we wait to hear from the IAU, here's a revised and updated list of planet name suggestions (see xkcd.com/1253) New or updated entries in red
|-
|}

==Trivia==
The IPA character for stress is a vertical line ˈ. Randall uses a slanted line similar to acute accent ´ or prime ′.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Exoplanets]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

Category:Comics featuring Nathan Fillion

2015-04-07T22:52:11Z

141.101.105.213: Adding Castle reference.

{{w|Nathan Fillion}} is famous for his role as Captain Mal in {{w|Firefly}}, playing Captain Hammer in {{w|Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog}}, and his appearances in these [[xkcd]] comics. (Oh and he's Richard Castle)

{{navbox-characters}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Firefly actors|Nathan Fillion]]

1503: Squirrel Plan

2015-03-25T10:26:15Z

141.101.105.213: /* Squirrels in other comics */

{{comic
| number = 1503
| date = March 25, 2015
| title = Squirrel Plan
| image = squirrel plan.png
| titletext = [Halfway to the Sun ...] Heyyyy ... what if this BALLOON is full of acorns?!
}}

==Explanation==

===Not all xkcd comics are intended to be taken seriously explanation===
This comic is a light hearted story, drawing on the many theories and ideas people have had about the sun throughout history. It may also be an attempt at nerd-sniping xkcd readers who might take the comic too seriously and interpret it too literally, leading to bizarre conclusions (see '#Squirrels are stupid explanation' below, which itself is most likely an attempt at nerd-sniping explain xkcd readers #meta).

The title text follows the logic stated by the squirrels that the sun, being so magnificent must be full of acorns. A balloon powerful enough to take a squirrel to the sun must be powered by something amazing i.e. acorns - what else could it be?

The fact that the squirrels are talking supports the idea that the reader is not supposed to apply the normal rules of our universe to this comic.

===Squirrels are stupid explanation===
The joke is that squirrels are stupid and have no business trying their paws at aeronautics.

The title text further compounds this notion when the airborne squirrel jeopardizes the entire mission because he wants to test if the balloon itself is full of acorns. Basic observational skills will tell anyone that acorns do not float, and in fact have noticeable weight to them. Elementary logic then dictates that the balloon lifting the squirrel should not contain objects that contribute only weight, and therefore the balloon must not contain acorns. Yet perhaps this is for the best, since continuing on with the mission would (obviously, to us humans) end in death for the airborne squirrel, as well as inconclusive data for the ground team. Title text also suggests that the squirrel is "Half way to the Sun", a distance of roughly 74 800 000 km. This provides a small amount of evidence that it was in fact a squirrel that authored the comic or at least its title text as the squirrel would be dead at that altitude without an appropriate space suit and the balloon would have popped long before due to the expansion of the acorns within.

===Squirrels in other comics===

http://xkcd.com/776/

http://xkcd.com/1156/

http://what-if.xkcd.com/21/

http://what-if.xkcd.com/98/

http://what-if.xkcd.com/102/

http://what-if.xkcd.com/105/

Squirrels are often used in xkcd and what-if comics as a way of avoiding reality. Maybe Randall is going through a tough time this week.

==Transcript==
There are three squirrels. One is suspended from a balloon. The other two are sitting on the ground, looking up at it.

Squirrel on right: Once you've chewed a hole in the sun, shoot the balloon to fall back to earth, then pull the parachute ripcord to land.

Squirrel tied to balloon: Are you sure it's full of acorns?

Squirrel on right: Look how bright and magnificent it is! What else could be in there?
{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1465: xkcd Phone 2

2014-12-30T20:30:35Z

141.101.105.213:

I think the "Waterproof (interior only)" is related to a so-called joke that I first heard from a smart-ass salesman years ago in a camera store when I was considering a certain camera. "Is it waterproof?" I asked. "Oh yes," he replied, "once water gets into it, it will never come out again!" --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 08:05, 26 December 2014 (UTC)

Can you unify the transcription and description? Since the transcript starts from the top left, while description starts from bottom left. [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 09:43, 26 December 2014 (UTC)

I have made http://www.xkcd.ga and http://www.xkcd.tk both forward to http://www.explainxkcd.com. Is this ok?[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:47, 26 December 2014 (UTC)

The acronym for Stack Overflow is an anagram for the acronym of Operating System. Nothing huge, but still mildly interesting.

Could the StackOverflow part also hint at StackSort and http://xkcd.com/1185/ ? [[User:Pinkishu|Pinkishu]] ([[User talk:Pinkishu|talk]]) 14:58, 26 December 2014 (UTC)
:No. StackOverflow is a really popular site for programmers and such. It's propbably to be expected that it has been mentioned multiple times here. Also, StackSort (or sorting in general) doesn't make much sense in this context. -- [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.13|141.101.104.13]] 23:02, 26 December 2014 (UTC)
::I think they meant that the OS could be built in a manner similar to the StackSort, taking various snippets of phone-os code and putting them together. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.69|108.162.216.69]] 02:44, 27 December 2014 (UTC)
:::OK, that might be possible. -- [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.11|141.101.104.11]] 13:31, 27 December 2014 (UTC)
::Stackoverflow is named after the error in Java that occurs when the Java virtual machine's stack memory is exceeded. This is generally caused by a serious memory leak or an infinite recursion has occurred. Definitely not an attractive feature in an OS. Also, since Android runs using Java on the Davek virtual machine, it does actually throw stack overflow errors on occasion. -- {{unsigned|Sam}}
:::Stack overflows have existed in computing from the first stack-based machines, which were invented back before the inventors of Java were probably born! OK, small exaggeration - maybe. First date I can see in this Wikipedia article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stack_machine is 1961. --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 13:51, 28 December 2014 (UTC)

I am thinking the "Fitbit fitness evaluator" is fully meta. That is it is meant to monitor/ asses the digital 'health/fitness' status of your human health/fitness monitoring device. [[User:Iggynelix|Iggynelix]] ([[User talk:Iggynelix|talk]]) 18:10, 26 December 2014 (UTC)

A phone for your other hand®–reads like the phone is capable of being operated by your non-dominant hand, leaving your dominant hand free for–er, other activities... [[User:Laverock|Laverock]] ([[User talk:Laverock|talk]]) 19:02, 26 December 2014 (UTC)
: Such as using the XKCD Phone model 1, of course! (You do have two ears, as well as two hands, don't you?) --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 01:27, 27 December 2014 (UTC)

"Okay Google" is not the name of the virtual assistant, it's the catchphrase that it responds to. Google's version of Siri is called "Google Now." [[Special:Contributions/188.114.106.29|188.114.106.29]] 08:03, 27 December 2014 (UTC)

;Googleable

The iPad is not googleable. No, the other one. No, the other one. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.28|108.162.231.28]] 03:18, 27 December 2014 (UTC)

3D materials could be a reference to 3D printed materials. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.152|108.162.254.152]] 12:47, 27 December 2014 (UTC)

'3D Materials' could be meant to indicate that the phone is not made out of graphene. 'Density control' could be hooked up to an air compressor, allowing the phone to slightly control its density by compressing/decompressing ambient air, while 'Volume' controls the speaker (a useful thing to have, when it's always on). 'Auto-Rotating case' might indicate that it has some sort of gyroscope or reaction wheel system to allow it to control its orientation. 'Washable, though only once' might mean it has some sort of expendable water-resistant protection or coating (only on the inside, of course) that is worn off after a single washing. 'Over 350 Pixels Per Screen' only sets a lower limit on pixel count. The actual count may be anywhere from 351 to several billion or more, so it may actually be a selling point, although a poorly advertised one. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.117|199.27.128.117]] 08:46, 28 December 2014 (UTC)
: Also, the 'Ribbed' feature may be a solution to problems caused by the previous hardware's frictionless exterior.[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.117|199.27.128.117]] 08:52, 28 December 2014 (UTC)

Can someone explain or provide a link to an explanation for pokedex in this context. I know what a pokedex is but is this a Randellism for smartphones?--[[User:Sww1235|Sww1235]] ([[User talk:Sww1235|talk]]) 07:03, 29 December 2014 (UTC)

:Maybe this helps: [[1288]] -- [[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.213|141.101.105.213]] 20:30, 30 December 2014 (UTC)

This is still missing an explanation for "A phone for your other hand(R)". Is that a reference to something? (Also, I practically screamed with laughter when I read "OS by StackOverflow". :) [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.217|173.245.54.217]] 16:24, 30 December 2014 (UTC)