1302: Year in Review

2013-12-12T23:24:06Z

173.245.52.228: /* strange grammar issue */

{{comic
| number = 1302
| date = December 11, 2013
| title = Year in Review
| image = year_in_review.png
| titletext = All in all, I give this year a C-. There were no aurora visible from my house and that comet evaporated. They'd better not cancel the 2017 eclipse.
}}

==Explanation==

Many news organizations will recap the major stories of the past calendar year in late December (typically before the year has actually ended). This includes specialized news outlets such as sports stations which recap major sports stories or best plays of the year, for example). Here, [[Cueball]] expects [[Megan]] to talk about major news stories of 2013 such as the rollout of Obamacare, the election of Pope Francis or the death of Nelson Mandela, as examples. Instead, Megan only recaps one thing which was important to her: She did not see the {{w|Aurora (astronomy)|aurora (Northern Lights)}} in 2013, the dazzling natural geomagnetic light display caused by the {{w|Solar wind}}. In 2013 a solar maximum was expected at its {{w|Solar cycle|solar cycle}}, but the activity of the sun wasn't heavy as before. So, a ''Northern Light'' had been very rare in this year.

The title text refers to {{w|Comet ISON}}. In February, a rough estimate of the comet's behavior predicted that it would become brighter than the full moon, a prediction that was widely reported by the media even though it was based on limited data and astronomers knew that it would not reach this brightness. In the end, although it was visible to the naked eye, it was never as bright as anybody hoped and apparently disintegrated on November 28, 2013 at its closed approach to the sun.

The title text also refers to the {{w|2017 total eclipse}}, which will be visible (as a partial eclipse) for a few hours throughout North America on August 21 Monday, including a 100-mile band across the United States where it will be a total eclipse for a couple of minutes in the early afternoon. Although the weather may be cloudy, eclipses are highly predictable, so Megan is being extremely pessimistic to even suggest that it might not occur.

All in all, the comic suggests that the only events of significance to Megan (and Randall) are astronomical ones; the actions of humanity pale in comparison.

The joke of Megan answering a question in an interview in a unexpected manner has been used before in [[1111: Premiere]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball, the TV host, introduces Megan, the reporter.]
:Cueball: We go live to our ''2013: Year in Review!''
:Megan: Thanks! In 2013, I didn't see an aurora.
:Cueball: I- what?

:Megan: The northern lights. I thought this would finally be the year. But it didn't happen.

:Cueball: Oh. Uh...what about the rest of the year?
:Megan: What do you mean?
:Cueball: Any big news stories?
:Megan: Oh yeah, tons.

:[Megan looks off screen to her left.]

:Cueball: ...Well, that was ''2013: Year in Review.''
:Megan: The sky's clearing up. I'll be outside.
:[Megan walks off camera.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

Talk:1297: Oort Cloud

2013-11-29T14:09:59Z

173.245.52.228:

Reading the Wikipedia page on the Oort Cloud didn't help me understand the joke. I don't know if it has anything to do with comets, or the asteroids getting smashed up by them. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.117|108.162.238.117]] 05:15, 29 November 2013 (UTC)
:The asteroid becomes a cost after being severely burnt by the sun. It warns the other asteroid not to go over there. {{unsigned ip|108.162.221.55}}
::Which, the title text indicates, is a warning that's utterly ignored... (Also being "right back" indicates a slower perceived thought process. As is probably the case for anything out there in such cold(-ish) depths of space.) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.229|141.101.99.229]] 11:05, 29 November 2013 (UTC)
::: What does "becomes a cost" mean? is that a slang expression? 12:02, 29 November 2013 (UTC)
:::: I think it's supposed to be "comet". [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.228|173.245.52.228]] 14:09, 29 November 2013 (UTC)
At least according to my freshman year science teacher, the Oort Cloud is just a theory, and hasn't been proven. Perhaps that should be made more clear?

----
What's here looks exactly in line with current comet theory: A comet is "perturbed" by interactions with other objects out there, and at that distance the sun is a very bright dot, no more. On return (chancy, based on both/either burning up or being in a no return hyperbolic orbit), what has come back is fragmented and with two tails. What I'm not seeing is the second level joke - it's in the movie "I'm going to check out x" form, but I don't get the specific quote. [[User:FractalgeekUK|FractalgeekUK]] ([[User talk:FractalgeekUK|talk]]) 13:55, 29 November 2013 (UTC)

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1302: Year in Review

Talk:1297: Oort Cloud