From Exoplanets to News Channels

Some interesting space exploration news today: the Kepler people just released a largish chunk of their first 43 days of observational data, along with their suspicion of having some 750 or more candidates for exoplanet-type objects. There seems to be some backtracking - IE the pulling from public access of a video related to the news item - but the data's still available for would-be fact-checkers at assorted observatories across the planet to do their own follow-ups and make sure of the reduction of error percentages in play here. More news on the subject at Centauri Dreams.

Meanwhile, exoplanet.eu puts the official confirmed total of known exoplanets - as of the moment I write these words - at 460. Apparently, CoRoT added a half-dozen new ones to the confirmed list this week.

Meanwhile, Quebecor - yes, the company that owns the company that prints much of Marvel and DC's lines for them - is looking to get into the news channel business. Which worries me. Some of the reasons why may be found here. (Needless to say, personal opinion in play here.) This new business development can be safely filed under "unintended consequences", I suppose.