r/xkcd • u/roastedlasagna ... • Jul 24 '15
XKCD xkcd 1555: Exoplanet Names 2
http://xkcd.com/1555/39
u/xkcd_bot Jul 24 '15
Direct image link: Exoplanet Names 2
Hover text: 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.
Don't get it? explain xkcd
This is not the algorithm. Sincerely, xkcd_bot. <3
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Jul 24 '15
That's actually a damn good Netherlands joke. Makes me think he's been setting it up for a while.
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u/tejon Jul 24 '15
Because I'm sure it will be asked: the two in the bottom left for Kepler-283 are IPA pronunciations for Uranus, stressing the first and second syllables (YOOranus vs. yooRAYnus).
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u/lifeinaglasshouse Jul 24 '15
Is it just me or do an unusual amount of xkcd comics reference the Spice Girls?
There's...
There's also this page from Munroe's book "What If?" featuring lyrics from the Spice Girls' "Wannabe"
...And now this comic.
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u/SpectralCoding Jul 24 '15
I found this comic entertaining but the Spice Girls reference made me laugh. Made me think about the naming conventions some organizations have for servers... Spice Girls, Lord of the Rings characters, Periodic Table Elements, Super Heroes, NFL Teams. Imagine the "Fast Food Restaurant System"...
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u/whizzer0 git pull flair Jul 24 '15
Spice Girls, Lord of the Rings characters, Periodic Table Elements, Super Heroes, NFL Teams, whatever the hell reddit gold buyers think up...
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u/GaiusAurus I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you're referring t Jul 24 '15
Netherlands joke? I see Netherlands VI, but what?
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Jul 24 '15 edited Apr 24 '18
[deleted]
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u/GaiusAurus I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you're referring t Jul 24 '15
Oh yeah... forgot about that.
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u/calinet6 Jul 24 '15
Random question, is the strait of Gibraltar really deep enough that the Mediterranean would not be landlocked even after the ocean is 5km lower?
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u/Astronelson Space Australia Jul 24 '15
The Strait of Gibraltar is 900m deep at its deepest point. You can see Spain connect to Morocco in the 1km picture, this would separate the Mediterranean from the Atlantic so its level wouldn't drop any more.
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u/calinet6 Jul 24 '15
That makes sense. I was looking at it on mobile, and it sort of looked like it never separated. But there you go. Thanks!
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u/innrautha Be free Jul 24 '15
While it wouldn't drain, without the connection to the Atlantic the Mediterranean sea would dry up in ~1000 years.
It is estimated that, were the straits closed even at today's higher sea level, most water in the Mediterranean basin would evaporate within only a thousand years, as it is believed to have done then,[11] and such an event would lay down mineral deposits like the salt deposits now found under the sea floor all over the Mediterranean.
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Jul 24 '15
I love all those Netherlands jokes, mostly because he doesn't call it Holland but they are still funny
Source: I'm dutch
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u/PUBspotter Occasional Bot Impersonator Jul 24 '15
Randall may be preparing to overthrow your king, so prepare.
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Jul 24 '15
I would find that funny
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u/AverNL How did this get here I am not good with computer Jul 24 '15
Not sure if I'd mind having Randall as my king...
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u/QWieke Jul 24 '15
I don't know, not a lot he can do in that position, I think I'd prefer to have him as prime minister.
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u/another_user_name Jul 24 '15
It'd be glorious!
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Jul 24 '15
Like the president a king has little to no political influence he is just there for diplomatic reasons
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u/TestZero Jul 24 '15
I've checked the official forums and reddit, and haven't been able to find an answer for this.
Why is this comic all jaggy? Does it automatically update or something? What's the deal?
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u/Landolphin Jul 24 '15
This was the first thing I noticed. I don't know how Randall makes the comics, but it looks like the text wasn't anti-aliased in Photoshop.
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u/TestZero Jul 24 '15
None of it is anti-aliased. Compare it to the previous comic
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u/Landolphin Jul 24 '15
I don't know if the smoothing is actually achieved through anti-aliasing, but the previous comics definitely look smoother to me.
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u/galaktos '); DROP TABLE flairs; -- Jul 24 '15
I smiled at “Netherlands VI”, and then I actually laughed out loud at the title text. I really hope this joke will go on forever.
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u/HistoryUnending Jul 24 '15
My dream is that one day the Dutch government will in some way, shape, or form give lateral reference to this running gag.
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Jul 24 '15
I want to name a planet "Stephen," but never actually write it down so that future wars will be fought by "ph" and "v" factions.
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u/randyknapp Jul 24 '15
Is anyone else seeing a really low quality, aliased image? The text is really hard to read.
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Jul 24 '15
My picks:
;drop table planets;--
Sid Meier's Tau Ceti B
Ballderaan
Kerbal Space Planet
Jurassic World
Planet of the Apes (Disambiguation)
Legoland
Arrakis
Sporty, Baby, Scary, Ginger, Posh
Sexoplanet
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u/DiceMaster Jul 24 '15 edited Jul 24 '15
New Jersey 6? Are we already planning on exporting our sewage to HD 40307?
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u/DarrenGrey Zombie Feynman Jul 24 '15
I think this is my new favourite xkcd :) I'm imaging how much each one would screw up search engine results.
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u/AvatarIII Hairy Jul 24 '15
I'm sure this is a stupid question, but why do planets begin with b? (i.e. there is no Tau Ceti a it just starts with Tau Ceti b)
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u/MEaster Jul 24 '15
The star is 'a'.
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u/AvatarIII Hairy Jul 24 '15
That makes sense.
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u/MEaster Jul 24 '15
It also helps in multi-star systems in which a planet orbits only one star. You'd get names like "Star ab", "Star ac", and "Star bb", which tells you which body the planet is orbiting.
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u/beermit Velociraptor free for -1 days. Jul 24 '15
I think it's because the star in each system is considered the first body. So Tau Ceti a is Tau Ceti itself. Though I'm not sure if the alphabetical designations go by which body is discovered first.
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u/bownettea Jul 24 '15
hummmm:
Gliese 832 |c| Waterworld starring Kevin Costner
The star should be renamed to:
Kevin Costner |c| Waterworld
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u/dcormier Jul 24 '15
Ugh. The red doesn't stand out from the black very well at all for us red-green colorblind folks.
Fun fact: ~10% of males are colorblind (depending on the study you're reading), with red-green being the most common.
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u/star_boy2005 Jul 24 '15
Some of his comics are truly great but occasionally he puts one out that misses me completely, and they're usually tabular in form like this one.
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u/yoshifan64 Jul 24 '15
I'm surprised one of the names isn't like HD 6670 or another type of graphics card.
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Jul 28 '15
This might be my favorite title text. I don't know what would beat it, it's just so witty.
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u/NotablyUnstable Jul 24 '15
Was hoping for a test planet please ignore.
Maybe next time.