Not All News is Bad!

A Daily Antidote to Everything Else

A Daily Antidote to Everything Else

7 Earth-Size Planets Orbit Dwarf Star, NASA and European Astronomers Say – The New York Times

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7 Earth-Size Planets Orbit Dwarf Star, NASA and European Astronomers Say

Astronomers are excited by the discovery, which suggests that some of these exoplanets — planets around stars other than the sun — could support life and may be awash in oceans.

Source: 7 Earth-Size Planets Orbit Dwarf Star, NASA and European Astronomers Say – The New York Times

As you might expect, I find this kind of thing absolutely fascinating. That there might be Earth-like planets … well, that’s a given as far as I’m concerned. That there might be some this close (and yes, in the grand scheme of things, this is close) is pretty cool. But that there might be seven of them? Holy crap!

#notallnewsisbad – some of it is downright amazing.

‘Every person deserves to rest in peace’: American Muslims raising money to repair vandalized Jewish cemetery – The Washington Post

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Cemetary Stone

“This is a great way to show respect and honor for our Jewish cousins.”

Source: ‘Every person deserves to rest in peace’: American Muslims raising money to repair vandalized Jewish cemetery – The Washington Post

One of the purposes of my posts is to highlight good news. Even when the good stuff happen in response to something less than positive. In fact, there’s a strong argument that highlighting specific, positive responses to some of the bad news takes away some of that bad news’s power.

This is actually just the most recent example of several recent instances of organizations viewed as being at cross purposes reaching out to one another in times of need. It gives me much hope for all involved.

#notallnewsisbad

A Colorful ‘Landing’ on Pluto | NASA

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Pluto

What would it be like to actually land on Pluto? This movie was made from more than 100 images taken by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft over six weeks of approach and close flyby in the summer of 2015.

Source: A Colorful ‘Landing’ on Pluto | NASA

Stunning. That we can throw something out into space, direct it as accurately as we do, and then get back these fantastic images as well as a bucket-load of other data about the cosmos just amazes me every time I think about it. #notallnewsisbad

SpaceX Launches Its First Rocket From Iconic Florida Pad

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SpaceX

https://www.wsj.com/articles/spacex-launches-its-first-rocket-from-iconic-florida-pad-1487516347

Cool for so many reasons. Less dependence on others, more predictability and reliability, and even as with the original space program: scads of innovations that make their way back here on to planet Earth. There will be failures, always, but the magnitude of the forward progress is nonetheless impressive. #notallnewsisbad