Astronomers Fix the Astronomical Unit 182
gbrumfiel writes "The Astronomical Unit (AU) is known to most as the distance between the Earth and the Sun. In fact, the official definition was a much more complex mathematical calculation involving angular measurements, hypothetical bodies, and the Sun's mass. That old definition created problems: due to general relativity, the length of the AU changed depending on an observer's position in the solar system. And the mass of the Sun changes over time, so the AU was changing as well. At the International Astronomical Union's latest meeting, astronomers unanimously voted on a new simplified definition: exactly 149,597,870,700 meters. Nobody need panic, the earth's distance from the sun remains just as it was, regardless of whether it's in AUs, meters, or smoots."
let's not waste significant digits! (Score:5, Funny)
you'd think they could have rounded up to 150 gigameters.
if politicians can be SD-conservative, why can't astronomers? we all know that significance is precious and rare...
No, panic. (Score:5, Funny)
Nobody need panic, the earth's distance from the sun remains just as it was, regardless of whether it's in AUs, meters, or smoots."
I'm more concerned about the fact that the distance changes depending on where we are. That means that the Earth is moving, and I don't believe in that. It's more heliocentric non-sense by the astronomical community. What next; astronomical bodies that aren't perfectly spherical? The madness of the commoners, I tell you.
Re:let's not waste significant digits! (Score:5, Funny)
if politicians can be SD-conservative, why can't astronomers? we all know that significance is precious and rare...
It was decided by committee. I'm sure it was a compromise of several possible values, with concessions on each side, a few attempts to filibuster it until Pluto was given recognition again, etc. No, I'm not trying to be funny.
Re:Distance remains the same? (Score:5, Funny)
Since the Earth's orbit around the Sun is eliptical it's _never_ the same, is it?
Even an elliptical orbit is right twice a year.
The new AU ... (Score:5, Funny)
Eve nav problems (Score:2, Funny)
Great, everyone in Eve is going to be missing jump gates, plowing through asteroid fields at warp. Going to be chaos.
Re:The new AU ... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:The new AU ... (Score:5, Funny)
Apparently they decided to define it by sticking a large rock in orbit around the sun.
Re:They should mesure it in miles. (Score:5, Funny)
92,955,807.3 miles
Your answer is SOO 8 minutes ago...
Thank you, Bob Barker. (Score:5, Funny)
How much is that in Cesium atom wavelengths? (Score:4, Funny)
Or more correctly, units of c times the period of "radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium 133 atom". Let's get this down to fundamentals and not muck about with intermediate convenience units like "meters".
Re:let's not waste significant digits! (Score:5, Funny)
If you are constantly somewhere between 2.328 and 2.347 feet from me, I'm not going to define the distance between us as 2.000 feet simply because "it's a nice round number."
Agreed; I'd define that distance as "all up in my grill," and I'd define that trajectory as "cruisin' for a bruisin'."
Re:let's not waste significant digits! (Score:5, Funny)
1 AU = 42
Has anyone here noticed that? Why, when someone picks a random number, 12 and 42 come out so often? Has there been some research done on that?
I wouldn't panic about it.
Re:They should mesure it in miles. (Score:4, Funny)
Don't mix speed and distance.
Hey, I can do the Kessel Run in 17 parsecs!
Re:The new AU ... (Score:2, Funny)
It's already there, but you got the length wrong. It's exactly 1/149,597,870,700 AU