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The Arthur C. Clarke Gamma Ray Burst

Posted by kdawson on from the second-biggest-bang dept.

Larry Sessions, a columnist for Earth & Sky, has suggested in his blog that the gamma-ray event whose radiation reached us a few hours before Arthur C. Clarke died, and which occurred 7.5 billion years ago, be named the Clarke Event. The outburst, which produced enough visible light to render it a naked-eye object across half the universe, is officially designated GRB 080319B. What more fitting tribute to Clarke than to associate his name with the greatest bang since the big one? Sessions suggests writing to any astronomers, heads of physics departments, or planetarium operators you know and talking up the proposal.

6 of 120 comments (clear)

  1. Overdoing it by isomeme · · Score: 4, Informative

    What, having the single most valuable orbit type named after him isn't enough? The orbit has the further advantage of actually being his idea.

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    When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a skull.
    1. Re:Overdoing it by Jonathunder · · Score: 5, Informative

      It wasn't his idea, though he did popularize it in a 1945 story. Herman Potocnik published a paper on geosynchronous satellites for communication in 1928.

  2. Re:Not only that... by Somegeek · · Score: 3, Informative

    Can you back up the pedophile claim? Thought not. As far as I can tell not one shred of evidence for the claim has ever been found. He was still knighted, after a two year delay caused by these claims. That shows pretty clearly that the claims were investigated and found to be false.

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  3. No need to mod anything in this thread up. by Somegeek · · Score: 4, Informative

    The facts have come out. Years ago. He never did anything. No one ever came forward. No evidence was ever found. This is old news.

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    And as you tread the halls of sanity, You feel so glad to be, Unable to go beyond. I have a message, From another time..
    1. Re:No need to mod anything in this thread up. by xtracto · · Score: 4, Informative

      Yeah, for all the people that still think it might be true, the fact is that all the Sir Arthur C. Clarke paeophilia issue was brought forward by no less than The Sunday Mirror (or dailiy mirror) which is just a tabloid "news" paper in the UK. They even printed an apology and retraction.

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  4. Re:The Objective is to Remember by reverseengineer · · Score: 3, Informative

    In terms of more lasting recognition for Arthur C. Clarke, he already has asteroid 4923 Clarke, a dinosaur, Serendipaceratops arthurcclarkei, Clarke orbits (an IAU recognized term for geostationary orbit), , a bunch of space stuff has already been named for his Odyssey works, and if we ever build a space elevator, it's likely his name will be connected in some way with that. The man has already been much honored, and deservedly so.

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