Wed, Apr 01, 2015
NASA Reveals PMS As A PC Solution For Measuring Planet Size
ANN’s April 1 “April Fools” Special Edition
As announced recently in an ANN report, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is getting set to begin its study of the dwarf planet Ceres. Since that report, problems have arisen with the project that are serious, but not of a technical nature.
A branch of the White House known as The Department of Political Correctness (DPC) has informed NASA that the term “dwarf” used to describe the small planet does not meet their standards because it could be taken as a reproachful description. NASA was told come up with a revised politically correct (PC) term that would not be offensive.
This mandate by the DPC led NASA to hold a PC conference with other members of the scientific community to agree on a new description for the various sizes of planets. The initial choice was to simply refer to the planets by size using terms like, small, medium, large, extra-large, and so on. However, this plan led to other concerns such as confusion with the garment industry or that a larger size might be considered more important or powerful, thereby demeaning the smaller sizes.
The final resolution was to classify planets by what is referred to as the Planet Mass System (PMS). Because this measurement in gigatons is not used in the common vernacular for other measurements, it was felt that it would not be offensive or demeaning. The DPC has approved the use of PMS as PC and it appears NASA had a good day with PMS.
More News
From 2023 (YouTube Version): Legacy of a Titan Robert (Bob) Anderson Hoover was a fighter pilot, test pilot, flight instructor, and air show superstar. More so, Bob Hoover was an i>[...]
Get The Latest in Aviation News NOW on Instagram Are you on Instagram yet? It's been around for a few years, quietly picking up traction mostly thanks to everybody's new obsession >[...]
Aero Linx: B-52H Stratofortress The B-52H Stratofortress is a long-range, heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions. The bomber is capable of flying at high subsonic spee>[...]
Altimeter Setting The barometric pressure reading used to adjust a pressure altimeter for variations in existing atmospheric pressure or to the standard altimeter setting (29.92).>[...]
"Knowing that we play an active part in bettering people's lives is extremely rewarding. My team and I are very thankful for the opportunity to be here and to help in any way we ca>[...]