It’s way too late for this, but it’s important to note that NASA didn’t discover the new earth-like planets. It was a group of astronomers lead by a dude name Michaël Gillon from the University of Liège in Belgium. Giving NASA credit for this gives the United States credit for something they didn’t do, and we already have a problem with making things about ourselves so. just like…be mindful. I’d be pissed if I discovered a small solar system and credit was wrongfully given to someone else.
This is valid. NASA’s involvement in this was predominantly in the use of of Spitzer data to validate findings from a primarily European funded program (TRAPPIST). There were Americans (or at least, an American) on the team, but beyond it being a collaborative and data-sharing arrangement this isn’t primarily an Agency achievement.
I’m here for the Belgians in the tags and also…totally didn’t know trappist was the name of a beer, I fucking love learning shit on my own posts.
Not just the beer though – the Trappists are an order of monks who live in relative seclusion, and they make a bunch of stuffs, including really-really excellent beer. They also invented some types of cheese. The most popular cheese in Hungary, basically the default cheese, is trappista, is a knock-off of original Trappist hard cheeses.
(Oh no, now I’m thinking about Trappist monks and/or Trappistine nuns IN SPACE. Seriously, did nobody consider that people suited to a monastic lifestyle, especially a strictly ordered and cloistered lifestyle, would be also suited to the boredom and isolation of long-term spaceflight?)
Key and Teeth 