A Brief Summer Break

by Paul Gilster on July 18, 2011

It hasn’t escaped my attention that in the past seven years, I’ve taken no more than a couple of days off at a time from writing Centauri Dreams posts. Now that the doldrums of summer are here in the northern hemisphere, it seems a good time to take a somewhat longer break. Not that I’ll stay away if something major happens — if Debra Fischer announces rocky worlds around Centauri B, for example, I’ll be all over the story. But a week off will provide the chance to reflect, recharge, and get in some backed up but necessary reading. I’ll plan to have the next Centauri Dreams post up, then, some time next week, probably by the 27th, and then back to normal.

{ 39 comments }

Alex McLin July 18, 2011 at 13:25

Enjoy your break, have a good week and will look forward to when you return!

Brandon July 18, 2011 at 13:58

Thanks for your writing, and have a good break.

CP July 18, 2011 at 14:27

A well-earned break. Centauri Dreams provides the best space exploration essays I’ve ever read – on this or any other planet.

Thank you so much, Paul, for all of your amazing and thoughtful work. We’ll look forward to your return.

Ron S July 18, 2011 at 14:28

Paul, the break is well deserved. Thank you for your continuing efforts, and enthusiasm for this topic!

Aleksandar July 18, 2011 at 14:56

Have a great time Paul, you’ve certainly earned it :)

Paul Gilster July 18, 2011 at 15:06

Thanks to all for the kind words! Believe me, they are much appreciated.

ljk July 18, 2011 at 15:20

Paul, you probably don’t want to read this, then, until you get back:

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27005/

Malcolm Ramsay July 18, 2011 at 15:24

Have a lovely holiday, Paul- if we find a planet, we’ll name it after you!

Greg July 18, 2011 at 15:26

Have a good one Paul, you earned it!

Adam July 18, 2011 at 15:48

Enjoy the break Paul! You deserve it, well and truly.

Daniel Suggs July 18, 2011 at 16:59

Everyone else has already said it all, so thanks and enjoy.

Paul Gilster July 18, 2011 at 17:49

I did see the 55 Cancri link that Larry sent, and I admit it does get my reflexes going. But I’m going to try to stay disciplined enough to at least stay on vacation for more than a day ;-) And we’ll get to 55 Cancri next week.

bill July 18, 2011 at 17:49

You go and just take it easy.
Don’t worry about that announcement coming out July 20 about that breakthrough in Hyperdrive , where FTL capability has finally been achieved -that can wait till your return !!

ljk July 18, 2011 at 19:46

Bill, do you mean the hyperdrive that was offered to us by representatives of the Galactic Federation who wish us to join their organization and thus uplift all of humanity into the Universe?

Shannon July 19, 2011 at 2:05

Many thanks for your fantastic articles Paul. Enjoy your break and we eagerly await your return…

William July 19, 2011 at 2:23

Thanks for a brilliant web site and have a good break.

Paul July 19, 2011 at 6:01

Enjoy your break Paul, I think we will all be awaiting your return with much enthusiasm!

Mike July 19, 2011 at 9:21

Enjoy your well earned vacation Paul! It’s hard to work during the days that the Dog Star reigns supreme.

Pieter Botma July 19, 2011 at 9:26

Enjoy your well deserved rest. I for one will miss your informative posts very much. A quick question to you and some of the other readers. Any other blogs or sites with space exploration content of the same quality I have come to expect from centauri-dreams? Thank you.

Andrey Cavallazzi July 19, 2011 at 10:34

Well deserved break. This is maybe the first time I comment here, just want to say that I am a brazilian who reads your site daily and that also in this country we appreciate the work you do for astronomy.

Keep it up, and enjoy your time!

Bob July 19, 2011 at 10:55

Centauri Dreams is an excellent website and look forward to your next post. Have a great vacation!

bigdan201 July 19, 2011 at 11:07

I can’t fault you at all. I do writing to various extents, and I’m impressed by the consistency and quality here. That, combined with the discussions I can get into with like-minded readers, have kept me coming back. See ya soon!

henk July 19, 2011 at 12:42

i hope you have a great Vacation. This is one of the best websites that I visit.
Keep up the good work.

Rick July 19, 2011 at 16:48

Really thanks Paul, I am a silent reader (now with this message not anymore :) ) of your blog since long (just cos as hobby I have interest in the topics you write about) and I just can say you thanks a thousand times for the great job you always do. You deserve a good vacation. So, enjoy and have relax :) Greetings from Italy.

Dave Bowman July 19, 2011 at 19:47

Paul,

Enjoy your break and many thanks for your work on this website.

Eniac July 19, 2011 at 20:38

Great, now I can actually get some real work done, for one short week!

Best blog, bar none.

W. Twopointzero July 19, 2011 at 20:41

Hi,
Long time reader, first time poster. Every morning, I look forward to reading your articles and the comments that accompany them. How will i fill my time now..? Guess I’ll have to do some actual work for the next week or so…
Enjoy your well deserved break Paul and I eagerly await your return, and the fascinating reads that lie ahead.
Love your work!

bill July 20, 2011 at 0:58

@ljk

the very same … !

JohnHunt July 20, 2011 at 1:34

It’s a good opportunity to thank you for all that you have done. Enjoy the break. We’ll be here when you get back.

Pointless Geometry July 20, 2011 at 6:05

Have a good one!

jkittle July 20, 2011 at 17:29

Paul
wear suntan lotion!
Reading at the beach is vacation of the gods

Tom Baty July 20, 2011 at 18:13

Agreeing with all the above….you earned a great vacation. Can’t wait until you get back from your break so we can have a discussion about Pluto’s newest moon!!! I am adding my 2 cents worth by suggesting the name “Persephone” for the new discovery. In mythology she is Pluto’s wife and queen of the underworld. After all Charon, Nix and Hydra were all guys (I think), perhaps Pluto wouldn’t be so lonely way out there with some female company. LOL…… Tom

Paul Gilster July 20, 2011 at 18:25

jkittle, no beach in sight, I’m afraid, but all these comments certainly have made this a wonderful vacation from the outset, and many thanks to all for the good thoughts!

AMB July 20, 2011 at 19:58

Enjoy your well-earned break!

Thanks for all your great work!

Rick July 21, 2011 at 15:54

Hey!!! Have been discovered the fourth moon of Pluto!!! :) If with a vacation of a week astronomers soon discovered a moon of a mini planet, in case you would take a major vacation, will they discover in a blink Tyche?! :))) Kidding xD About names I read proposals about Tartaros and Cerberus what do you think?

ljk July 22, 2011 at 9:47

And with more tracking data supplied for the Pioneer 10 and 11 probes, the investigators are now quite certain that their “unusual” behavior is due to internal heat radiation and not some strange force of physics or any alien craft attached to the Earth vessels.

And elliptical galaxies may be relatively younger than previously thought. Not sure what this might mean for any Kardashev Type 3 civilizations among them.

And the Space Shuttle Atlantis landed safely in Florida yesterday morning, ending that program but hopefully not US manned spaceflight or space exploration in general as some fear.

And today NASA is going to announce where the robot rover Curiousity is going to land on Mars to look for signs of life.

And that’s the way it is for Friday, July 22, 2011.

IB July 23, 2011 at 10:46

Eagerly awaiting your return, Paul. Have a well-deserved vacation – but don’t be long!

Eric July 24, 2011 at 3:55

Paul, enjoy your much deserved vacation time. Go to the beach while the heat wave is on.

parmanello July 24, 2011 at 6:55

This is an exceptional website that provides a wealth of high quality, diverse and interesting articles. The consistency of the frequency and calibre of the generated content is particularly remarkable, not to mention that it’s all free. Easily one of my favourite sites on the net; have a well deserved break!

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