Just for kicks and giggles, here’s a conversation Brett and I had by email today. And this isn’t all that weird for us. Some background information, a few several weeks or so ago we watched a Nova Science Now about the Hubble and have been talking about Hubble shots since. There’s also a side story with actual water rolling off an actual duck’s back.42D

Lisa: M1: The Crab Nebula from Hubble. I thought you’d enjoy a Hubble shot.

Brett: I do, thanks. Horseheads… crabs… do you think you could find me a duck nebula? And maybe make it a bit smaller so I can bring it home with me?

Lisa: Would a small duck head work? http://www.ne.jp/asahi/stellar/scenes/object_e/ngc2359.htm

Brett: Is there a reason we have to decapitate two-thirds of our nebulae?

Lisa: I don’t know. But if you let me think about it for a while I’m sure I could come up with a good reason.

Brett: It just seems a little barbaric, that’s all. And whole ducks are more fun to play with than duck heads. On a related (?) topic, I just realized that the “lax” in “galaxy” comes from the same root as the “lac” in “lactose intolerant.”

Lisa: Perhaps it isn’t us that are decapitating the nebula. Some nebula are the results of exploded stars. So maybe the duck or horse were whole at some time, but then they blew up. So that would mean that in some place of the universe there is a duck’s back (wonder if galactic water rolls off it?) and a horse’s behind as well. We shall have to look and see what we can find.

Brett: 🙂 I would agree with that, except I would more expect to find galactic milk rolling off it.

Lisa: Does milk have enough similar properties to water to roll off a duck? Would the cohesion properties of milk work the same way?

Brett: Only one way to find out. Next time we’re at the Desert Museum, we need to smuggle in some milk.

Lisa: I like the way you think. There are probably other ways to find out too though.

I think this is a great conversation for The International Year of Astronomy. :star: