Most of you have heard the news that the International Astronomical Union (IAU) made a very important decision last week. It ruled there are only eight planets; not nine. Poor little Pluto has been demoted from official planet status and no longer qualifies to play with the big boys. Just like the status of Pluto; science and life is change. MORE>>

We talk a lot on The Deep about the environment. Global warming is one of our frequent topics. Global warming affects us all, but this week we’ll be talking about disasters of a more localized nature that are a little closer to home. There’s been a major oil spill off one of the most beautiful islands in the Philippines. This week, we’ll be talking about how the Philippines is handling this disaster in the face of local corruption and massive world indifference. MORE>>

Ever since we discovered that Mars is a cold dry desert with no liquid water and that the surface of Venus very closely approximates most religious concepts of hell, many science fiction writers have moved their aliens and alien ecosystems to planets that circle other stars. Perhaps they’ve abandoned the solar system too soon. Our wandering robot spacecraft have discovered some bizarre and wonderful worlds right here in our very own backyard. MORE>>

Major news events tend to freeze our memories. Everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing when they first became aware of the horrible news of 9/11. Here on Guam, natural disasters also remain fixed in our memories. The words Karen, Pamela, Omar or Pongsona evoke many memories in local residents. But there are other natural disasters on Guam. MORE>>

One of the ‘cool facts’ about Guam is its closeness to the Marianas Trench and the Challenger Deep, the deepest spot in the ocean. We all know that it’s east of Guam, it’s really close, and that’s where all our earthquakes come from. But unfortunately, common knowledge can be wrong. MORE>>