Bad News on the Internet

摘要

This past simmer a widely circulated e-mail announced that Mars was passing extremely close to Earth and promised in shouting letters that "NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN." The only problem: It wasn't true. In astronomy, as with just about every topic, the Internet has become a reliable source of unreliable urban myths, hoaxes, distortions, and mistakes. Many of the most hysterical postings warn of Armageddon-type encounters with comets or asteroids; the current doomsday craze warns of a deadly asteroid strike in 2046. One particularly far-fetched note claims that the sun will blow up within six years.