Washington Diary Andreas Frew reports from the heady heights of Capitol Hill

摘要

It's been a big year so far for astronomy and physics, but a rather difficult one for the people who organise publicity for astronomers and physicists. Last month, NASA's well-oiled public relations machine swung into action to unveil the first-ever image of a planet outside the Solar System (until now, the presence of such bodies was only inferred from the behaviour of nearby stars). This was big news, the kind of thing that scientists would normally save for the annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS), scheduled for early June, or for journal publication.