Hair-raising moments in astronomy – Sydney Morning Herald

I see that Jupiter is aligned with Mars (C8) at the moment, says Geoff Gilligan of Coogee. Could this be the dawning of the Age of Aquarius? Should I get out my old flared jeans and tie-dyed T-singlets? Richard Stewart of Pearl Beach wonders if were headed for a span where peace will guide the planet and love will steer the stars and asks if anyone recalls the interval of the musical where the whole cast was naked. Ah, memory.

Colin Taylor-Evans of Lane Cove has some advice for 10-year-old Rachael, mentioned last month as the future beneficiary of a 1985 Toyota Starlet, currently in the care of her grandfather, John Ure (C8). Rachael will turn 13 the year her car-in-waiting turns 30. I suggest she applies for associate membership of her local enthusiast car club, catering to the manual drivers of Mount Hutton. Her 30-year-old Toyota will then be eligible for Conditional Historic Vehicle Registration, greatly reduced rego fees and insurance, though limited to 60 days per year of usage. Dont want to wear out that clutch!

Currently holidaying in Tasmania, I was surprised that so many Tasmanians mourn their dead grass to the point where they have established many lawn cemeteries, notes Peter Miniutti of Ashbury.

Sorry, Norma Brown (C8) but the kookaburra aint solitary. Mark Fuller of Armidale is lucky enough to have a large family of kookaburras on my small (15 acres) property. I have witnessed seven together, which is good as they are great for keeping snakes down. Corinne Johnston of Gymea Bay adds: No one has told our group of three kookaburras that they are solitary, nor the riot of about 15-20 circling our huge ironbark tree last week, like something Hitchcock designed.

Regarding the collective noun aspect, Patrick McMahon of Paddington asks: Remember Monty Python inventing a flange as the group name for gorillas. People believed it and I think its still used.

Margaret Grove of Abbotsford writes: Michael Morton-Evans (C8), the name Hyphen still has two syllables. While not entirely correct, Dash would be shorter. Indeed, Charles Davies-Scourfield of Culburra Beach says: My prep school name was Dash. My grandfather was triple barrelled with perhaps the longest name, Saunders-Davies-Scourfield, but wisely reduced it.

My first policy as a Column 8 candidate (C8) would be to immediately disendorse anyone who claimed John Hopkins University as their alma mater, promises Kevin Harris of Beecroft.

Column8@smh.com.au

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Hair-raising moments in astronomy - Sydney Morning Herald