explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1007: Sustainable

2023-12-17T20:24:30Z

141.101.98.134: /* Explanation */ Expand upon why logmatic (i.e. inverse and transformed exponential) does a double-back, and why we're still only seeing (less than) half of this with actual data.

{{comic
| number = 1007
| date = January 23, 2012
| title = Sustainable
| image = sustainable.png
| titletext = Though 100 years is longer than a lot of our resources.
}}
==Explanation==
This is a simple scatterplot showing how often the word "sustainable" has been used in English texts in the US each year. As can be seen, the y-axis is given a logarithmic scale, meaning that the apparently linear trend is actually exponential. [[Randall]] [[605: Extrapolating|humorously attempts to extend the graph]] to the point the frequency exceeds 100% about a century from now, which is obviously impossible (hence the quip that the word's usage is itself "unsustainable").

The use of the word "sustainable" has been increasing as people become more aware of the steadily increasing use of nonrenewable resources and need to ensure that the Earth's resources do not become totally exhausted, through sustainable development. {{w|Sustainable development}} refers to the practice of using resources that simultaneously aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present time, but also for generations to come.

More realistically, the actual use of "sustainable" is likely to be logistic rather than exponential growth. A logistic curve (not to be confused with "logarithmic") describes a trend that at first appears to behave exponentially, but then tapers off and reaches a cap, as it is actually a curve leading up to an arbitrary mid-point 'origin' part way through the track and then levels back off again (in a doubly-reflected manner, typically) to reach a new plateau. This is demonstrated by the [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=sustainable&year_start=1940&year_end=2014&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2Csustainable%3B%2Cc0 Google ngrams graph of word usage for "sustainable"] ([https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=sustainable&year_start=1940&year_end=2019&corpus=en-2019&smoothing=3 updated link]). Logistic growth is commonly used to model data that naturally increases exponentially but has a limiting factor, which in this case is the meaningfulness of text consisting entirely or mostly of a single word. Until we actually reach the logmatic midpoint (''possibly'' at 50% usage, but very much depending upon other confounding factors and likely somewhat less in this actual case) the data might indeed look like they fit a log-plotted exponential curve.

As Randall somewhat depressingly mentions in the title text, the ~100 years that it will supposedly take for the word "sustainable" to become unsustainable is actually a lot longer than most of our nonrenewable resources will last on the Earth. The idea that ''all'' of the Earth's coal, oil, natural gas, etc. that has built up over the past millions of years may be completely gone within the century is unsettling.

This comic was used in the 2018 book ''[https://books.google.ca/books?id=J6grDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA128&lpg=PA128&dq=enlightenment+now+xkcd&source=bl&ots=8LvAVHQU2_&sig=ACfU3U27rxPWl4N8-muk1eRSm0BMMqWoHA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjOkIne-rTkAhUYs54KHRCZCHsQ6AEwEHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=enlightenment%20now%20xkcd&f=false| Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress]'' by Steven Pinker as it discusses the concept of sustainable energy.

Extrapolation of data has also appeared in the following comics [[605: Extrapolating]], [[1204: Detail]] and [[1281: Minifigs]]. And yes, "sustainable" has appeared in every paragraph so far.

The depicted increasing tendency in the relative frequency of the word "sustainable" among other words is also apparent within this very page.

It is observable, that the paragraphs get shorter, thus "sustainable" constitutes an increasingly higher percentage of the text.

In the end the article might end up only consisting of simple sentences using "sustainable".

Because there is no way that this progress can ever progress ''beyond'' 100% saturation, this would be the opposite of "sustainable":

Unsustainable.

==Transcript==
:[A large two-axis scatterplot graph with a caption below. The y-axis displays percentages on a logarithmic scale from 0.000001% to 1,000%, and is labeled "Frequency of use of the word "sustainable" in US English text, as a percentage of all words, by year. Source: Google NGrams." The x-axis displays years from 1950 to 2140, and is labeled "Year". Plotted data points show a high linear correlation (effectively exponential due to being a log scale), ranging from approximately 0.000005% in 1960 to approximately 0.003% in 2012. A linear trend line is drawn through the data points, and is extrapolated to the end of the graph. Four points on this trend line are marked and labeled:]

:(2012, ~0.003%): Present Day
:(2036, ~0.03%): 2036: "Sustainable" occurs an average of once per page
:(2061, ~0.5%): 2061: "Sustainable" occurs an average of once per sentence
:(2109, 100%): 2109: All sentences are just the word "sustainable" over and over.

:[The trend line continues past the year 2109, exceeding 100% and breaking up into question marks.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The word "sustainable" is unsustainable.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Extrapolation]]
[[Category:Google]]

1799: Bad Map Projection: Time Zones

2023-12-15T11:31:01Z

141.101.98.134:

{{comic
| number = 1799
| date = February 15, 2017
| title = Bad Map Projection: Time Zones
| image = bad_map_projection_time_zones.png
| titletext = This is probably the first projection in cartographic history that can be criticized for its disproportionate focus on Finland, Mongolia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
}}
*A [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/bad_map_projection_time_zones_2x.png bigger version] of this image can be found by clicking the image at the comic on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com].

==Explanation==
This is the second comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|Bad Map Projections]] and presents Bad map projection #79: Time Zones. It was first with this comic that it became a series. The series began a month earlier with [[1784: Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize]] (#107). It was followed almost three years later with [[2256: Bad Map Projection: South America]] (#358).

This comic shows a {{w|Map projection|map projection}} in which countries are placed according to the {{w|Time zone|time zones}} that they fall under. It seems that [[Randall]], being Randall, runs with the idea as he has made yet another map projection that is not only inaccurate, but utterly unusable, though less so than the previous one.

The first "Liquid Resize" was #107, while this comic features #79. Since the ''liquid resize'' was purely aesthetic, whereas this one at least conveys some meaningful information it makes sense that this projection is ranked higher.

Conceptually, the series is a comment on the fact that there is no perfect way to draw a map of the world on a flat piece of paper. Each one will introduce a different type of distortion, and the best projection for a given situation is sometimes very disputed. Randall previously explored 12 different projections in [[977: Map Projections]], and expressed his disdain for some types he sees as less efficient but whose users feel superior. None of them are really good as any 2D map projection will always distort in a way the spherical reality, and a map projection that is useful for one aspect (like navigation, geographical shapes and masses visualization, etc.) will not be so for all the others. Local maps of smaller areas can be quite accurate, but the idea of both these map projection comics is to map the entire globe on a flat surface.

Time zones are based on the way the Sun shines on the Earth, so these time zones, which are based on the sun's position in the sky, would best be divided by roughly longitudinal (North-to-South Pole) lines. However, this is not the case in practice, as the defined time zones tend to have very jagged boundaries, and furthermore some countries use a completely different time than the zones they are in, at least for some parts (see {{w|China}}). Since Randall knows he cannot fix the boundaries of the time zones, he instead "fixes" the world by making a map appear to match up with the time zone system, as shown in [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1f/1799_Map_with_Labeled_time_zones.PNG this map], also posted in the [[#Map with Labeled time zones|trivia]]. This results in bizarre distortions such as the large, gum-like strands of {{w|Greenland}} (these are the towns of {{w|Danmarkshavn}} (UTC) and {{w|Ittoqqortoormiit}} (UTC-1), which use different time zones to the rest of the island) and three enormous gulfs in {{w|Russia}} (some time zones in Russia are only used in southern areas, leaving two-hour differences between some adjacent areas on the country's northern border). See also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5b/1799_overlay.png this map] with a [[#Time zone map overlayed the comic|time zone map overlayed the comic]].

The effect of this map is to "punish" large countries with a single time zone - for instance, China, which uses UTC+8 across the whole country - and countries that share large time zones - for instance, almost all of {{w|Europe}} is packed into the Central European UTC+1 zone - by shrinking these down. Conversely, countries that use multiple time zones without filling them out are stretched out - for example, the {{w|Democratic Republic of the Congo}} (DRC) and {{w|Mongolia}}, as pointed out in the title text - as are slim countries that do not fill out the full width of their time zones but where their neighbors use different timezones so they have to fill the entire width of their time zone. For instance {{w|Finland}} (also mentioned in the title text) and the {{w|Baltic countries}}, who look huge because their western and eastern neighbors do not use the UTC+2 Eastern Europe time, and thus have to fill out the distance between the countries that are pushed to the zones on their east/west borders.

Other map projections distort countries this way as well, but based on their actual physical location as opposed to their position on imaginary time zones. The {{w|Mercator projection}} is infamous for distorting Greenland in this way, to the point that it appears to be larger than {{w|Africa}} despite being nowhere near the same size.

See the [[#Table of countries and their time zones|table]] below for lots more information on the comic, but here are some further details.

===Map imperfections===
The map is imperfect for several reasons:

Randall attempts to preserve adjacency where possible - for instance, Chad and Sudan are neighbors even though Chad uses West Africa Time (UTC+1) and Sudan uses East Africa Time (UTC+3). Randall draws an extremely thin strand connecting the countries through Central/South Africa Time (UTC+2), even though no part of Chad or Sudan uses this time. Similarly, a thin strand of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan is shown projecting into the UTC+4 time zone in order to separate Russia and Iran, which do not really share a border. Worst of all is China, which has to have borders to several countries that do not share the single eastern time zone of east China, which the whole China is forced to use. A thin strand, resembling the {{w|Yangtze}} river, is shown passing through time zones that China does not use. This is the most complicated preservation of adjacency shown in the map.

There is no mention of daylight saving time - all countries shown are given the base winter time. Depending on the time of year, countries will shift around - around June, many northern hemisphere countries will move east, while some southern hemisphere countries will move east around December.

The map doesn't allow for half-hour time zones. (India, for instance, is on UTC+5.5) Instead, countries that use fractional time zones are shifted so they straddle the two time zones, and are then marked with an asterisk (*). This is also true of regions within countries, including the island of Newfoundland in Canada and a section in the center of Australia.

The only extra detail mentioned in the map is also for Australia. It is the {{w|UTC%2B08:45|UTC+8:45}} time zone that is used only by 5 roadhouses covering a population of only a few hundred people.

There are several errors in the map, see [[#Errors|below]].

===Table of countries and their time zones===
This sortable table includes all countries shown in the map, not just those are labeled, as well as the continents and some other regions are mentioned.

The countries or continents are mentioned approximately in reading order. If a country is not labeled with full name the abbreviation is in brackets behind the name. If the country is not labeled, labeled wrong or not even shown in the comic, there is a note after the name. Countries labeled with a footnote by an asterisk (*) are shown together with that asterisk at the name.

If a country has more than one time zone all are listed.

====Table====
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Country/Continent
! Time zone(s)
! Distortions
! Explanation
|-
| {{w|North America}} (not labeled) || UTC-9 – UTC-3:30 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Canada}} || UTC-8 – UTC-3:30 || West coast is flattened, and the east coast is stretched out. ||
*Canada has two main distortions:
** The west coast is on UTC-8 time, and shares a border with Alaska, which is UTC-9. In this map, the border is much further east than the real border and is straightened out. While the border between the Yukon Territory and Alaska is mostly straight at 141°W, the division between the time zones are at 127.5°W; and the border between British Colombia and Alaska is not straight.
** On the east coast is the island of Newfoundland at UTC-3:30, which is marked with an asterisk; in the map it is depicted more eastward due to the extra half-hour difference. Also, the southeastern tip of Labrador shares the UTC-3:30 time zone, though not marked with an asterisk, it is stretched out to line up with the island of Newfoundland.
|-
| {{w|United States}} || UTC+10, UTC+12, UTC-12 – UTC-4 || Alaska appears thinner than usual, and Texas' coast has been smushed. || Usage of time zones in U.S. territories is {{w|Time_in_the_United_States|complicated}}. The contiguous United States use times zones from UTC-5 (East Coast) to UTC-8 (West Coast), the State of {{w|Alaska}} uses UTC-9, and {{w|Puerto Rico}} uses UTC-4. These are the only parts shown on Randall's map. Other territories, not shown on the map, use the following time zones:
* {{w|United States Virgin Islands}} use UTC-4.
* {{w|Navassa Island}} and the disputed {{w|Bajo Nuevo Bank}} and {{w|Serranilla Bank}} use UTC-5.
* The State of {{w|Hawaii}}, most of the {{w|Aleutian Islands}} and {{w|Johnston Atoll}} use UTC-10.
* {{w|Jarvis Island}}, {{w|Midway Atoll}}, {{w|Palmyra Atoll}} and {{w|Kingman Reef}} all use UTC-11.
* {{w|Baker Island}} and {{w|Howland Island}} use UTC-12.
* {{w|Wake Island}} uses UTC+12.
* {{w|Guam}} and the {{w|Northern Mariana Islands}} use UTC+10.
|-
| {{w|Mexico}} || UTC-8 – UTC-5 || Guadalajara and the Yucatan Peninsula are too far east || The east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula goes as far east as the Florida Keys here - this because the state of {{w|Quintana Roo}} is the only one to use UTC-5 (equivalent to US Eastern Time).
|-
| {{w|Antilles}} (not labeled) || UTC-5 – UTC-4 || No distortion. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Cuba}} || UTC-5 || No distortion. ||
|-
| {{w|Haiti}} || UTC-5 || No distortion. ||
|-
| {{w|Jamaica}} (Jam.) || UTC-5 || No distortion.||
|-
| {{w|Dominican Republic}} (D.R.) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. ||
|-
| {{w|Guadeloupe}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. || Not labeled. Tentatively identified as one of four dots in the Lesser Antilles region of Randall's map.
|-
| {{w|Dominica}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. || Not labeled. Tentatively identified as one of four dots in the Lesser Antilles region of Randall's map.
|-
| {{w|Martinique}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. || Not labeled. Tentatively identified as one of four dots in the Lesser Antilles region of Randall's map.
|-
| {{w|Saint Lucia}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. || Not labeled. Tentatively identified as one of four dots in the Lesser Antilles region of Randall's map.
|-
| {{w|Trinidad and Tobago}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 ||No distortion. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Central America}} (not labeled) || UTC-6 || Squashed together ||Not labeled. Apart from Panama, all Central American countries use the same time zone. This means Panama is stretched out, while the other countries are pushed back west of Florida.
|-
| {{w|Guatemala}} (Gua.) || UTC-6 || Stretched out. ||
|-
| {{w|Belize}} (not labeled) || UTC-6 || Greatly decreased in size, represented by only a few pixels. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|El Salvador}} (not labeled) || UTC-6 || Greatly decreased in size, represented by only a few pixels. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Honduras}} (Hon.) || UTC-6 || The left side is flattened and pushed inwards. ||
|-
| {{w|Nicaragua}} (Nic.) || UTC-6 || No distortion, other than that Lake Colcibolca is exaggerated for no apparent reason. ||
|-
| {{w|Costa Rica}} (C.R.) || UTC-6 || Flattened and decreased in size. ||
|-
| {{w|Panama}} (Pan.) || UTC-6 || Stretched out. ||
|-
| {{w|South America}} (not labeled) || UTC-5 – UTC-3 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Colombia}} || UTC-5 || Eastern border straightened ||
|-
| {{w|Venezuela}} || UTC-4 || Western boarded straightened. Country shrunk top to bottom. ||
|-
| {{w|Guyana}} || UTC-4 || Shrunk slightly top to bottom. ||
|-
| {{w|French Guiana}} (labeled Suriname) || UTC-3 || Minimal distortion || Labeled incorrectly.
|-
| {{w|Suriname}} (labeled F.G.) || UTC-3 || Minimal distortion || Labeled incorrectly.
|-
| {{w|Ecuador}} (not labeled) || UTC-6 – UTC-5 || || Not labeled. UTC-6 is used only on {{w|Galápagos Islands}} (not shown).
|-
| {{w|Peru}} || UTC-5 || Mostly intact ||
|-
| {{w|Brazil}} || UTC-5 – UTC-3 || Eastern shore shrunk in size ||
|-
| {{w|Bolivia}} || UTC-4 || Compressed shape, slight rotation ||
|-
| {{w|Paraguay}} (Par.) || UTC-4 || Country shrunken and location with respect to (new) Argentina has changed ||
|-
| {{w|Chile}} || UTC-5, UTC-3 || || UTC-5 is used only on {{w|Easter Island}} (not shown).
|-
| {{w|Argentina}} || UTC-3 || ||This is stretched out vertically to fit the entire country into the UTC-3 timezone that it uses.
|-
| {{w|Uruguay}} || UTC-3 || Minimal distortion ||
|-
| {{w|Europe}} (not labeled) || UTC-4 – UTC+4 || Compressed with the countries of central and western Europe pressed closer in east-west direction while eastern countries are stretched in all directions. Iceland is moved east. Greenland is stretched horizontally and got strange protruding peninsulas. || Not labeled. Europe uses mostly UTC+1, which causes severe distortion. Disproportionally smaller areas utilize UTC±0, UTC+2 and UTC+3. UTC-4, UTC-1 and UTC+4 are used only marginally. Greenland, even if it belongs to North America geographically, is counted here as well as it lies within the Denmark rule.

* UTC-4 is used solely in {{w|Thule Air Base}} in western Greenland.
* Only Greenland uses UTC-3, throughout most of its territory.
* UTC-2 is not used at all.
* {{w|Azores}}, being an autonomous region of Portugal, and a Greenland settlement of {{w|Ittoqqortoormiit}} observe UTC-1.
* The United Kingdom and Ireland both use UTC±0. {{w|Portugal}} is the only country in mainland Europe which uses UTC±0 as well – that's why it sticks out a bit towards the British Isles which share the time zone with Portugal. Greenland's settlement of {{w|Danmarkshavn}} uses UTC±0 as well, and {{w|Iceland}} is here, too.
* Most of Europe uses UTC+1 but these countries in reality spread over a much larger area than just one zone. This is why central and western countries are so compressed. {{w|Svalbard}} archipelago in the Arctic Ocean also belongs here.
* The eastern countries (except Belarus and the European part of Russia but not the Kaliningrad exclave) use UTC+2. These are: {{w|Finland}}, {{w|Latvia}}, {{w|Estonia}}, {{w|Lithuania}}, {{w|Belarus}}, {{w|Moldova}}, {{w|Ukraine}}, {{w|Bulgaria}}, {{w|Romania}}, {{w|Greece}} and {{w|Cyprus}}. In reality, they occupy a smaller area on the map, but on Randall's map they are stretched to fill the UTC+2 zone strip.
* Belarus, most of the European part of Russia and Crimea use UTC+3. See below for peculiarities regarding Russia and Ukraine.
* UTC+4 is used in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and some parts of Russia.

Finland looks specifically distorted, partly because in reality it borders with {{w|Norway}} on the north, and Norway uses UTC+1. On Randall's map Norway is compressed into UTC+1 strip and Finland suddenly got some coast on Barents Sea. Poland (abbreviated ''POL.'' on the map) and Belarus (''BEL'') have common border but differ by two time zones, Poland uses UTC+1 but Belarus uses UTC+3 (Moscow time). Therefore on the map they have protruding 'fingers', touching one another, squeezed between Lithuania and Latvia on the north and Ukraine on the south.

Randall got Turkey a bit wrong, however: its European part is stretched into UTC+2 zone, but in reality Turkey uses UTC+3 on its whole territory.
|-
| {{w|Greenland}}|| UTC-4 – UTC±0 || Two landmasses stretched from the rest of the country || Greenland stretches from UTC-4 to UTC±0 with most of the country being UTC-3. UTC-4 is only applicable to Thule Air Base in the southern part of the Hayes-Peninsula, while UTC-1 and UTC±0 are used in smaller areas on the east coast of Greenland. Even though UTC-2 is not used in Greenland at all, the country is depicted as a single landmass with two small strips of land connecting the UTC-1 and UTC±0 landmasses. These two strips should be considered infinitesimally thin but depicted to clarify the two areas are not separate islands but connected with the rest of Greenland.
|-
| {{w|Iceland}} || UTC±0 || No shape distortions, but different location. || Iceland, even if it geographically lies mostly within the UTC-1 time zone, uses UTC±0. It is therefore moved east on Randall's map.
|-
| {{w|Norway}} || UTC+1 ||Moved east and tilted more upright to fit in UTC±1 ||
|-
| {{w|Sweden}} || UTC+1 ||Squashed and moved east to make room for Norway obliterating the Gulf of Bothnia and severely shrinking the Baltic sea ||
|-
| {{w|Finland}} || UTC+2 || Stretched horizontally because it borders Norway on the north, which uses UTC+1. ||
|-
| {{w|Ireland}} || UTC±0 || None. || Ireland uses UTC±0 as the rest of British Isles.
|-
| {{w|United Kingdom}} (UK) || UTC±0 || None. || The country is fully within the single time zone used for the country. UK defined the time zones so their time zone is by definition the one with UTC±0 (or GMT).
|-
| {{w|Denmark}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Lithuania}} || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Latvia}} || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Estonia}} || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Belarus}} (Bel.) || UTC+3 || || Belarus lies entirely in the UTC+3 time zone yet the map depicts a small strip of land in the UTC+2 zone. This is most likely to allow for Belarus to have a common border with Poland even though the countries do not have two consecutive time zones (Poland uses UTC+1)
|-
| {{w|Russia}} (First label) || UTC+2 – UTC+12 || || See Asia section for explanation. It is the only country labeled twice.
|-
| {{w|Netherlands}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Belgium}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Germany}} (Ger.) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Poland}} (Pol.) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Ukraine}} || UTC+2 (UTC+3 in disputed regions) || Crimea stretched away from the rest of the country. || Since the {{w|annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation}}, the peninsula has used Moscow time (UTC+3). The sovereignty of Crimea is disputed, but it is currently ''de facto'' controlled by Russia, and Randall colors it like Russia. Two breakaway provinces in the east, Donetsk and Luhansk, also use Moscow time. These are not shown.
|-
| {{w|France}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Switzerland}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Austria}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Czech Republic}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Slovakia}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Slovenia}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Hungary}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Italy}} (It.) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Romania}} || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Moldova}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Portugal}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Spain}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Croatia}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Bosnia and Herzegovina}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Serbia}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Montenegro}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Albania}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Macedonia}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Bulgaria}} || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Greece}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Cyprus}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Georgia}} (not labeled) || UTC+4 || Squashed into thin horizontal strip. Merged with Azerbaijan. || Not labeled. Georgia uses UTC+4 but has coast on the {{w|Black Sea}} which on Randall's map is shown entirely within UTC+2 and UTC+3 zones. Therefore Georgia is depicted as a thin strip touching the Black Sea squashed between Russia and Turkey and the main part is shown as a slightly wider blob in the east supposedly lying in the UTC+4 strip. However in the process Georgia got some coast on the {{w|Caspian Sea}} in the place {{w|Azerbaijan}} shall be located, including the {{w|Absheron Peninsula}} with the Azerbaijani capital, {{w|Baku}}.
|-
| {{w|Azerbaijan}} (not labeled) || UTC+4 || Heavily shrunk, displaced south. || Not labeled. Most or all of the Azerbaijani territory including its capital area is mistakenly attributed to Georgia, see above. In reality, Azerbaijan is the only country with coast on the Caspian Sea between Russia and Iran. However, in the Randall's map there are two tiny patches touching the Caspian Sea just north of Iran. The northern one can be tentatively identified as Azerbaijan.
|-
| {{w|Armenia}} (not labeled) || UTC+4 || Displaced east to Caspian Sea coast. || Not labeled. A tiny patch of land on the Caspian Sea coast just north of Iran can be tentatively identified as Armenia. However, Armenia ia a landlocked country in reality.
|-
| {{w|Africa}} (not labeled) || UTC±0 – UTC+3 ||Compressed in the northwest and along the southeast coast. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Western Sahara}} (labeled Morocco) || UTC±0 || || Labeled incorrectly.
|-
| {{w|Tunisia}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Morocco}} (labeled W.S.) || UTC±0 || || Labeled incorrectly.
|-
| {{w|Algeria}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Mauritania}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Senegal}} (Sen.) || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Gambia}} (not labeled) || UTC±0 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Mali}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Niger}} || UTC+1 || Slightly compressed in the west||
|-
| {{w|Libya}} || UTC+2 || Stretched vertically | Nations located to the south of Libya tend to use either UTC+1 (Chad) or UTC+3 (Sudan), but not UTC+2, which Libya uses. In order to fill in this area, Libya, one of the few countries in the area which uses the intermediate UTC+2, has been used to demonstrate the two-hour gap. ||
|-
| {{w|Egypt}} || UTC+2 || Stretched vertically | Egypt uses the UTC+2 time zone, while most countries located to its south use UTC+3. Since the area of central Africa using UTC+2 is small compared to the section using UTC+3, those countries in UTC+2 are extended to cover more of that time zone. ||
|-
| {{w|Sudan}} || UTC+3 || Sudan and South Sudan (S.S.) are fully in UTC+3 zone, but in the map a little part of them has been stretched to meet the borders with Chad the Central African Republic which are in UTC+1. ||
|-
| {{w|South Sudan}} (S.S.) || UTC+3 || || See Sudan’s explanation.
|-
| {{w|Eritrea}} (not labeled) || UTC+3 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Guinea-Bissau}} (GB.) || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Guinea}} (Guin.) || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Burkina Faso}} (B.F.) || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Sierra Leone}} (S.L.) || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Liberia}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Côte d'Ivoire}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Ghana}} || UTC±0 || ||
|-
| {{w|Togo}} (not labeled) || UTC±0 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Benin}} (not labeled) || UTC+1 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Nigeria}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Chad}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Cameroon}} (Cam.) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Central African Republic}} (C.A.R.) || UTC+1 || Displaced to the southwest. It is also extended to retain its border with South Sudan despite being two timezones apart.||
|-
| {{w|Ethiopia}} || UTC+3 || Compressed horizontally.||
|-
| {{w|Somalia}} || UTC+3 || ||
|-
| {{w|Equatorial Guinea}} (E.G.) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Gabon}} || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Republic of the Congo}} (R. of Congo) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Democratic Republic of the Congo}} (Dem. Rep. of the Congo) || UTC+1 || ||
|-
| {{w|Rwanda}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || Shifted northwards.|| Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Burundi}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || Shifted northwards.|| Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Uganda}} (not labeled) || UTC+3 ||Gains border with Burundi. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Kenya}} || UTC+3 || Slightly horizontally compressed.||
|-
| {{w|Angola}} || UTC+1 || Eastern border straightened.||
|-
| {{w|Zambia}} || UTC+2 || Slightly stretched horizontally.||
|-
| {{w|Malawi}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || Rotated slightly clockwise and loses border with Tanzania. || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Tanzania}} || UTC+3 || Horizontally compressed; loses border with Rwanda.||
|-
| {{w|Namibia}} || UTC+1 ||Loses Caprivi Strip to Botswana. ||
|-
| {{w|Botswana}} (Bots.) || UTC+2 || Border with Namibia simplified.||
|-
| {{w|Zimbabwe}} (Zimb.) || UTC+2 || ||
|-
| {{w|Mozambique}} || UTC+2 || Horizontally compressed.||
|-
| {{w|Madagascar}} || UTC+3 || None. || Madagascar has the correct shape and position.
|-
| {{w|South Africa}} || UTC+2 || Loses some of Atlantic coast to Namibia.||
|-
| {{w|Lesotho}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Swaziland}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Asia}} (not labeled) || UTC+3 – UTC+12 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Turkey}} || UTC+3 || ||
|-
| {{w|Lebanon}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Syria}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Iraq}} || UTC+3 || ||
|-
| {{w|Iran}}* || UTC+3:30 ||Is a bit inflated in the northeast corner. ||
|-
| {{w|Israel}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Jordan}} (not labeled) || UTC+2 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Saudi Arabia}} || UTC+3 || ||
|-
| {{w|Kuwait}} (not labeled) || UTC+3 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Qatar}} (not labeled) || UTC+3 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|United Arab Emirates}} (not labeled) || UTC+4 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Yemen}} || UTC+3 || ||
|-
| {{w|Oman}} || UTC+4 || ||
|-
| {{w|Russia}} (2nd label) || UTC+2 – UTC+12 || Three deep troughs almost cutting Russia into pieces, but not quite, also eastern parts stick out of proportion relative to Eastern Asian countries. || Only country with two labels. Russia has {{w|Time_in_Russia|a peculiar}} usage of time zones, therefore it is the most distorted country on Randall's map. It covers eleven time zones but uses them very unevenly. Each of {{w|Federal subjects of Russia|constituent entities}} of Russia (also called federal subjects) uses a specific time zone throughout its territory, the only exception being Yakutia, the largest administrative subdivision, which spans three time zones. The time zone assignments are quite arbitrary, however.
* UTC+2 ({{w|Kaliningrad_Time|MSK-1}}) is used in {{w|Kaliningrad Oblast}} only, an {{w|exclave}} on {{w|Baltic Sea}} between {{w|Poland}} and {{w|Lithuania}}. On Randall's map it can be seen as a small green patch north-east of Poland.
* UTC+3 ({{w|Moscow_Time|MSK+0}}) is used throughout most of the European part of Russia including Northern Caucasian republics, covering 49 constituent entities of the Russian Federation in total. These parts make up the easternmost mass of Russia on Randall's map, stretching from the {{w|Black Sea}} in the south including the area between the Black Sea and {{w|Caspian Sea}} to the {{w|White Sea|White}}, {{w|Barents Sea|Barents}} and {{w|Kara Sea|Kara}} seas in the north and includes the arctic archipelagoes of {{w|Novaya Zemlya}} and {{w|Franz Josef Land}} as seen in the upper part of the map.
* UTC+4 ({{w|Samara_Time|MSK+1}}) is used in {{w|Udmurtia}}, {{w|Astrakhan Oblast}}, {{w|Samara Oblast}}, {{w|Saratov Oblast}} and {{w|Ulyanovsk Oblast}}, forming three disjoint areas lying more or less along the Ural mountains on their western side. Astrakhan Oblast has coast on the Caspian Sea. Saratov and Samara oblasts have a common border and lie somewhat to the north-east of Astrakhan Oblast. Udmurtia lies still somewhat to the north. On Randal's map they are represented by a patch of land north-east to the Caspian Sea. Further north there's a huge 'bay' reflecting the time-gap between northern parts of Russia that use either UTC+3 or UTC+5 but not UTC+4, even if they are adjacent to each other.
* UTC+5 ({{w|Yekaterinburg_Time|MSK+2}}) is used by the administrative subdivisions lying on and close to {{w|Ural mountains}}, both on western and eastern sides of them, also covering major part of {{w|West_Siberian_Plain|Western Siberia}}. These include {{w|Bashkortostan}}, {{w|Perm Krai}}, {{w|Kurgan Oblast}}, {{w|Orenburg Oblast}}, {{w|Sverdlovsk Oblast}}, {{w|Tyumen Oblast}}, {{w|Chelyabinsk Oblast}}, {{w|Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug}} and {{w|Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug}}. The lands are represented on the Randall's map by the second-from-the-left major land mass within Russia. These parts border mostly with areas utilizing either UTC+3 or UTC+7, therefore Randall has drawn huge patches of sea on both sides. In the north, one can recognize somewhat distorted shapes of the {{w|Yamal Peninsula|Yamal}} and {{w|Gydan_Peninsula|Gydan}} peninsulas.
* UTC+6 ({{w|Omsk_Time|MSK+3}}) is used solely in the {{w|Omsk Oblast}} in the southeastern {{w|Siberia}}, bordering {{w|Kazakhstan}}. On Randall's map it is shown as a strip of land joining the second and the third land mass from the left, just to the left of the ''RUSSIA'' inscription. However, taking into account the relatively small area of the Omsk Oblast, it should have been much thinner.
* UTC+7 ({{w|Krasnoyarsk_Time|MSK+4}}) is used in federal subjects located in the central and parts of eastern and western Siberia: {{w|Altai Republic}}, {{w|Tuva}} Republic, Republic of {{w|Khakassia}}, {{w|Altai Krai}}, {{w|Krasnoyarsk Krai}}, {{w|Kemerovo Oblast}}, {{w|Novosibirsk Oblast}} and {{w|Tomsk Oblast}}. These lands border mostly with areas using non-adjacent time zones, namely UTC+5 and UTC+9, and therefore form the tallest pillar on the Randall's depiction of Russia between two large seas. This part of Randall's Russia also has a strange thin strip of land going south and touching China's tendril just between Kazakhstan and {{w|Mongolia}} – this is to represent the fact that there is a short length of Russian-Chinese border there. The rest of the border is depicted elsewhere, see below. {{w|Taymyr Peninsula}} and {{w|Severnaya Zemlya}} archipelago can be seen atop that area of the map.
* UTC+8 ({{w|Irkutsk_Time|MSK+5}}) is used in {{w|Buryatia}} and {{w|Irkutsk Oblast}} only, which lie in eastern Siberia, on both sides of {{w|Lake Baikal}} (not shown on the map). This is represented by a patch located just northwest of a protruding fragment of China, which shares the time zone with these parts; however neither Buryatia nor Irkutsk Oblast border with China.
* UTC+9 ({{w|Yakutsk_Time|MSK+6}}) is used in {{w|Amur Oblast}}, {{w|Zabaykalsky Krai}} and in most of Yakutia also known as the {{w|Sakha Republic}}. On Randall's map this time zone is joined together with the remaining three eastern time zones forming a strange shape connected to the rest of Asia with a weird-looking isthmus. This is actually the part of Russia that has the longest part of the border with China along the {{w|Amur River}}, but here it is torn away because of the strange map 'projection'. {{w|New Siberian Islands}} are depicted in the far north.
* UTC+10 ({{w|Vladivostok_Time|MSK+7}}) is used in north-eastern parts of Yakutia, {{w|Jewish Autonomous Oblast}}, {{w|Khabarovsk Krai}} and {{w|Primorsky Krai}}. In reality these parts (except Yakutia) all border with China, all the way down to North Korea. On Randall's depiction they are torn away from Chinese border to represent time zone difference. The strange hook is the southernmost part of Primorsky Krai with the big haven of {{w|Vladivostok}}, the tip of the hook shall actually touch North Korea in reality.
* UTC+11 ({{w|Magadan_Time|MSK+8}}) is used in extreme north-eastern parts of Yakutia, {{w|Magadan Oblast}} and {{w|Sakhalin Oblast}}. The {{w|Sakhalin}} island is clearly recognizable in this strip of the map, but it is far removed from {{w|Japan}} which lies next to it in reality. The shape of the {{w|Sea of Okhotsk}} is somewhat recognizable, and the location of {{w|Magadan}} is clearly seen as a small hook on the shoreline near Kamchatka.
* UTC+12 ({{w|Kamchatka_Time|MSK+9}}) is used in {{w|Kamchatka Krai}} and {{w|Chukotka Autonomous Okrug}}. This is probably the least distorted part of Russia, the characteristic shapes of {{w|Kamchatka_Peninsula|Kamchatka}} and {{w|Chukchi_Peninsula|Chukchi}} peninsulas are totally recognizable.

A notable thing is that Russian railways use Moscow time (UTC+3) exclusively, all timetables are expressed in this time, even in the most remote eastern parts of Russia. You'd better know your local time zone while awaiting your train at the station.
|-
| {{w|Kazakhstan}} || UTC+5 – UTC+6 || Vertically: stretched in eastern part, squeezed in western part. Horizontally: squeezed in eastern part, stretched in western part|| UTC+5 is used in the smaller western part and UTC+6 in the larger eastern part. The division goes more or less along the 60th meridian. On Randall's map Kazakhstan's shape is heavily distorted, because in the bordering Russia only one small part, namely Omsk oblast, uses UTC+6 – therefore the eastern part of Kazakhstan is squeezed to fit. On the other hand, the western part of Kazakhstan borders with parts of Russia using as far as UTC+3, which is depicted by a long west-reaching finger. Kazakhstan has a significant part of {{w|Caspian Sea}} coast, but here it has only a tiny stretch.
|-
| {{w|Mongolia}} || UTC+7 – UTC+8 || Vertically stretched in the western half as mentioned in the Title-Text | Mongolia primarily uses the UTC+8 time zone but has some western portions using the UTC+7 time zone. Its neighbor to the south, China, is geographically located across three time zones (UTC+6-UTC+8) but by governmental decision only uses the eastern UTC+8 time zone. This choice by China has caused it to shrink towards the east on the map, requiring other countries to replace the unoccupied map area in the UTC+6 and UTC+7 time zones. Mongolia is one of very few countries using the UTC+7 time zone near China, and therefore it has been the primary recipient of the extra space generated by China's shrinking. It has occupied much of what would on an ordinary map be central Chinese territory.
|
|-
| {{w|Turkmenistan}} || UTC+5 || ||
|-
| {{w|Uzbekistan}} || UTC+5 || ||
|-
| {{w|Afghanistan}}* || UTC+4:30 || ||
|-
| {{w|Tajikistan}} (Taj.) || UTC+5 || ||
|-
| {{w|Pakistan}} || UTC+5 || ||
|-
| {{w|India}}* || UTC+5:30 || ||
|-
| {{w|Sri Lanka}} (not labeled) || UTC+5:30 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Nepal}}* || UTC+5:45 || ||
|-
| {{w|Bhutan}} (unreadable label) || UTC+6 || || Labeled unreadable.
|-
| {{w|China}} || UTC+8 || Heavily squashed horizontally, with finger-like tendrils to the west || All of China is in UTC+8 (usage of UTC+6 exists in Western Xinjiang but is unofficial). However, it reaches as far west as Tajikistan, in UTC+5, and even has an extremely short border with Afghanistan in UTC+4.5. A border is also shown with Pakistan - this is disputed by some who support India in the {{w|Kashmir conflict}}, but represents the ''de facto'' {{w|Line of Control}} between India and Pakistan.
|-
| {{w|Taiwan}} (not labeled) || UTC+8 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|North Korea}}* (N.K.) || UTC+8:30 || || In the map North Korea is smushed West of South Korea because North Korea at the time of publication had a time zone that is set half an hour off from South Korea's time zone.
|-
| {{w|South Korea}} (S.K.) || UTC+9 || ||
|-
| {{w|Japan}} || UTC+9 || ||
|-
| {{w|Bangladesh}} (Ban.) || UTC+6 || ||
|-
| {{w|Myanmar|Burma}}* (Bur.) || UTC+6:30 || ||
|-
| {{w|Laos}} || UTC+7 || ||
|-
| {{w|Vietnam}} || UTC+7 || ||
|-
| {{w|Thailand}} || UTC+7 || ||
|-
| {{w|Cambodia}} (not labeled) || UTC+7 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Philippines}} || UTC+8 || ||
|-
| {{w|Oceania}}/{{w|Australia}} (not labeled) || UTC+7 – UTC+12 || || Not labeled.
|-
| {{w|Malaysia}} || UTC+8 || Malaysia and {{w|Singapore}} (not shown) stretched East from the rest of peninsular Southeast Asia || Malaysia and Singapore both switched to using UTC+8 on 1 January 1982, after using GMT+7.30 under British rule and UTC+9 during the Japanese occupation. This change was due to Malaysia wanting to standardise time between East and West Malaysia, with Malaysia choosing to use the time in East Malaysia, with Singapore following suit.
|-
| {{w|Indonesia}} || UTC+7 – UTC+9 || ||
|-
| {{w|Papua New Guinea}} || UTC+10 – UTC+11 || ||
|-
| {{w|Australia}} || UTC+8, UTC+9:30, UTC+10 || || Although the UTC+8:45 region is acknowledged by local authorities, legally the region shares the same time zone as the rest of Western Australia, UTC+8.
|-
| {{w|New Zealand}} || UTC+12 || None. || The main islands use UTC+12. There is a small archipelago under New Zealand's rule, the {{w|Chatham Islands}}, which use non-standard UTC+12:45 time, but it is too small to depict.
|}

==Transcript==
:Bad map projection #79:
:<big>Time Zones</big>
:Where each country '''''should''''' be,
:based on its time zone(s)

:[A world map is shown divided and colored by political boundaries. There are many distortions, and especially Russia looks weird. Many countries have their name listed in a gray font and at the bottom below Australia there are two specialties mentioned for time zones which are not divided in full hours. One of these is a footnote used by other countries as well.]

:[The labels are listed here in order of the "continents" as they come from top left to down right. Similarly within each continent's list the countries which are usually said to belong to a given continent (at least politically or partially, e.g. Greenland and Turkey in Europe) are listed in a similar reading order as accurately as possible.]

:[North America. (Newfoundland, the most easterly part of Canada, is labeled with a star *):]
:Canada, *, United States, Mexico, Gua., Hon., Nic., C.R., Pan., Cuba, Haiti, Jam., D.R.

:[South America:]
:Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, F.G., Suriname, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Par., Chile, Argentina, Uruguay

:[Europe. (Russia is as the only country mentioned twice, the other place is over the central part in the Asia section):]
:Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Ireland, UK, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Bel., Russia, Ger., Pol., Ukraine, France, It., Romania, Portugal, Spain, Bulgaria, Turkey

:[Africa:]
:W.S., Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Sen., Mali, Niger, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Gb., Guin., B.F., S.L., Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Chad, Cam., C.A.R., S.S., Ethiopia, Somalia, E.G., Gabon, R. of Congo, Dem. Rep. of the Congo, Kenya, Angola, Zambia, Tanzania, Namibia, Bots., Zimb., Mozambique, Madagascar, South Africa

:[Asia. (Russia is the only country mentioned twice, the other label is within the European border. The text written over Bhutan is unreadable in the image and marked with a question mark in this list):]
:Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Iran*, Oman, Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan*, Taj., Pakistan, India*, Nepal*, ?, China, N.K.*, S.K., Japan, Ban., Bur.*, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines

:[Oceania/Australia. (In Australia there is a star * in the middle of it above the name):]
:Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, <nowiki>*</nowiki>, Australia, New Zealand

:[Below Australia there is an arrow pointing to the south coast and below that a footnote for the stars * used above:]
:UTC+8:45
:(One small area)

:<nowiki>*</nowiki>=Half-hour offset

*'''Click''' to expand for a more detailed description:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
 
:[There are no more text from the comic here below:]

:[A world map is shown divided and colored by political boundaries. Antarctica is not included. Bodies of water are white. The map is clearly distorted, with Europe and Africa in the center, but not all continents or countries look wrong. Africa, Australia and North America seem least distorted. But the bottom part of of South America is very slim, Greenland has two chewing gum like blobs stretched away from it to the right, Iceland is over the UK, and most of Europe has been compressed. Finland is too large though. In Africa especially Dem. Rep. the Congo has been enlarged. The worst distortion is in Asia, where especially Russia looks weird with three deep troughs down the length of the country and the end to the right seems to be much longer than usually. But also China is completely wrong as it has been compressed, Mongolia taking up most of its usual position.]

:[Most countries over a certain size have their name listed in a gray font. Small countries like Ireland and Haiti has their name listed in the oceans around them. Most other countries have the name inside the country, but if there is not enough room abbreviations are used. There are also a few specialties mentioned when time zones are not divided in full hours, for instance a footnote regarding time zones with a half hour offset.]
</div>
 

==Trivia==
===Errors===
* Mixing labels:
** Randall mixes up Morocco and Western Sahara (a disputed territory)
** Suriname and French Guiana also have switched labels.
*Wrong time zones:
** {{w|East Thrace}}, the European portion of Turkey, is shown in Eastern European time (UTC+2). Actually, like the rest of Turkey, it uses UTC+3.
** Nepal's time zone is UTC+5:45
** {{w|Thule Air Base}} in northwestern Greenland follows UTC-4 rather than UTC-3, and should thus be shown on a tendril to the west, directly above Labrador and the rest of Atlantic Canada; instead, it is shown using UTC-3, like most of the rest of Greenland. This is especially strange considering that Randall has correctly drawn {{w|Danmarkshaven}} as using UTC and {{w|Ittoqqortoormiit}} as using UTC-1.
* Borders and adjacency are not always preserved although often attempted as mentioned in the section on [[#Map imperfections|map imperfections]]:
** Estonia is shown sharing a border with Finland - in fact, the two countries are separated by the {{w|Gulf of Finland}}. This sea should run to {{w|St Petersburg}} in Russia - instead, the city is shown as landlocked.
** Norway should border Russia. See {{w|Norway–Russia border}}.
** Azerbaijan territory is mistakenly attributed to Georgia – Georgia should not have coast on the Caspian Sea. Armenia should not have coast on the Caspian Sea as well.
** Tajikistan should not border Kazakhstan and follows UTC+5 rather than UTC+6. These would apply to Kyrgyzstan, which is not drawn in the map; Kyrgyzstan, however, does not border Afghanistan.
** Malawi has lost its border with Tanzania.

===Omissions===
Some countries and territories are missing from the map. Most of these omissions are undoubtedly deliberate, but some are likely mistakes.

* Countries supposedly too small to show on the map's scale are omitted. These include small European countries: {{w|Andorra}}, {{w|Kosovo}}, {{w|Liechtenstein}}, {{w|Luxembourg}}, {{w|Malta}}, {{w|Monaco}}, {{w|San Marino}} and the {{w|Vatican City}}, {{w|Djibouti}} in Africa, {{w|Singapore}} in Asia.
* All the Pacific Ocean isles, including {{w|Hawaii}}.
* All Atlantic and Indian Ocean isles excluding {{w|Sri Lanka}} and {{w|Madagascar}}.
* Most of the small Caribbean countries and territories; however four small dots in the {{w|Lesser Antilles}} are depicted, but are unlabelled and cannot be definitively identified.
* Kyrgyzstan is clearly omitted by mistake.

===Map with Labeled time zones===
*[[:File:1799 Map with Labeled time zones.PNG| Here]] is a map with labeled time zones, made by a user who posted the link in the [[#Discussion|discussion]]. 

===Time zone map overlayed the comic===
*And [[:File:1799_overlay.png| here]] is an attempt that shows a {{w|time zone}} map overlayed with the comic. 

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Large drawings]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Bad Map Projections]]
[[Category:Footnotes]]

2765: Escape Speed

2023-12-15T11:28:53Z

141.101.98.134:

{{comic
| number = 2765
| date = April 19, 2023
| title = Escape Speed
| image = escape_speed_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x700px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Gotta go fast.
}}
{{TOC}}
*To experience the interactivity of the game, visit the {{xkcd|2765|original comic}}.

== Explanation ==
This interactive comic is similar to [[2712: Gravity]], which celebrated the release of ''[[What If? 2]]'', as you can visit different planets. Your fuel runs out and recharges slowly over time or instantly whenever you land. Like in Gravity, there is no "universal" point of view: the bottom of the window, "down", is oriented towards the object exerting the most gravity upon the player.

You begin on the Starting Planet, near Origin. To escape Origin's gravitational force, gain enough momentum by swinging a few times inside the large hidden tunnel that goes from the rollercoaster to the opposing side of the planet. However, note that it is possible to escape Origin’s gravitational pull by maneuvering the spacecraft counterclockwise around the Starting Planet, accelerating tangential to the surface above the figure yelling “WOW!” or “!MOM”. To help you find other planets there are also many small circles surrounding the spaceship indicating the locations of nearby or distant planets depending on how transparent these points are. Collecting circles with a star outline will improve the performance of the spaceship, such as by making the engine more efficient or increasing the rate at which the fuel recharges, and sometimes make you find a new item. Collecting small grey circles will instead just make you find an item, such as a rock with neat stripes, a cool bug, and a pretty leaf.

Most planets and celestial objects are inside of a large Crystal Sphere in which there is a visible navigable crack. Halfway through the crack, gravity gets increasingly stronger as the spaceship feels the gravitational force of the parts of the Crystal Sphere it is leaving behind. Above the crack in the Crystal Sphere, there is the Star Destroyer from [[1608: Hoverboard]], and on the opposite side of the crack, there is a huge part of the world in [[1110: Click and Drag]] in the form of a round planet.

The title of the comic is likely a reference to the 1996 computer game {{w|Escape Velocity (video game)|Escape Velocity}}, which also featured a 2D map dotted with planets. The title text says, "Gotta go fast.", a reference to {{w|Sonic the Hedgehog (character)|Sonic the Hedgehog}}'s catchphrase, and the point of the game: getting able to go faster to escape larger and larger planets and leave the Crystal Sphere.

===The Hyperdrive===
The Hyperdrive is a powerful upgrade to the spaceship that massively boosts your thrusters. It is found at the center of the Boston Planet and is needed to explore the planets outside the Crystal Sphere and to escape from the black hole inside the Subway Planet. It can only be unlocked after deactivating the MIT Cloaking Device on the Subway Planet and collecting three of the four subway tokens found at different "Bostons". Subway tokens are circles with a T outline, and they have a distinct color: "blue", "red", "green", and "orange", the four colors of {{w|MBTA subway|Boston's subway system}}. The blue token on the Boston Planet is not strictly necessary to get the Hyperdrive, although it is the easiest to obtain. Note that getting it will require several other upgrades first, so it shouldn't be your first objective. See [[#Celestial Bodies and Collectable Items|the table below]] for other ways to progress in the game.

Here's how to get the Hyperdrive:
# Get to the Subway Planet by launching from the bush where someone says "Shhh." on Origin. () The Subway Planet features all the subways of North America except Boston, which has been ripped out and hidden by the MIT kids, leaving a big empty hole in the crust of the planet.
# Once on the Subway Planet, go to Morgantown, WV via Mexico City and Atlanta, and deactivate the MIT Cloaking Device to make the Boston Planet appear.
# Follow the two intangible grey lines that will first guide you to Origin and then the Roche Lobe Earth (one of the four Bostons) and collect the green subway token on it.
# Go back to Origin and collect the orange token on the Guitar Ship (see [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/2765:_Escape_Speed#Celestial_Bodies_and_Collectable_Items the table below] for instructions on how to find these planets).
# Get to the East Coast of the US on the Projection of Earth and collect the red token.
# Now that the center of the Boston Planet is accessible, go there and collect the Hyperdrive. The planet also contains the final blue token, but it's not necessary to get to the Hyperdrive.

===Extra Escape Speed pages===
Since this comic is so big and complicated, extra pages have been created to include much more information than is wished for on this main page. These pages are listed here for convenience, but they are also listed in the relevant sections below:
* [[2765: Escape Speed/Transcript]] - The full transcript of the entire comic, as if you played the game can be found here. It is linked from the [[#Transcript|Transcript]] section.
* [[2765: Escape Speed/The whole image]] - A collection of different compilations of the whole Image.
* [[2765: Escape Speed/Screen-shots]] - Can be linked from several sections
* [[2765: Escape Speed/Tables]] - Tables used for explanation can be put on this page.

===Celestial Bodies and Collectable Items===
This is a table of all celestial bodies and items, in descending order of planet size (the Starting Planet, Origin, and the Hollow Planet are at the top for their relevance). Collectable items and messages are found in the "You found...", "Upgrades", "Messages" and "Subway tokens" columns. For more detailed and in-depth tables and lists, see [[2765: Escape Speed/Tables|here]]. Here are some other useful resources:
* A map of the entire universe created by the community can be found [https://aeromancer.dev/xkcd/escape_speed/ here]
* Screenshots of the entire world, planets, and celestial bodies made using this map can be found [[2765: Escape Speed/The whole image|here]]
* A spreadsheet of all items and messages from the game's source code can be found [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hygJKdwjkufAU3ZYC4NELdCX7XgRdOIW68vPUidR9qA here]
* A spreadsheet of coordinates for all celestial bodies from the game's source code can be found [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xhw3oVb4fMktZB_KEIF9fGkYCkfbpRMHKBLI63laTgc here]

{| class="wikitable sortable"
! rowspan="2"|Name

<code>codename</code>
! rowspan="2"|Tiles (X, Y)
! rowspan="2"|Explanation
! colspan="4"|Collectable items and messages
|-
! You found...
! Upgrades
! Messages
! Subway tokens
|-
| '''Starting Planet'''

<code>tiny-world</code>
| (6024, -8976)
| To get here, click the "Home" button in the lower right corner of the comic.

The planet is tiny, grassy, and has few trees. Beret Guy is saying "WOW!", but since he's on the other side of the planet, it looks like he is shouting "iMOM". This is a reference to the title text of [[1117: My Sky]], and it could also be a reference to [[502: Dark Flow]]. Pressing the "Home" button to go back to the starting planet shows the message, "Welcome back, pilot", which may be a reference to the greeting that plays when re-entering a Titan in the ''Titanfall'' video games.
|
* a rock with neat stripes

* a cool bug

* a pretty leaf
|
|
* Wheeee!
|
|-
| '''Origin'''

<code>origin</code>
| (3096, -5904)
| To get here, launch from Beret Guy saying "Wow!" on the Starting Planet.

The planet has a sign saying 'Welcome to Origin! You can never leave™'. A large hidden tunnel inside it leads from below the rollercoaster to the St. Louis Arch on the opposing side of the planet, which you can use to gain enough momentum to escape the gravitational force if you don't have many upgrades. There are lots of landmarks and signs that mark the directions to different planets.
|
* a secret glade
* a holographic Charizard business card
* a 5G seagull
* a DVD of The Core (2003)
* a normal-looking leaf
* a marsh wren
* an orb wren
* a single grain of salt
* 11 squares packed into a larger square
* a tumbleweed
|
* Nice flying! (Your tanks recharge faster now.)
|
* You found a tiny meteorite!
* Welcome to liminal space
* The St. Louis arch is also known as the gateway to space.
* Be careful; this roller coaster can be disorienting!
|
|-
| '''Hollow Planet'''

<code>hollow-shell</code>
| (-13952, 1848)
| To get here, launch from the St. Louis Arch on Origin.

The planet is just a shell with some gaps. On the outside, there are lots of landmarks and signs that mark the directions to different planets.
|
|
* You found a handful of the quantum foam that makes up the fabric of space! (Your tanks recharge much faster now.)

* You found a sixth lagrange point! (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* You found a glass of heavy water (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Star Destroyer'''

''from'' <code>star-destroyer-a</code> ''to'' <code>star-destroyer-i</code>
| (18192, -130000)
| To get here, launch from the crack in the Crystal Sphere.

The planet has been copied from [[1608: Hoverboard]], with the only difference being that Darth Vader's dialogue was changed from referencing {{w|Steven Universe}} to {{w|The Murderbot Diaries}}.
|
* an unread email
* a glass slipper with a glass foot in it
* a lymphocyte
* a forged resume
* a serif
* a Bursa of Fabricius
* a cluster of data points
* a premium subscription to food
* two goats and a new car
* an out-of-control trolley
* a helium-238 nucleus
* the Death Star plans
|
* You found a perpetual motion fidget spinner! (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)
* You found a vintage Juicero juicer! (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
|
* Hmmm.
|
|-
| '''Click and Drag Planet'''

<code>clickdrag-nw</code>'','' <code>clickdrag-ne</code>'','' <code>clickdrag-sw</code>'', and'' <code>clickdrag-se</code>
| (-31808, 111808)
| To get here, launch from the bow or stern of the Star Destroyer tangentially to the Crystal Sphere to orbit it and keep the stars in the background moving horizontally on the screen until you see a dot around the spaceship guiding you.

The planet has mostly been copied from [[1110: Click and Drag]] and modelled to form a round planet, so the drawings are very tiny. The large rocket has been changed from the original look, possibly as a reference to SpaceX. Originally, it had no gravity, and the spaceship was only attracted by the gravity of the Crystal Sphere. This made navigating around the planet difficult, so a later update added gravity to it to make it easier for players to explore it.
|
* an ant the size of Rhode Island
* a pin with 17 angels dancing on it
|
* The vehicle below gives you a boost (Your launch speed has increased.)
* We should turn back (Your engine gets a bit more powerful.)
* You found an expert at underwater ropes. (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
* You found a trisected angle! (Your launch speed has greatly increased.)
|
|
|-
| '''Subway Planet'''

<code>subway-planet</code> ''and'' <code>black-hole-3</code>
| (22000, 34000)
| To get here, launch from the bush where someone says "Shhh." on Origin.

The planet is a reference to [[1196: Subways]] and it's riddled with tunnels. Boston has been ripped out and hidden by the MIT kids, leaving a big empty hole in the crust of the planet, and there is a black hole at the center that can only be escaped with the Hyperdrive. You need to find the switch that turns off the MIT Cloaking Device to help you get the Hyperdrive. Once found, two intangible grey lines will appear (on the Subway Planet and on Origin), guiding you to one of the four Bostons.
|
* a relativistic bowling ball
* a Cybiko® wireless handheld computer for teens (2000)
* a handful of quantum foam
* a normal-sized apple
|
* You get the feeling you're not in Kansas anymore (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)
* There is no parking in the white zone (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
* The next stop is Interplanetary Terminal G (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
* You feel accomplished (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
* You found a brightly-lit billboard (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
* You found a hot dog (Your launch speed has increased.)
* You found a bottle of Coke Absolute Zero! (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
* You found a beige electron! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
* You found $30 in Yahoo! cash! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
* You found a friendly cat! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
* Transfer here for Mornington Crescent
|
* MIT Cloaking Device deactivated! Boston detected. (Blue, red, green, and orange lines activated.)
|-
| '''Boston Planet'''

<code>mbta</code>
| (-42000, 8000)
| To get here, launch from the back of the Shuttle Skeleton.

The planet is the Boston subway system that was ripped out from the Subway Planet by the MIT kids. The Hyperdrive, needed to explore the planets outside the Crystal Sphere, is at the center of the planet, which is only accessible after getting the green, red and orange subway tokens. The blue token is not strictly necessary to get the Hyperdrive, although it is the easiest to obtain. If the player goes to the location of the Boston Planet before turning off the MIT Cloaking Device, they will only find an invisible region out in space that has gravity, at the center of which a "strangely heavy subway token" can be found. The gravitational force around it remains even after the token is collected. As hinted by Blondie on Andal, the MIT Cloaking Device doesn't affect gravity, therefore the cloaked Boston planet is intangible and invisible, but its mass still affects the gravitational field around it.
|
* a strangely heavy subway token
|
|
|
* Blue line deactivated!
* Welcome to MIT! You acquired a hyperdrive!
|-
| '''Projection of Earth'''

<code>earth-map</code>
| (-15808, 22192)
| To get here, launch from the Earth map landmark on Origin or the sign on the Hollow Planet.

The planet is a huge, distorted map of all land masses on Earth. The spaceship can fly where water would be, but it can't go over land.
|
* the Heart of the Ocean
* a whale shark
* some microbial life
* some tin from the pantai remis mine
* a sparkling gem
* a piece of pumice
|
* You found the Principality of Sealand! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found a Rhode Island the size of an ant! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found an icosahedral d10 (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
* Red line deactivated!
|-
| '''What If? Planet'''

<code>gravity-earth</code>
| (-46000, -24000)
| To get here, launch from the two people explaining where Boston is on Origin, the left of Stonehenge on the Round Planet, or the left rim of the Guitar Ship.

The planet contains several scenes from ''[[What If? 2]]'' and [[2712: Gravity]]. Megan and Cueball are floating inside a small space in the center of the planet, which can be reached after getting the Hyperdrive. This is arguably the most remote object within the Crystal Sphere, since all the planets around it are very distant from it.
|
* an eye in the sky

* a stick

* an asterisk

* a sterile neutrino

* a secret leaf

* a pair of squirrel goggles

* a large hadron

* a smooth green snake
|
* You found a sunken treasure (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* The Yellowstone Super What? (Your launch speed has increased.)

* Nutritional Facts - Serving Size: 1 Cloud, Total Calories: 0 (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You captured the flag! You decide to leave it there, but it's yours. (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found a steam calliope! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found a dna base pair! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Uzumaki'''

<code>uzumaki</code>
| (-3904, -26904)
| To get here, launch from Origin's spiral landmark, the sign on the Hollow Planet, or below the plane-towed banner on the Round Planet.

The planet is a large spiral of grass inspired by the manga ''{{w|Uzumaki}}'' by Junji Ito. A Roomba is loose, a reference to [[1558: Vet]].
|
* a golden radio tuned to 1.618 MHz

* a scroll lock key

* a primordial black hole

* a cool pair of shoes with flames on the side

* an ink cartridge

* a podcast episode

* a festive but somehow unnerving holiday card from Junji Ito

* a friendly bee

* a spiral-cut diamond

* a burrito
|
* You found a tree-filled grove and a nice spot for quiet contemplation (Your thrusters are significantly more efficient now.)

* You found a single caffeine molecule! (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)
|
* Exit Only

* You're going the wrong way!
|
|-
| '''Round Planet'''
<code>orb</code>
| (-19154, -7288)
| To get here, launch from the tower with an orb on it on Origin or the sign on the Hollow Planet.

The planet is moderately small with no vegetation and some architecture such as Stonehenge and the Great Wall of China.
|
* a swatch pop-out wristwatch
|
* You found a sensible cheese platter (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)

* ''[no message]'' (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Jurassic Park Planet'''

<code>gravity-qwantz</code>
| (20000, 11000)
| To get here, launch from the dinosaur on Origin or the Andalites on Andal.

The planet is covered in dinosaurs from [https://www.qwantz.com Dinosaur Comics] and has very weak gravity. It is an exact copy of the Dinosaur Planet from [[2712: Gravity]].
|
* a tiny pteranodon

* a baby hedgehog

* a tattered knapsack containing about $194,00 in $20 bills
|
* Today is a good day I think for space exploration (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* But what if gravity doesn't actually exist? (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)
|
|
|-
| '''Andal'''

<code>platform-planet</code>
| (12048, 14048)
| To get here, launch from the Andal landmark near the pyramids on Origin or below Saturn's equator, when the soccer ball is oriented to the bottom left compared to the spaceship.

The planet is small and has a T-shaped tower, mountains, and grass.
|
|
* You found two Andalites, one canonical! (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* What a nice place for a ship to sit! (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)

* You found a friend (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* You found baby shoes (and baby)! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Comet 67P'''

<code>67p</code>
| (18048, -11152)
| To get here, launch from the duck next to the 'Caution: long vertical drop' sign on Origin.

The planet is a reference to the comet {{w|67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko}} and contains the crashed Rosetta spacecraft along with the Philae lander that landed on it in 2014.
|
|
* Some people believe that when the Earth appears in the sky, it's a harbinger of doom. (Your tanks recharge a bit faster now.)

* You found a broken smoke machine (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* Anyone for Scrabble later? (Your engine gets a little more powerful.) (This is a reference to [[470: The End is Not for a While]].)

* You found The Long Now Foundation's nickel paperweight containing an archive of every published Animorphs book! (Your launch speed has increased.)
|
|
|-
| '''Guitar Ship'''

<code>guitar-ship</code>
| (-12000, -30000)
| To get here, launch from the musicians singing "it's more than a feeling" near Uzumaki.

The planet is a huge guitar labeled 'Boston' with the city skyline under a dome on the back (a reference to the cover art of the album {{w|Boston (album)|''Boston''}}).
|
* a guitar pick
|
|
|
* Orange line deactivated!
|-
| '''Saturn'''

<code>saturn</code>
| (2600, 14000)
| To get here, launch from the pyramid with Saturn on it on Origin. If you see the Spacetime Soccer Field, you're too far left.

The planet has a soccer ball inside it, a reference to [[2513: Saturn Hexagon]].
|
* a really cool data point
|
* You found a pair of platonic solids, not quite touching! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found a block of scandium! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Roche Lobe Earth'''

<code>earth-roche</code> ''and'' <code>normal-moon</code>
| (-9952, -3952)
| To get here, launch from the landmark that looks like a very round cannon firing a cannon ball on Origin.

The planet is a distorted Earth being attracted by the gravity of the moon, which makes the Earth look like a giant drop of water. See ''{{w|Roche Lobe}}'' for more information.
|
* a curious humboldt squid

* a bathyscaphe

* a wayward Roomba full of moondust
|
|
|
* Green line deactivated!
|-
| '''Giant Spider'''

<code>spider</code>
| (26982, -8714)
| To get here, launch from the spider landmark on Origin.

The object is a giant spider floating in space with eight people standing on top of his legs.
|
* a spider-silk scarf
|
* You found a friendly jumping spider (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Dark Matter Planet'''

<code>dark-matter</code>
| (-2892, 2640)
| To get here, launch from the goal on the half of the field with just one person on it on Spacetime Soccer Field.

The planet is small and grey, and it has the words "Dark matter" inside. On its surface, there are two squirrels and Ponytail exclaiming "I found it!", a reference to [[2186: Dark Matter]]).
|
|
* You found a delicate music box. (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)
|
|
|-
| '''Shuttle Skeleton'''

<code>space-shuttle</code>
| (-30200, 14576)
| To get here, launch from the Shuttle Skeleton landmark on Origin or Northwest from Alaska on the Projection of Earth.

The object is a reference to the Space Shuttle Skeleton from [[2630: Shuttle Skeleton]].
|
* a piece of space shuttle food
|
* A little upgrade works wonders on fuel efficiency (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
|
|
|-
| '''Diffraction Spikes Star'''

<code>diffraction</code>
| (-19944, 11240)
| To get here, launch from the back of the left "hand" of the Shuttle Skeleton or the north of Alaska.

The object is a very spiky star, a reference to [[2762: Diffraction Spikes]].
|
* a hydrogen ion

* a piece of coronium (iron)
|
|
|
|-
| '''SafetySat'''

<code>safetysat</code>
| (17024, 1024)
| To get here, launch from the cell tower on Origin.

The object is a reference to [[1992: SafetySat]].
|
* a first of its kind
|
* ''[no message]'' (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* The more refined oil had a dinner engagement (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
|
|
|-
| '''Spacetime Soccer Field'''

<code>soccerfield</code>
| (6048, 4048)
| To get here, launch from the pyramid with a soccer ball on it on Origin.

The planet is reference to [[2705: Spacetime Soccer]] and consists of a central white body, goals on the poles, and intangible lines farther away.
|
|
* GOOOOOOOOAAAAA- AAAALLLLLLLLLLLLL!!! (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* GOOOOOOOOAAAAA- AAAALLLLLLLLLLLLL!!! (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* You found the 3 million point line (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)

* You found a sunspot! (Your launch speed has increased.)
|
|
|-
| '''Voyager 1'''

<code>voyager-1</code>
| (1606, -14282)
| To get here, launch from the "Receiving transmission" communication device near the spiral landmark on Origin.

The object is a satellite flying in space around Origin.
|
|
* You found Voyager 1! Some of its great speed rubs off on you. (Your engine thrust has increased significantly.)
|
|
|-
| '''Voyager 2'''

<code>voyager-2</code>
| (10682, -5172)
| To get here, launch from the "Receiving transmission" communication device near the spider landmark on Origin.

The object is a satellite flying in space around Origin.
|
|
* You found Voyager 2! Some of its great speed rubs off on you. (Your engine thrust has increased significantly.)
|
|
|-
| '''Crystal Sphere'''

''from'' <code>ring-1</code> ''to'' <code>ring-36</code>
|
| To get here, launch from anywhere and keep avoiding planets until you hit it.

Most planets and celestial objects are inside of a large Crystal Sphere in which there is a visible navigable crack. Halfway through the crack, gravity gets increasingly stronger as the spaceship feels the gravitational force of the entire Crystal Sphere. Despite a person on Origin saying that "there's no way you'd be able to escape [the Crystal Sphere's] gravitation pull. You'd need some kind of a Hyperdrive for that", it's actually possible to get out of the Crystal Sphere without the Hyperdrive (but the spaceship won't be able to stay in the air for more than a second without being pulled back). You can also escape by going fast enough and ramming through. Above the crack, there is an arch made up of the repeating words "The End", which is reminiscent of the "Don't leave the play area" message in [[1608: Hoverboard]] that appeared when the player tried to get out of it.

|
* a necklace of element samples whose symbols spell out your name

* the platinum cylinder formerly used to define the kilogram
|
* A significant boost to the engines for a curious pilot (Your engine thrust has increased significantly.)

* You found the gold crown Archimedes stole! (Your engine thrust has increased significantly.)
|
|
|-
| '''Crack in the Crystal Sphere'''
|
| To get here, launch from the two characters talking about 'shooting for the moon' on Origin or the 'Exit' sign on the Hollow Planet.

This section of the Crystal Sphere was violently removed, similarly to how Boston was ripped out from the Subway Planet, leaving jagged edges and construction materials visible. Judging by the shape of the edges of the crack, it doesn't look like the Crystal Sphere is made of crystal. As noticed by Ponytail in the Hollow Planet, when the player is inside the Crystal Sphere, they don't feel a gravitational pull from the huge structure, but when they're outside, the spaceship feels the gravitational force of all the celestial bodies it is leaving behind, resulting in an very strong pull towards the interior of the Crystal Sphere. Above the crack, there is an arch made up of the repeating words "The End", which is reminiscent of the "Don't leave the play area" message in [[1608: Hoverboard]] that appeared when the player tried to get out of it. The Crystal Sphere may be a reference to {{w|The Crystal Spheres}}, a short story by science fiction author David Brin which suggests that each star with habitable planets in the universe is surrounded by a crystal sphere that can be broken only from the inside and is otherwise completely impenetrable.
|
|
* There is a way out (Your launch speed has increased.)
|
* Right lane must turn right

* Left lane must turn left
|
|-
| '''Open Space Outside the Crystal Sphere'''
|
|To get here, go through the crack in the crystal sphere
|
|
* It is very lonely out here (Your tanks recharge much faster now.)

* You found a needle in a haystack (Your engine gets a little more powerful.)

* From here you can view the source of it all. (Your thrusters are more efficient now.)
|
|}

==Hacks==
Some of the modes and hacks from [[2712: Gravity]] return in this comic and can be activated by opening the browser console (F12, Ctr+Shift+I or Cmd+Option+I to open your browser's developer tools, then choose the Console tab) and typing a command. <div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
 
* <code>ship.engines = "warp"</code> changes the spaceship into the USS Enterprise from Star Trek and massively boosts the power of your engines. Use <code>ship.engines = "standard"</code> to return to normal.
* <code>python("import antigravity")</code> flips the gravitational pull. It's a reference to comic [[353: Python]].
* <code>noclip = true</code> disables collision detection.
* <code>Comic.ship = "paperplane"</code> changes the spaceship into a paper plane. Other options include <code>"bubble"</code> (the default spaceship), <code>"small-bubble"</code> (a smaller version of the default), <code>"carriagereturn"</code> (the USS Enterprise, presumably a pun on 'Enter'), <code>"lamp"</code> (a lamp), <code>"lampacity"</code> (also a lamp?) and <code>"ship1"</code> (the spaceship from "Gravity").
* <code>Comic.gravityConstant = 0</code> turns gravity off (default is 100).
* <code>Comic.voyager.opts.speed = 0.1</code> increases engine power (default is 0.04).
* <code>Comic.voyager.opts.thrustDuration = 1000</code> provides extra fuel (default is 3.5).
* <code>Comic.voyager.opts.turnSpeed = 0.008</code> increases your turning speed (default is 0.002).
* <code>[Comic.voyager.pos.x, Comic.voyager.pos.y] = [1177, 6755]</code> teleports the spaceship to Saturn ([https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xhw3oVb4fMktZB_KEIF9fGkYCkfbpRMHKBLI63laTgc Coordinates list].)
* <code>Comic.map.items</code> is an array of the findable items, and <code>Comic.map.locations</code> is an array of places.
* <code>ship.engines = "infinite improbability drive"</code> moves the spaceship to random locations, in a reference to the Heart of Gold from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
* <code>ze.goggles()</code> once again prints "they do nothing!"
* <code>ship.shields = false</code> turns the entire screen black when you collide with something.

[[User:CruseCtrl|CruseCtrl]]'s wayfinder adds a blue dot to show where the nearest collectable is.
Paste this into the JavaScript console:

const waypointDiv = document.createElement("div");
waypointDiv.style = "position: absolute; left: 50%; top: 50%; width: 6px; height: 6px; background: blue; border-radius: 99px;";
document.getElementById("comic").appendChild(waypointDiv);
const findClosestObject = (voyager, xPos, yPos) => {
let bestDist = Infinity;
let bestObject = null;
for (const object of voyager.objects.filter((o) => !voyager.gotObjects.has(o.id) && o.visible?.())) {
const dist = Math.sqrt((xPos - (object.x1 + object.x2) / 2) ** 2 + (yPos - (object.y1 + object.y2) / 2) ** 2);
if (dist < bestDist) {
bestDist = dist;
bestObject = object;
}
}
return { object: bestObject, dist: bestDist };
};
const everyFrame = function (state) {
const { object, dist } = findClosestObject(Comic.voyager, state.x, state.y);
if (!object) {
waypointDiv.style.display = "none";
return;
}
const objectX = (object.x1 + object.x2) / 2;
const objectY = (object.y1 + object.y2) / 2;
const angleToObject = Math.atan2(objectY - state.y, objectX - state.x);
const waypointAngle = angleToObject + Comic.voyager.cameraAngle;
const waypointDistance = 10 + 2 * dist ** (1 / 3);
const waypointX = Math.cos(waypointAngle) * waypointDistance;
const waypointY = Math.sin(waypointAngle) * waypointDistance;
waypointDiv.style.transform = `translate(${waypointX}px, ${waypointY}px)`;
};
const oldOnFrame = Comic.onFrame.bind(Comic);
Comic.onFrame = function (...args) { everyFrame(...args); oldOnFrame(...args); };

The following script stops the momentum of the spaceship, which can be useful after seeing a planet without being able to slow down in time:
window.onkeydown = function(e){if(e.key == 'p'){Comic.gameHandle.playerConfig.maxSpeed = 0; setTimeout(() => {Comic.gameHandle.playerConfig.maxSpeed = 100;},10)}}
</div>
 

== Transcript ==
:'''[This transcript only covers the starting page as shown on {{xkcd|2765|xkcd.com}}. A full transcript of the entire comic can be found [[2765: Escape Speed/Transcript|here]].]'''

:[What is shown on xkcd it what is known as the Starting planet. It is a small planet. On top of it is a small spaceship standing on two legs. It has a circular shape on top of the legs with a round window. Next to it is a small tree which is higher than the spaceship. This is the spaceship to be controlled by the user. The planet has grass all around, and the entire planet is visible. But the ship is in the center, so most of the planet is in the lover part of the panel. The background around the planet is a star-studded black backdrop. Going around the planet to clockwise from the small tree, there are two more trees with some small bushes between the first small tree and the two next trees. A larger tree is on the opposite part of the planet. Between the two trees and this there is a small bush and the Beret Guy who looks and point up from his point of view (down as seen in the image as he is on the opposite side). He is exclaiming a word. After the largest tree next to him, come a small tree. Before that Cueball and Megan stand together. On the last part back to the spaceship there is another small bush. There are also four gray dots. One above the spaceship. One between the first three and the two. One above the largest of the two trees together. And the final near the bush to the left of the spaceship. Those four dots are part of the game and can be removed if the ship touches them. In the bottom right corner of the panel there is a small white square with a black house drawn upon it. There are two small black dots beneath it. A curved arrow goes below the house from the right to the left dot. This is the home button that will always take the player back to this starting window. To the very right of the panel on height with the spaceship there is a white bar about three times the height of the spaceship. This bar indicates how much energy the spaceship has. It always refuels immediately after landing anywhere.]
:Beret Guy: Wow!
:[As Beret Guy is upside down, so is his words. They can thus easily be read as MOM as they are written, as always, in all caps.]

:[As part of the game there are messages appearing the first time you enter the comic, and every time you return to home of to the comic from another comic. Although they are not part of the image, they do appear on the home image. These messages appear as black text in a rectangular white panel with a black border. The messages are only on screen for a short time. On a mobile phone browser "Use the arrow keys" is "Tap the sides of your screen". The three situations follow here:]

:[First time opening the game in a new browser there are two messages one appearing after the other:]
:Greetings!
:Use the arrow keys, pilot.

:[When pressing the home button only one message appears:]
:Welcome back, pilot.

:[When reloading or going to the page after having been in another page or having shut down the program and opening again, there will be two messages:]
:Welcome back! We saved your progress.
:Use the arrow keys, pilot.

:[When moving past the grey dots text is revealed in a similar manner to the greetings text. If it is items, then they are collected and listed beneath the panel under the heading "You've found:" A bulleted list will then start to grow beneath this as you play the game and collect items.]

:'''[For more transcripts from the rest of the game go to the [[2765: Escape Speed/Transcript|full transcript page]].]'''

== Trivia ==
* Since the comic came out on a Thursday instead of a Wednesday, it may have been timed to celebrate the test flight of the [https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/apr/20/elon-musks-spacex-launches-test-flight-for-rocket-that-could-bring-people-to-mars SpaceX Starship rocket], which was blown up four minutes after liftoff because its booster stage failed to separate. The large rocket found on the Click and Drag Planet has also been changed from the original look, possibly as a reference to SpaceX. It could also be a late [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]], since for the second time in 12 years no such comic was published this year.
* At (-945.399px, -694.381px), a person named Ryan is stuck in a small hole with a dog. This is a reference to a real event that happened to [https://www.polygon.com/2015/8/18/9173621/ryan-north-stuck-hole-twitter Dinosaur Comics author Ryan North]. Nearby is featured the T-rex from his iconic comic strip, in the pose of the last panel.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Large drawings]]
[[Category:Comics with animation]]
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:Interactive comics]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Blondie]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Knit Cap]]
[[Category:Characters with hats]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]] 
[[Category:Video games]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Spiders]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Songs]]
[[Category:Soccer]]
[[Category:Robots]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Volcanoes]]
[[Category:Space probes]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Aviation]]
[[Category:Airplane banner]]
[[Category:Book promotion]]
[[Category:Animorphs]]
[[Category:Stilts]]
[[Category:What If?]] 
[[Category:Popular Comics]]

1528: Vodka

2023-12-08T09:00:26Z

141.101.98.134: Undo revision 330389 by 172.71.242.136 (talk) That isn't even what https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dmitri_Mendeleev#Vodka_myth says is wrong. (Also bad verb-agreement, but no matter...)

{{comic
| number = 1528
| date = May 22, 2015
| title = Vodka
| image = vodka.png
| titletext = Or whatever's handy! I'm pretty much pure alcohol and water, so it doesn't really matter!
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Vodka}} is a {{w|distilled beverage}} composed primarily of water and ethanol, sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. Traditionally, vodka is made by the distillation of {{w|fermented}} {{w|cereal}} grains or {{w|potatoes}}, though some modern brands use other substances, such as fruits or sugar.

When people use the phrase "maybe it's the [type of alcohol] talking", they usually mean that they are speaking under the {{w|influence of alcohol}} and are saying things they probably wouldn't say when {{w|sober}}. This is similar to the {{w|Latin}} saying "{{w|in vino veritas}}" - in wine there is truth. However, in this comic, it appears that the vodka itself is ''literally'' speaking through Ponytail to discuss its origin, potatoes in this case. Other comics in which things have been taken too literally include [[1099: Tuesdays]] and [[1364: Like I'm Five]]. In [[1541: Voice]], Ponytail is {{tvtropes|BodySnatcher|again possessed by a non-human entity}}, or maybe she is just making pranks with Megan in both cases.

In the title text, the vodka is implying it can be made from many other things beside potatoes. Vodka can be manufactured from potatoes, grain, and most other plants. Most illegal distilled vodka is often made with whatever one has on hand. However, vodkas are often repeatedly distilled to remove the "foreshots" (the first few ounces of alcohol that drip from the condenser), the "heads" (the higher alcohols which are first to condense during distillation) and the "tails" (the lower fusel oils which are last to be distilled). Removal of these leaves a clear solution consisting almost entirely of ethanol and water. This is in contrast to other distilled beverages like {{w|whiskey}}, {{w|brandy}} and {{w|rum}}.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail and Megan sit together at a table with two small shot glasses on the table. Ponytail is imbibing from a large bottle, while Megan is cradling a relatively large glass.]

:Ponytail: Maybe this is the vodka talking, but:
:Ponytail: ''Hi! I'm made from potatoes!''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Food]]

Talk:1762: Moving Boxes

2016-11-22T18:31:36Z

141.101.98.134:

I think I've got some Dark Matter in a box left in my basement. Anyone knows how long you can keep this stuff until it expires? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.22.72|162.158.22.72]] 13:36, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
: Mine is about 13.8 billion years old and still OK. But shouldn't about 3/4 of the boxes be filled with dark matter? --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.172|162.158.91.172]] 14:21, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
:: You probably mean 1/4 (and dark energy is the other 3/4). But we don't know how dark matter is distributed. In the extreme and unlikely case that dark matter consists entirely of MACHOs, there are no boxes with it. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.54.123|172.68.54.123]] 01:25, 22 November 2016 (UTC)
: Hah! Mine's 13.8'''1''' years old.
: It should be good for another 10^100 years or so. Give or take a few duotrigintillion years. {{unsigned ip|172.68.35.83}}
--[[User:Thejohnfan|Thejohnfan]] ([[User talk:Thejohnfan|talk]]) 14:28, 21 November 2016 (UTC)Thejohnfan
::Yeah - you've really gotta be careful about labelling that stuff - since it neither absorbs nor emits electromagnetic radiation, you're going to have to use gravitational lensing techniques to figure out which box it's in - and we all know how much of a pain THAT can be on moving day! [[User:SteveBaker|SteveBaker]] ([[User talk:SteveBaker|talk]]) 14:59, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
: Make sure to keep it all individually wrapped. It may become unstable if allowed to mingle. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.29|162.158.74.29]] 03:17, 22 November 2016 (UTC)

:When I last moved house, I methodically labelled every single box with it's exact contents. Several meticulously itemized boxes contained (amongst other things) stuff like "Acrylic art paint", "Rodent poison" and "Adhesives" - and the movers saw this and refused to move about a dozen boxes because they contained things that are liquids or hazardous materials. This was more than I could fit in my car - so this became a huge deal. So next time, I'm going with "Normal House Stuff". Seriously - just label them with the room you want them dumped in at your new home and a number...write the actual contents in a MySQL database...preferably with a photo of the box before you taped it up. [[User:SteveBaker|SteveBaker]] ([[User talk:SteveBaker|talk]]) 14:59, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
::Label the boxes with "Normal house stuff'); DROP TABLE Boxes; --" if you're doing that. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.137|162.158.34.137]] 15:16, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
:::How do you access the MySQL database when your computer is still packed away in a box? [[User:B jonas|B jonas]] ([[User talk:B jonas|talk]]) 16:08, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
:::: The MySQL database is in a box clearly labelled "Cyberspace" so the movers know where to put it - there is a certain degree of recursion involved in this, but it can be managed. And to access it - I carry a phone...although the magic USB-C to USB-C cable needed to charge it is almost certainly in a box labelled "Attic 237", "Basement 96" or "Garage 49(a)". [[User:SteveBaker|SteveBaker]] ([[User talk:SteveBaker|talk]]) 14:34, 22 November 2016 (UTC)

Note that there is a similar use of "Normal" in [https://xkcd.com/1530/ https://xkcd.com/1530/] [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.151|141.101.98.151]] 16:54, 21 November 2016 (UTC)

Protip: Label boxes you don't want the movers to know about with "Party Favors." [[Special:Contributions/172.68.79.83|172.68.79.83]] 16:22, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
: Indeed, it's a great idea to obfuscate your items with "less valuable" names, or replace everything with numbers + room names, like "Kitchen 2." Just don't lose the inventory list. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.116|162.158.255.116]] 10:48, 22 November 2016 (UTC)

The explanation for Bison says they're "also known as buffalo". Not sure if that's technically accurate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bison Excerpt: "Although sometimes referred to historically as a "buffalo", it is only distantly related to the true buffalo." {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.192}}
:Yes, but colloquially, this is acceptable. For another example, see "Indian vs. Native American."[[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.100|162.158.75.100]] 18:08, 21 November 2016 (UTC)

The "shards" could also be a reference to "sharding", as in "MongoDB is web scale"[http://www.mongodb-is-web-scale.com/]
[[User:CrazyVaccine|CrazyVaccine]] ([[User talk:CrazyVaccine|talk]]) 17:30, 21 November 2016 (UTC)

membranes shards may also refer to sponges {{unsigned ip|172.68.78.133}}

I read the "shawls glucose kits" as "shawls, glucose [testing] kits", not as "shawls, glucose, kits" {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.191}}

>>Vectors ARE physical objects in the wonderful world of epidemiology... also, I believe that it's incorrect to say that you can not put the 'physics' kind of vector into a box... just not, uh, physically, more theoretically? Also the same for field lines (unless it is full of dug up painted clods from the lines from an actual soccer field or something), but you could absolutely place a magnet next to a box, and now there are field lines in it, ammirght? -(unsigned, embarrassed, pedantic, etc) {{unsigned ip|173.245.48.84}}

Come on people this is funny! While Randal may not remember which box things are in, we must assume he KNOWS what stuff he has - ergo he really has all this stuff or at least these are keywords that represent real stuff (like "triangles" could be drafting set-squares) The joke is trying to figure out what on earth these keywords might actually represent! It being xkcd and Randal, we should not assume these are all "normal" items found in typical housholds but may be computer and tech linked. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.118|108.162.242.118]] 22:17, 21 November 2016 (UTC)

I'm glad he's keeping the shorebirds and oil separate. Not everyone is so considerate. [[User:Jkshapiro|Jkshapiro]] ([[User talk:Jkshapiro|talk]]) 01:49, 22 November 2016 (UTC)
: My father tells me about the depressing sight of removing dead grebes at his workplace. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.116|162.158.255.116]] 10:48, 22 November 2016 (UTC)

Some of the boxes could be considered mathematical constructs, i.e., one box contains all the vectors, and is thus a vector space. Another contains edges, 12 of them to be precise. One box appears to be either a Gaussian surface or a magnetic yoke, containing field lines. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.29|162.158.74.29]] 03:14, 22 November 2016 (UTC)

Reference #14, Dark Matter: perhaps fairer to say you can't *knowingly* pack it? After all, if you can't observe it then it might be there without you knowing about it. ([[User:Stumpy|talk]]) 07:15, 22 Nov 2016 (UTC)

I wonder if there is a reason why he grouped items in certain ways. For instance, "shards" would destroy "membranes", so it is funny that he put them together. But why did he put "beacons", "elves" and "sand" together?

Trying to make sense of the word choices. The boxes contain elements from the following domains:
- biology (ex: hemoglobin, bison, shorebirds, membranes)
- physics (ex: dark matter, field lines, particles, taupe (the light frequency))
- chemistry (ex: graphite, glucose)
- mathematics (ex: vectors, triangles, manifolds, edges)
- fantasy (ex: scrolls, elves, traps, fog)
- improbable objects (ex: hydrant, tribes, sand, shards).
Do you see other ways to classify the objects? {{unsigned|P500g}}

Has no one noticed yet the obvious political references of this comic?

1441: Turnabout

2016-11-14T05:31:58Z

141.101.98.134: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1441
| date = October 31, 2014
| title = Turnabout
| image = turnabout.png
| titletext = Whenever I miss a shot with a sci-fi weapon, I say 'Apollo retroreflector' really fast, just in case.
}}

==Explanation==
In the comic, two people are engaging in a battle with laser guns. One appears to gain the upper hand as he jumps on an obstacle, as the other's shot goes wide. He delivers the classic line [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AnyLastWords "Any last words?"] and is answered with the confusing phrase "Apollo retroreflectors". The earlier wild shot, reflected off the Moon, promptly lances down from space and hits him in the back.

A {{w|retroreflector}} is a device or surface that reflects light back towards its source. Several such devices {{w|List of retroreflectors on the Moon|were placed on the Moon}} and have been used ever since by scientists on Earth to {{w|Lunar Laser Ranging experiment|measure the distance between the two bodies using laser ranging}}.

The title text may be a reference to the common practice of "calling bank" in the game of basketball. In basketball, the backboard may be used to deflect the ball into the hoop. This is called a "bank shot." In casual games, if the player using the backboard in this way does not indicate that it was intentional by "calling bank" before releasing the ball, the basket may not be counted in order to not give the player credit for a wild shot that happened to go in. When a player releases a shot that they realize is off the mark they sometimes quickly say "bank" to try and fool the other players into thinking that they were intentionally trying to "bank" the ball off the backboard into the hoop. In the title text scenario, "Apollo retroreflector" is used the same way "bank" is in basketball, i.e., the shooter meant to hit the target by reflection rather than directly.

[[Randall]] discussed the effect of hitting the Moon with lasers in [http://what-if.xkcd.com/13/ What If: Laser Pointer] and the likelihood of hitting a celestial object with a laser in [http://what-if.xkcd.com/109/ What If: Into the Blue].

Retroreflectors were placed by the American {{w|Apollo 11}}, {{w|Apollo 14|14}}, and {{w|Apollo 15|15}} missions. The Soviet {{w|Lunokhod 1}} and {{w|Lunokhod 2|2}} rovers also carried such reflectors; attempts to use them for laser ranging were unsuccessful from 1971 to 2010, but were successfully renewed after the rovers' positions were photographed by the {{w|Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter}}.

The likelihood of the wild shot being aimed at the Moon is fairly low in itself, and the probability of accidentally hitting a retroreflector on the Moon is lower still. Even if it did, it is highly unlikely that a pistol-sized generator could produce a beam coherent enough to inflict damage after traveling to the Moon and back, as lasers built for the purpose of hitting retroreflectors on the Moon typically get a return around one quadrillionth of the original beam, and a visible light laser would need a very large lens or mirror in order to still be relatively concentrated upon hitting the reflectors.

The title text claims you would need to say "Apollo retroreflector" really fast; this is an ambiguous reference between 'calling bank,' which would have to be done quickly before the shot lands, since from Earth you would only have about [http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=2+*+moon+distance+from+earth+%2F+speed+of+light 2.5 seconds] before the light is reflected back to its source.

In addition the title "turnabout" refers to the game series "Ace Attorney", possibly "Apollo Justice : Ace Attorney ", where the aim of the game series is to turn trials around in your favour.

==Transcript==
:[A guy and Cueball are engaged in a fight with laser pistols. The guy is standing behind a small box, firing his gun at Cueball.]
:[Cueball is kneeling behind a larger box, returning fire.]
:[The guy leaps on top of the larger box, knocking Cueball backwards and off balance. Cueball fires wildly into the air.]
:[Now the guy is standing on the box. Cueball is sprawled on the ground, laser pistol out of reach, at gunpoint.]

:Guy: Any last words?
:Cueball: "Apollo retroreflectors."
:Guy: What?

:[The guy gets shot in the back by the returning beam of Cueball's wild shot.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Space]]

585: Outreach

2016-08-24T12:44:19Z

141.101.98.134: Semantic error corrected

{{comic
| number =585
| date =May 18, 2009
| title =Outreach
| image =outreach.png
| titletext =Completely implausible? Yes. Nevertheless, worth keeping a can of shark repellent next to the bed.
}}

==Explanation==
Scientific animal tracking is commonly used to learn more about other species, particularly endangered ones, as a way of better understanding their physiology, behavior, and what risks they face in the wild. It's used in a wide variety of sciences, including wildlife biology, conservation, wildlife management and zoology.

The scientists in this comic are working on a rather limited budget as [[Ponytail]] explains, and can't afford the cost of hiring someone to retrieve a tracking tag from the water. So they create one that will pop free, float to the surface, and inflate a giant helium balloon, causing it to gradually drift over land. Eventually the balloon will slowly deflate and soft-land, and with any luck someone will find it and mail it back to the scientists.

It goes horribly, hilariously wrong. The tag can't quite pop free from the shark, and proceeds to inflate the balloon ''while the shark is still attached''. The shark rises right along with the tracker tag, drifts back over land, and goes right after the scientists that had been tracking it.

When [[Science Girl]] (maybe in her first appearance, before she got her buns) sees the two scientists running frantically from a flying shark, she figures that if such excitement is a daily part of a scientist's job, ''that's'' the job for her, as she tells her daddy [[Cueball]].

The title of the comic, '''Outreach''', refers to the type of activities that scientists do in order to motivate kids to become scientists when they grow up, and it clearly worked for Science Girl who displays keen interest and great knowledge on many subjects in her next appearances.

The title text suggests keeping shark repellent by one's bed to account for the quite-unlikely event of something like this happening. Because you never know. It may be a reference to the {{w|Batman (1966 film)|Adam West Batman film}} where Batman just happens to have some in his helicopter.

However, since sharks are fish, and fish cannot survive above water, the shark would die if this happened in real life.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail faces two Cueball-like guys. All three are wearing goggles and lab-coats. Between them on a shelve stands a microscope and a beaker.]
:Ponytail: The tracking tag will record the shark's movement and habits.

:[The capsule is shown to float upward towards a water surface.]
:Ponytail (narrating): Then, it will pop free and float to the surface.

:[A coast is shown, with arrows directed from water to land. A small white circle on one of the arrows indicate the balloon.]
:Ponytail (narrating): We can't afford a recovery program, so the capsules will inflate helium balloons, drift over land,

:[The capsule is shown in close up. It has a caption on it.]
:Ponytail (narrating): And hopefully be found and mailed to us. Any questions?
:Caption: If found please call

:[Ponytail is standing over a groggy shark on a boat, with water behind her and a coastline in the background. She attaches the tracking tag to the shark.]
:''Chunk''

:[The shark is dropped headfirst off the boat, into the water with a large splash.]
:''Sploosh''
:Shark: !!!

:[The course of the shark is shown, weaving around islands.]

:[The capsule is shown sticking out of the shark at the moment it is ready to pop free.]
:''Click''

:[The capsule remains attached to the shark.]

:[The balloon starts to inflate, still attached to the shark and underwater.]
:''Hissss''

:[As the balloon inflates, it starts to pull the shark to the surface.]
:Shark: ??

:[The balloon breaks the surface, pulling the shark with it.]

:[Science Girl with a black ponytail, eating an ice cream cone is standing together with Cueball to the right in an otherwise empty frame.]

:[Two screaming scientists (A Cuball-like guy and Ponytail) runs past the two, who turns to look after them. The guy is holding the microscope and Ponytail the beaker from the first frame.]
:Scientists: Aaaaaaaa

:[A shark attached to a huge balloon floats past the girl and Cueball, it follows the scientists while snapping it's jaws.]
:Shark: ''Chomp chomp''

:[After the shark is gone, Science Girl turns to Cueball.]
:Science Girl: Daddy?
:Cueball: Yes?
:Science Girl: I want to be a scientist.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Science Girl]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Sharks]]

1663: Garden

2016-04-04T17:13:47Z

141.101.98.134: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1663
| date = April 4, 2016
| title = Garden
| image = garden.png 
| titletext = Relax.
}}
*'''Note''' this is an interactive comic. Go to xkcd to try it out.
*'''Post new images''' etc. in this page [[1663: Garden/Images]]!

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|And will be so for a long time...}}
This is this year's [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] in celebration of {{w|April Fools' Day}}. Due to technical problems (or to make fools of his fans?) the comic did not go live until Sunday evening (after midnight) so there was no Friday release, and this may be the Monday release instead of the planned comic (as to not take attention from this.) So in this way there were only two comics last week, the first time since xkcd went live on xkcd.com.

If you leave the lights on and wait (or relax) then the plants in your '''garden''' start to grow slowly. The plants appear one at a time slowly, but only a few of them actually grow. There is a large tree that does, but most other plants just appear. Some of the plants sway in the breeze.

Also animals and characters including [[Megan]] and [[Ponytail]] may appear. See examples here [[1663: Garden/Images]].

Every so often the image will refresh. You can change the number of lights, their position, direction, beam width and the color temperature from red to yellow to white to blue. How much this affects the growth is hard to say, but there seems to be some correlation.

===Functionality===
*The lamp(s)
**It can be moved and turned.
**The light's color can be changed from yellow to red and back to blue.
**The light's focus can be altered to anarrow beam by dragging the triangle away from the bulb,
*The icons:
**By clicking the icon with a lamp and a + in the top right corner a new lamp is added.
***Up to two more lamps can be added for three in total.
***When there are three the icon becomes faded out.
**By clicking the large X icon something may be deleted
***When anything is selected the X becomes red. For instance when a lamp is selected.
***By clicking the icon the selected lamp can be deleted.
***The same can be done for any item appearing (growing or otherwise) by selecting the item and clicking the X.
****An item selected gets a red circle around it
***The X has the same effect as pushing the delete button on the keyboard.
***Some items (the large tree) can be deleted in minor parts taking a branch or a section with leaves off without deleting the entire tree.
*Saving images.
**The image as seen with the light, but without the lamps themselves and the two icons can be saved by right clicking in the image.
***At least for Edge, Firefox and Chrome, but not for all IE versions.
**There doesn't seem to be any [[1350#Permalink|permalink]] options like there were for the last two years' April Fools' Day comics.

==Transcript==
:[There is a web applet with up to three adjustable lights over a patch of dirt. Two buttons in the top right corner let you add another light, or remove objects. If you wait, something (a plant, an animal, ...) will grow.]

==Trivia==
On Friday, April 1st, 2015, the website [http://web.archive.org/web/20160401204749/https://xkcd.com/ began displaying] a message where "XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday" usually is:

The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical
difficulties.
Please stand by!

The next day, the following message [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402144823/http://xkcd.com was displayed]:

The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical
difficulties.
Status update: Please stand by.
Status update: This is fine. Everything is fine.
Status update: Everything is on fire.
Status update: Searching for calendar systems in which Saturday is April 1st.

On April 3rd, the message [http://web.archive.org/web/20160403234504/https://xkcd.com/ changed] to:

The Friday xkcd comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties
[Editor's note: Everything is on fire] and has been delayed until
Sunday night.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:April fools' comics]]

Talk:1575: Footprints

2015-09-10T08:57:01Z

141.101.98.134:

I know a lot about the poem this is referencing as it was my deceased grandmothers favourite. However I am omitting myself from making any changes other than putting in the poem it is referencing and the most brief of explanations to begin so someone with less emotional bias can fix formatting and improve wording. The poem can be found here: http://www.onlythebible.com/Poems/Footprints-in-the-Sand-Poem.html [[User:Squirrel killer-|Squirrel killer-]] ([[User talk:Squirrel killer-|talk]]) 06:01, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Should we address that AT-ST' nickname is "chicken Walker"? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.243.249|198.41.243.249]] 08:46, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

The title text is not in textese (which you be "theres 1 set of fps bcs I carried U".) I'm not sure what it is exactly (not being American) the closest I can get is "Valley girl" (which is not right) and "that one dialect the frat-boys speak in the movies", which can't be it's name. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.224|141.101.88.224]] 09:43, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

"Going home == death" Are we certain that this is meant? I feel it could also poke fun at the whole "walk of life" concept, and going home simply means going home... --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.92.10|162.158.92.10]] 09:55, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I've removed the definite implication that "Going home == death", and instead made it a possible interpretation. I agree that the title text is "frat-boy speak", but I'm not sure what you would call it -- [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.55|141.101.99.55]] 10:08, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I think the quicksand is a reference to Lawrence of Arabia, in the movie(spoiler alert?) Lawrence walks across the Sinai Desert only to see one of his men caught in quicksand and die immediately before reaching their destination.
[[User:Joar|Joar]] ([[User talk:Joar|talk]]) 10:15, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I'd call the title text dialect "bro talk" or something similar. Also, the quicksand bit is definitely in reference to Jesus' ability to walk on water: since quicksand is a mixture of water and sand, presumably it would be easier to walk on than regular water. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.153|173.245.54.153]] 13:52, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

The presumed reference to "Winnie the Pooh" is very far fetched. The joke of following its own footprint is used in many other works. Same for drawing in a quicksand. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.66.23|141.101.66.23]] 14:03, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
:Ha! Edit conflict, for exactly the same subject. What I was about to say was: The 'following our own footprints' bit reminded me, initially, of Tintin (In The Land Of The Black Gold?), with Thomson and Thompson's jeep, although that was two, four, six, etc tyre-tracks. I think the Pooh example is the more likely archetype.
:(i.e., in light of what I'm now replying to, more likely than the Tintin version. Whether or not Pooh was ''the'' inspiration.) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.114|141.101.99.114]] 14:11, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

: I've noticed that problem quite a bit around here - generic comments being explained as specific references. But I'm too lazy to change them myself. Anyone up for it? [[User:Zweisteine|Zweisteine]] ([[User talk:Zweisteine|talk]]) 14:35, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Can someone translate "There's one set of foot-p's cause I was totes carrying you, bro!" into normal english? {{User:17jiangz1/signature|15:45, 09 September 2015}}
: "There is one set of footprints because I was totally carrying you, my brother"
: "There is one set of footprints because I was fully-committed to carrying you, my good friend whom I consider like a brother" [[User:JamesCurran|JamesCurran]] ([[User talk:JamesCurran|talk]]) 16:17, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

So, given the width of the "1-night" disappearances of Jesus on the chart, I think we can infer that the length of time between the quicksand incident and "going home" was a pretty long time. My sources tell me that Jesus has an affinity for resurrecting 3-days after death, and that his angels get him out of whatever place he's stuck (rolling away the tomb-stone, etc). Because of this, we might assume that the narrator had cleared enough distance away from the quicksand that he didn't notice Jesus resurrecting and being pulled out by angels... but in that case the vertical axis was being recorded "as the narrator walked", as opposed to someone else coming back and recording them after the events had taken place. (This is my first contribution to explainxkcd, so I'm keeping it in the comments unless someone else publishes it.)[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.56|162.158.255.56]] 16:08, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I think it's a cool deduction if a bit far fetched, but I can't complain considering we might all be over-thinking things here. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.55|141.101.99.55]] 17:00, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

"Who was that guy?" "That was no guy; that was ... the Lone Ranger!" [[User:RAGBRAIvet|RAGBRAIvet]] ([[User talk:RAGBRAIvet|talk]]) 19:24, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Note that one of the twelve Danish cartoons depicting Mohammed was not of the Prophet, but of a schoolboy of the same name. Jesus is a common Mexican name. Randall may be showing how context and prejudice may stir up strong religious reaction, by giving situations where one can deduce that the Biblical Jesus is not the one leaving footprints everywhere.
[[http://www.linkedin.com/in/Comet Comet]] 21:18, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

''"Jesus disappeared for an evening each time a new Twilight movie came out" probably means either that Jesus went to see the movie and left the narrator alone or that the narrator went to see the movie and Jesus refused to come with.''

The second interpretation (the narrator went to see the movie and Jesus refused to come with) is absurdly far fetched for a sentence that says "Jesus disappeared for an evening". --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.85|141.101.99.85]] 21:38, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
: I agree [[User:Teleksterling|Teleksterling]] ([[User talk:Teleksterling|talk]]) 23:32, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
I thought it meant either Jesus not being there (and preventing evil from happening) allowed for a Twilight movie to come out or else Jesus was the originator of the Twilight movies and he disappeared every time to make one. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.220|162.158.90.220]] 06:41, 10 September 2015 (UTC)
: Why would he disappear to make the movie at the date the movie's being published? [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 06:56, 10 September 2015 (UTC)

Using the Twilight release dates as a guide, we can actually figure out the timescale here. The full length of the graph seems to be from about the start of 2004 'til the end of 2018, with the narrator going home mid 2018 and Jesus dying in the back half of 2017. They adopted ducks in 2010, were lost for the second half of 2013, rode an AT-ST for most of summer 2014, and oh dear I've given this way too much thought... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.134|141.101.98.134]] 08:56, 10 September 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1575: Footprints

2015-09-10T08:56:06Z

141.101.98.134: Figuring out timescale.

I know a lot about the poem this is referencing as it was my deceased grandmothers favourite. However I am omitting myself from making any changes other than putting in the poem it is referencing and the most brief of explanations to begin so someone with less emotional bias can fix formatting and improve wording. The poem can be found here: http://www.onlythebible.com/Poems/Footprints-in-the-Sand-Poem.html [[User:Squirrel killer-|Squirrel killer-]] ([[User talk:Squirrel killer-|talk]]) 06:01, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Should we address that AT-ST' nickname is "chicken Walker"? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.243.249|198.41.243.249]] 08:46, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

The title text is not in textese (which you be "theres 1 set of fps bcs I carried U".) I'm not sure what it is exactly (not being American) the closest I can get is "Valley girl" (which is not right) and "that one dialect the frat-boys speak in the movies", which can't be it's name. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.224|141.101.88.224]] 09:43, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

"Going home == death" Are we certain that this is meant? I feel it could also poke fun at the whole "walk of life" concept, and going home simply means going home... --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.92.10|162.158.92.10]] 09:55, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I've removed the definite implication that "Going home == death", and instead made it a possible interpretation. I agree that the title text is "frat-boy speak", but I'm not sure what you would call it -- [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.55|141.101.99.55]] 10:08, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I think the quicksand is a reference to Lawrence of Arabia, in the movie(spoiler alert?) Lawrence walks across the Sinai Desert only to see one of his men caught in quicksand and die immediately before reaching their destination.
[[User:Joar|Joar]] ([[User talk:Joar|talk]]) 10:15, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I'd call the title text dialect "bro talk" or something similar. Also, the quicksand bit is definitely in reference to Jesus' ability to walk on water: since quicksand is a mixture of water and sand, presumably it would be easier to walk on than regular water. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.153|173.245.54.153]] 13:52, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

The presumed reference to "Winnie the Pooh" is very far fetched. The joke of following its own footprint is used in many other works. Same for drawing in a quicksand. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.66.23|141.101.66.23]] 14:03, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
:Ha! Edit conflict, for exactly the same subject. What I was about to say was: The 'following our own footprints' bit reminded me, initially, of Tintin (In The Land Of The Black Gold?), with Thomson and Thompson's jeep, although that was two, four, six, etc tyre-tracks. I think the Pooh example is the more likely archetype.
:(i.e., in light of what I'm now replying to, more likely than the Tintin version. Whether or not Pooh was ''the'' inspiration.) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.114|141.101.99.114]] 14:11, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

: I've noticed that problem quite a bit around here - generic comments being explained as specific references. But I'm too lazy to change them myself. Anyone up for it? [[User:Zweisteine|Zweisteine]] ([[User talk:Zweisteine|talk]]) 14:35, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Can someone translate "There's one set of foot-p's cause I was totes carrying you, bro!" into normal english? {{User:17jiangz1/signature|15:45, 09 September 2015}}
: "There is one set of footprints because I was totally carrying you, my brother"
: "There is one set of footprints because I was fully-committed to carrying you, my good friend whom I consider like a brother" [[User:JamesCurran|JamesCurran]] ([[User talk:JamesCurran|talk]]) 16:17, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

So, given the width of the "1-night" disappearances of Jesus on the chart, I think we can infer that the length of time between the quicksand incident and "going home" was a pretty long time. My sources tell me that Jesus has an affinity for resurrecting 3-days after death, and that his angels get him out of whatever place he's stuck (rolling away the tomb-stone, etc). Because of this, we might assume that the narrator had cleared enough distance away from the quicksand that he didn't notice Jesus resurrecting and being pulled out by angels... but in that case the vertical axis was being recorded "as the narrator walked", as opposed to someone else coming back and recording them after the events had taken place. (This is my first contribution to explainxkcd, so I'm keeping it in the comments unless someone else publishes it.)[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.56|162.158.255.56]] 16:08, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

I think it's a cool deduction if a bit far fetched, but I can't complain considering we might all be over-thinking things here. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.55|141.101.99.55]] 17:00, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

"Who was that guy?" "That was no guy; that was ... the Lone Ranger!" [[User:RAGBRAIvet|RAGBRAIvet]] ([[User talk:RAGBRAIvet|talk]]) 19:24, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Note that one of the twelve Danish cartoons depicting Mohammed was not of the Prophet, but of a schoolboy of the same name. Jesus is a common Mexican name. Randall may be showing how context and prejudice may stir up strong religious reaction, by giving situations where one can deduce that the Biblical Jesus is not the one leaving footprints everywhere.
[[http://www.linkedin.com/in/Comet Comet]] 21:18, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

''"Jesus disappeared for an evening each time a new Twilight movie came out" probably means either that Jesus went to see the movie and left the narrator alone or that the narrator went to see the movie and Jesus refused to come with.''

The second interpretation (the narrator went to see the movie and Jesus refused to come with) is absurdly far fetched for a sentence that says "Jesus disappeared for an evening". --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.85|141.101.99.85]] 21:38, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
: I agree [[User:Teleksterling|Teleksterling]] ([[User talk:Teleksterling|talk]]) 23:32, 9 September 2015 (UTC)
I thought it meant either Jesus not being there (and preventing evil from happening) allowed for a Twilight movie to come out or else Jesus was the originator of the Twilight movies and he disappeared every time to make one. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.220|162.158.90.220]] 06:41, 10 September 2015 (UTC)
: Why would he disappear to make the movie at the date the movie's being published? [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 06:56, 10 September 2015 (UTC)

Using the Twilight release dates as a guide, we can actually figure out the timescale here. The full length of the graph seems to be from about the start of 1004 'til the end of 2018, with the narrator going home mid 2018 and Jesus dying in the back half of 2017. They adopted ducks in 2010, were lost for the second half of 2013, rode an AT-ST for most of summer 2014, and oh dear I've given this way too much thought... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.134|141.101.98.134]] 08:56, 10 September 2015 (UTC)

809: Los Alamos

2015-06-03T10:48:30Z

141.101.98.134: /* Explanation */ Missing 'to' from first sentence.

{{comic
| number = 809
| date = October 22, 2010
| title = Los Alamos
| image = los_alamos.png
| titletext = The test didn't (spoiler alert) destroy the world, but the fact that they were even doing those calculations makes theirs the coolest jobs ever.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic refers to the {{w|Manhattan Project}} at {{w|Los Alamos, New Mexico}}, where in 1945 their development of the first nuclear weapon had progressed to the point that they were going to explode "The Gadget" at {{w|Trinity Site}}. There was genuine concern that some unexpected result was possible, including the scenario about the atmosphere igniting. The scientists were almost certain that it would either work as expected, or just be a dud, but were unable to rule out several other scenarios. The test proceeded, and it worked as expected.

The joke part at the end is a reference to a common {{w|mnemonic}} device for basic {{w|trigonometric}} functions, namely identifying the relationships of ''sine'', ''cosine'', and ''tangent'' with respect to the lengths of a right triangle's edges: '''s'''ine = '''o'''pposite over '''h'''ypotenuse, '''c'''osine = '''a'''djacent over '''h'''ypotenuse, and '''t'''angent = '''o'''pposite over '''a'''djacent (in other words, SOH CAH TOA.) "Steve" becomes concerned by the seriousness of the situation, and wants to make sure that he has not made a mistake on stuff that should be ''very'' elementary to a scientist in his position. (To our knowledge, "Steve" is not a reference to any specific scientist in the real life Manhattan Project)

"Now I am become Death, destroyer of worlds." – {{w|Robert Oppenheimer}}, Lead scientist on bomb project, quoting Hindu scripture after the successful test. There are very few jobs where one can say that with seriousness, as pointed out in the title text.

Steve is referred to in comic [[1532]], where his miscalculations screw up the trajectory of the {{w|New Horizons}} space probe, sending it to Earth instead of Pluto.

==Transcript==
:[Three stick figures stand in front of a few graphs and scientific looking pictures. One of them has hair.]
:Los Alamos, 1945...
:Cueball: We have a decision. If we've done our math right, this test will unleash heaven's fire and make us as gods.

:Cueball: But it's possible we made a mistake, and the heat will ignite the atmosphere, destroying the planet in a cleansing conflagration.

:Steve: Wow. Um. Question: Just to double-check— although I'm 99% sure—

:Steve: Is it "SOH CAH TOA" or "COH SAH TOA"?
:Cueball: ''Oh, for the love of...'' can someone redo Steve's work?
:Hairy: I don't want to do the test anymore.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Physics]]

1446: Landing

2014-11-16T13:42:47Z

141.101.98.134: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1446
| date = November 12, 2014
| title = Landing
| image = landingAnimated.gif
| titletext = [LIVE]
}}
Frames of the comic began appearing at midnight ({{w|Eastern Time Zone|EST}}) on November 12, 2014 and updated every five minutes. Together, the images form a {{w|flip book}} which is shown here above. You can find the individual images by clicking on the latest image of the comic on xkcd (go to that by clicking the date above or find it directly at [http://xkcd1446.org xkcd1446.org]).

==Explanation==
This comic changes over time, tracking the progress of the {{w|Philae (spacecraft)|Philae}} lander separating from the {{w|European Space Agency}}'s {{w|Rosetta (spacecraft)|Rosetta}} probe to land on a comet. More info about it at [http://rosetta.esa.int rosetta.esa.int].

The comic presents the imagined anthropomorphic "thoughts" of the Rosetta spacecraft and the Philae lander (and occasionally other parties) during the hours approaching separation from each other, approach to the comet, and (so far) initial analysis of data after the apparent successful landing on the comet. Beginning at [[Media:???65.png|11:05:00]], the comic includes a "Status Report" in the lower right corner which summarizes the status of various interested parties and accomplishments, beginning with "Rosetta", "Philae lander", "Mission Control", "Comet 67P", and "Have we landed on a comet?". As events occur in the comic, more status summaries are added to keep track of the changes to the situation and the supposed emotions behind them.

In many pictures a whale can be seen on the surface of the comet - often marked with a "?" as are almost all other parts of the unknown surface. There is also drawn a [[Cueball]] on the surface... Whales are also mentioned in the "Status Report" where they for instance may be listed as "calm" or "(probably) not in space". Dolphins and fish are later also mentioned there, commenting about the whales. The reference to whales comes partly from the fact that Philae brings along three harpoons, which on Earth have mainly been used to hunt whales; Randall previously brought up that comparison in [[1402: Harpoons]], suggesting that Philae was programmed to believe it was sent to kill the comet.

Some {{w|Douglas Adams}} fans believe these whales and dolphins are references to ''{{w|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}'' and ''{{w|So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish}}.'' Whales in space have been appearing in fiction and art since the 1960s.

Shortly after release from Rosetta, Philae calls out 'Spaaaaaaaaaace'; this mimics the {{w|Portal 2}} 'Space core' who, on finally reaching space in the last scenes, gives the same elated cry.

US Scientists presumably wake up at 7:40 EST (13:40 UTC) and say "Bluuurghhh. What time is it?" to indicate their tiredness.

Randall credits https://twitter.com/elakdawalla in the xkcd page header, revealing the possible source of his near real-time data.

According to [http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-30026398 BBC News], the harpoons did not fire as planned and the lander may have landed, bounced off, and landed again. This would explain the change in "Do harpoons work on comets" from "YES" to "Don't know" at 16:35:00 and the change in "Have we landed on a comet?" from "YES" to "Yes, at least once" at 16:50:00. According to [http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/science/space/european-space-agencys-spacecraft-lands-on-comets-surface.html?_r=0 The New York Times], radio contact with Philae fluctuated, which would explain the "Anxious", "Nervous", and "Confused" statuses around that time. Sadly, the lander bounced three times and ended up in a place where the solar panels where mainly in the shadow. This resulted in the lander shutting down when it's own battery ran out of power after only 2-3 days on the ground. There is a small chance that the season on the comet will change so that the panels will later receive sun again. But it is very uncertain. However, in the few hours that Philae had on the ground, it still managed to analyze the surface and obtain a lot of useful data - so that part of the mission was still a success already.

The comic title was originally "???" (probably to not give away too early what the comic was about), but changed to "Landing" when Randall came on live at five in the morning EST. At that moment the title text also changed from "..." to "[LIVE]". It was also then that the timestamps' timezone switch. At 5:00 AM (EST) the time stamp in the picture naming scheme switched from EST to {{w|Coordinated Universal Time|UTC}} as used in ESA's time keeping, resulting in a jump from [[Media:???53.png|04:55]] to [[Media:???54.png|10:00]] without actually any such delay between the two pictures.

There were however a few pictures with more than 5 minutes of delay (about 11 times five minutes without an update in total during the "live" transmission). The update seemed to have stopped after 137 pictures at 17:15 UTC, 12 hours and 15 minutes after the first picture. (The first picture has number 0, so the last had number 136). But later, sometime after 17:15 UTC, the counter for the last picture was increased to 142 (143 pictures in total), so maybe Randall inserted 6 extra pictures later - however he must then have changed the numbers on the pictures, since the last picture is still the same now, but with number 142 instead of 136. It is thus now difficult to find out which pictures would have been added later. However, eight pictures were not included in the original table with the [[#Frame by Frame Breakdown|Frame by Frame Breakdown]] below. So it is must have been some of those missing pictures that where added later - maybe all of them, as the last three may already have been added before the last picture was released (All 143 pictures are included in the flip-book gif image shown here above). But even 143 pictures at 5 minutes intervals only spans 11 hours and 50 minutes, thus there are still five ''5 minute intervals'' without any picture. See which in the [[1446: Landing/Frame by Frame Breakdown|table]].

==Frame by Frame Breakdown==
* Here is a [[1446: Landing/Frame by Frame Breakdown|link to a table]] with a frame by frame breakdown of all 143 pictures.
* Here is a [[1446: Landing/All pictures|page with all the pictures]] frame by frame.

==Transcript==
:[This transcript gives only the text in the last of the 143 pictures shown in the comic. That which is now shown when clicking to the comic on xkcd]

:[This is the from the picture with time stamp 17:15]
:[Showing Philae on a comet]
:Rosetta: Philae?
:Rosetta: Is everything OK?
:Philae: I landed!
:Philae: I'm on a comet.
:Philae: I'm OK and I'm on a comet.
:[Status report at the bottom-right corner]
:Status report:
::Rosetta: In space
::Philae lander: Landed
::Mission control: !!!!!
::Comet 67P: Landed on
::Whales: Calm
::Scientists: [Wine]
::Harpoons: Tricky
::Dolphins and Fish: OK
::Have we landed on a comet?: '''YES'''
::Do harpoons work on comets: Don't know
::Earth: !!!!!
::Has anybody tried this before: Nope

:[For the '''full transcript''' of all 143 pictures see '''[[1446: Landing/Transcript]]'''.]

==Trivia==
*There appears to be a brief error between 02:35 and 02:45, where the time until lander separation is shown as 1 hour, counting down to 50 minutes, before being corrected to 75 minutes at 02:50.
**Since this was supposed to be during the "non-live" section before Randall got up (and got live) it is not sure whether this was a "real" mistake, or if he was up anyway, and corrected this timeing error when he discovered the plans had change during the approach flight.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Comics with color‏‎]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball‏‎]]
[[Category:Animals‏‎]]