Whatever your position in the Great Pluto Debate, you can’t deny the significance of that distant icy world and the ground-breaking mission to finally explore both Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Nor can you reasonably argue the importance of formally recognizing this great achievement in Space exploration, so that today’s accomplishments can inspire tomorrow’s generation to reach even greater horizons.

NASA’s New Horizons team is asking the public to join a petition requesting that the United States Postal Service issue a new postage stamp to commemorate the remarkable milestone of this historic mission to Pluto. Not only does the proposed stamp celebrate humankind’s most distant exploration yet, it acknowledges the continued dedication of the men and women of the U.S. Space program. It will also “correct” the 1991 Pluto stamp which, curiously, declared our once-most-distant-planet as merely unexplored.

Joining this endeavor is as simple as signing the petition and encouraging others to participate. You can also follow the New Horizons spacecraft as it journeys towards Pluto – we’re halfway there - and catch the latest mission updates via the New Horizons Twitter and Facebook accounts!

#StopSOPA #PIPA #SOPA

Now, when you buy the night sky for yourself, you can help to share it with others across the world!

Through December 8, the folks at Southern Skies are donating 40% of all proceeds from sales of their Sky Safari 3 astronomy app to Astronomers Without Borders. Available in three versions for both Apple and Mac devices, Sky Safari 3 is a pocket-sized planetarium, powerful enough to replace your desktop astronomy software. And with current sale prices ranging from just $0.99 to $29.99 – that’s 20% to 67% off regular prices! – it’s also a very affordable app!

I recently purchased the standard version of Sky Safari 3 and can tell you that the app is very easy to use, has an extensive database, includes hundreds of beautiful images, and is especially handy for my real-time, local sky. A fellow sky enthusiast, Frank Piscitelli, tells me that the app is amazing and he prefers it to others that he has used.

So, go check it out. You’ll be supporting astronomy across the globe, while getting a fantastic astronomy app at a super-low price!

A Sky Full of Stars will be on a brief hiatus as Rob and I – along with several colleagues – work to develop the Astronomy.FM website. We’ll be back as soon as possible!