Talk:Outer space/GA2

GA Review

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Reviewer: Brirush (talk · contribs) 18:30, 27 March 2015 (UTC)

I am placing this article on hold for some minor fixes. If these changes are made, I will pass the article.

1. The article is certainly well-written, with one or two minor problems addressed below. Otherwise, the prose is excellent.
2. It is verifiable except for some minor claims noted below.
3. It is broad in its coverage, containing history (both of outer space itself and our knowledge of it), environment, uses, etc.
4. It is neutral.
5. It is stable. The recent edits seem like a coherent effort to prepare the article for GA, and there are no controversies currently.
6. Great images. Good use of public-domain NASA images and surprisingly good contributions by individuals. Google reverse image search didn't detect any copyright vio for the great image at top.

Specific notes

• The age of the universe is given as 13.8 billion years in the section Formation and state, however, the linked article gives it as 13.7 billion years.
• "Universe" is capitalized everywhere except for its first occurrence (it is capitalized as "observable Universe" later, so this should agree).
• The statement "(There is quite likely a correspondingly large number of neutrinos called the cosmic neutrino background.)" is unsourced and perhaps controversial.
• It is not clear when discussing the odor of space how the astronauts are able to smell it. The links provided give more information; would it be possible to add a short sentence or two describing how they know the smell of space?
• The statement " Shuttle astronauts wear a fitted elastic garment called the Crew Altitude Protection Suit (CAPS) which prevents ebullism at pressures as low as 2 kPa.[65]" will most likely be outdated in the near future. A date should be added; something like "As of 20__, astronauts wear..." or something similar.
• The following image caption should have a reference: "SpaceShipOne completed the first manned private spaceflight in 2004, reaching an altitude of 100.124 km (62.214 mi)." Specifically for the term "first manned private spaceflight".
• It would be helpful to have a single reference for the introductory paragraph in the Regions section; most likely one of the subsequent references could be reused here. (Note: while this hasn't been done yet, every claim here is referenced later, so verifiability is now satisfied.)
• Similar to the previous point, the first lines of Interplanetary space and interstellar space are defined, and the interplanetary medium and interstellar medium are introduced, but these statements are not referenced. Whatever reference you use for the Regions introduction will probably suffice for defining interplanetary space and interstellar space.
• In the "Explorations and applications" section, the statement "allowing light from about 13.8 billion years ago—almost to the time of the Big Bang—to be observed. " is likely to be challenged, so should be sourced.
• The statement in the very last paragraph " An important factor in the total expense is the high cost of placing mass into Earth orbit: $7,000–23,000 per kg." is likely to become dated, and so a year should be attached to it (something like "In 20__, it was estimated that...")

Responses

I've made changes addressing the easiest points, numbers 1, 2, 6, and 10. —Alex (Ashill | talk | contribs) 19:05, 27 March 2015 (UTC)

And 9. —Alex (Ashill | talk | contribs) 19:17, 27 March 2015 (UTC)

Thank you Brirush, I'll start working on the remaining points. Praemonitus (talk) 19:13, 27 March 2015 (UTC)

• 3 is done. Praemonitus (talk) 21:59, 27 March 2015 (UTC)

I've added refs for the interplanetary and interstellar space definitions. The one I added for interplanetary space is from Universe Today. It's not the most reliable source on the planet (it may well have been written with reference to the Wikipedia article), but the article does have a named author and a date and isn't just a Wikipedia clone. I wouldn't trust it for anything controversial, but I think it reliably supports the uncontroversial statement that interplanetary space is the space between planets. If there's a better source, that wouldn't hurt, but I didn't think it worth a ton of time. —Alex (Ashill | talk | contribs) 00:56, 28 March 2015 (UTC)

@Ashill Looks good. I agree that the existence of interplanetary medium is not especially controversial. I will pass the article.

Thanks again, Brirush. Your in-depth review is much appreciated. Praemonitus (talk) 03:10, 28 March 2015 (UTC)

Thanks from me as well. —Alex (Ashill | talk | contribs) 14:20, 28 March 2015 (UTC)