Call it Chorizo-gate. French scientist Etienne Klein shared an image of what appeared to be a close-up of Proxima Centauri, the closest star to our sun.
It went viral for the wrong reasons as not everyone on Twitter realised it was actually just a slice of chorizo.
Chorizo planet believers
Proxima Centauri was recently discovered by the NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope which has taken images of thousands of newly discovered galaxies.
Many users were amazed at the level of detail of what they believed were JWST images.
“Indeed, the level of detail is astounding! I imagine that a photo of the planet that revolves around (Proxima b if I’m not being stupid) will follow. Revolutionary!” said a user.
“Hello with this degree of detail, can we hope for a pixelated sketch of an exoplanet thanks to the JW telescope?”
“Incredible the precision of the image!!!… (especially in the corners).”
A highly curious user asked an interesting question:
“How many years would it take us to achieve this with current technologies?”
Given that humans currently have access to wide range of current transportation technology such as cars, buses, taxis, and bicycles, it’s safe to say that it should only take 15-20 minutes on average to reach the chorizo in your local supermarket.
Another user replied to this person by stating that it really doesn’t take long to reach the newly discovered chorizo star as he’d already made the trip.
Klein’s fake photo of Proxima Centauri was so realistic that major media outlets reached out to him for further information.
Beef from the critics
A common saying is that you get back what you give out and for giving the world a slice of beef, he received the same in return as not everyone thought the scientists joke was funny.
“Lost credibility for the important work done by many. He should be fired and maybe criminally charged. No difference to peddle conspiracy like Alex Jones. There should be zero tolerance this type of thing especially from the scientific community.” said a user.
Etienne Klein shared the photo of the chorizo as a way of serving a slice of wisdom. He wanted to tell people not to believe everything they see or read on the internet just because it’s from a reputable source.
The French scientist apologised for misleading the internet with what he called a ‘scientist’s joke’.
“In view of some comments, I feel compelled to clarify that this tweet showing an alleged snapshot of Proxima Centauri was a form of amusement. Let us learn to be wary of arguments from authority as much as of the spontaneous eloquence of certain images….” said Klein.
“According to contemporary cosmology, no object belong to Spanish charcutierie exists anywhere but on Earth.” He clarified.
Message appreciation and planet sized cuisine
On the bright side, some users did understand Klein’s intentions with the chorizo post and agreed with his views.
“ It’s an eye opener for people to keep thinking for themselves and not to blindly believe people. If anyone is to blame, it’s those who blindly believe everything.” said a user.
“Thanks @Etienne Klein to give us all a chance to experience again why it is so incredibly important to question everything. Only a critical mind can be liberated. Only doubts and questions can free our thoughts from the curse of those before us. This is the evolution of the mind.” said another.
While space is said to be rich in minerals that could provide resources for humans to develop new medicine, green technology and more, the only thing a planet sized chorizo can provide us with is lots of tacos, pizza toppings or a planet sized burrito that we could consume over a period of decades if the Earth runs out of its natural resources.
Not sure where you’d find a planet sized oven to heat up the tortilla wraps to go around it, so perhaps the first stage is to mine the asteroids for their rare metals to build the giant oven before we get too ahead of ourselves.