Mike Brown’s Planets is back. After a long break at the conclusion of Season 3 (I define these Seasons after the fact: if I haven’t written anything in a while I declare it to have been because, clearly. it is the end of the season), the writing will now resume. This season is destined to be the most exciting of all for the simple fact that it also coincides with my current sabbatical, which started last week and lasts for the next 6 months.

My sabbatical will be a funny thing. While most people take the opportunity to take their families to glamorous places and work in exciting new labs, I am taking the opportunity to spend more time in my comfy green chair at home, writing. Diane refers to it as my staybbatical, which I guess is about right. And, after a few days of tidying up loose ends from my office, I am finally here, sitting in the green chair. Let Season 4 commence.

Here are some of the things I am working on:

• Heading south: 5 years after the discovery of the last dwarf planets, the race has finally commenced to scan the southern hemisphere. The 3 competing teams have familiar players. Who is going to win? I have predictions.

• Guest posts: As an experiment I am conscripting some younger students and postdocs to write about what they do. First up: Amino acids on Titan. Stay tuned.

• Where is Planet X hiding? Just in time for making your plans for 2012, I’ll critically review what might still be left lurking in the outskirts of the solar system, and I’ll tell you the probability that it will affect us in 2012. Well, OK, you can probably answer that one already.

• Sedna is 7, and she still makes less sense than Lilah, who is only 5.

• Why Pluto still matters. Nearly 5 years after no longer being a planet Pluto still actually matters. You never thought you would hear me say that, did you?

• Nobody wants to go to the moon anymore. So maybe that means I should go to the moon.

My staybbatical won’t be entirely in my green chair, though. I will admit to having volunteered to be a chaperone on almost all of Lilah’s kindergarten field trips. I even signed up to help with quilting for 5 year olds (they insisted that all I need to know how to do is tie knots; which I do). But also look out for The Wacky Adventures of a Scientist on a Book Tour. Coming soon, to a city (possibly) near you. It should be a fun six months.