"First you say one thing, then you say another, then you both switch back again! YOU'RE TEARING ME APART!!!" -- James Dean in REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE.

This so-called controversy over the color of White Rock strikes me as the modrun day counterpart of Medieval questions about the number of angels that can dance on the head of a pin.

And the image off of the Science article is -- perhaps -- not instructive.

Then again...

Those who claim that White Rock is "really" red are wrong. Those who say it is "actually" brilliant white are wrong. Does it matter?

It could if color could assist in determining compostition, and if by knowing the composition of White Rock we could puzzle out a history, but we have a long way to go before we reach that point.

Christensen seems to be trying to figure out composition and history, and for his purposes, a truly "white" formation may not be helpful. On the other hand, the formation is certainly bright enough to be deemed "white" for most purposes.

Carry on.

Cheers, BR Felix