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Astronomy Astrobiology

Frank Drake who formulated Drake Equation dies aged 92

On September 2, 2022, Frank Drake, the American astronomer, and astrophysicist (b. May 28, 1930) died at his home in Aptos, California, from natural causes at the age of 92.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Pioneer 11 performed the first Saturn flyby on September 1, 1979

On September 1, 1979, NASA’s Pioneer 11 spacecraft performed the first Saturn flyby in the history of space exploration, at a distance of 21,000 km (13,000 miles) from Saturn’s cloud tops.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Voyager 1 became the first spacecraft in interstellar space on August 25, 2012

On August 25, 2012, NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft crossed the heliopause, the theoretical boundary of our solar system where the Sun’s solar wind is stopped by the interstellar medium, and became the first spacecraft in interstellar space.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Voyager 2 performed the first Neptune flyby on August 25, 1989

On August 25, 1989, Voyager 2 performed a close Neptune flyby, giving humanity its first close-up of the eighth (and the outermost) planet of our solar system. Neptune was the spacecraft’s final planetary target.

That first Neptune flyby was also the last: No other spacecraft has visited Neptune since.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Voyager 2 was launched on August 20, 1977

On August 20, 1977, Voyager 2 was launched from Cape Canaveral on top of a Titan IIIE-Centaur rocket. It launched before Voyager 1, which was sent into space on September 5, 1977.

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Astronomy

Here’s why Betelgeuse dimmed in 2019

In 2019, red supergiant star Betelgeuse suddenly dimmed. In fact, the star has a 5.9-year light-cycle minimum period. But, this time, it dramatically to an all-time low.

Betelgeuse is one of the brightest stars in the Earth’s sky and easily can be found on the right shoulder of the constellation Orion. So the dimming, which began in late 2019 and lasted for a few months, was easily noticeable even by backyard observers watching the star change brightness.

This weird, unexpected dimming weird sparked rumors that its death is imminent and it was going to be a supernova.

In fact, Betelguese is really nearing the end of its life. Because of its enormous size, it burns its fuel very rapidly. Red supergiant stars don’t last long, typically only a few hundred thousand years, maybe up to a million. This is actually very short for astronomical timescales. But very long for the human lifespan.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

ESA’s Giotto became the first spacecraft to use Earth for a gravity assist on July 2, 1990

On July 2, 1990, European Space Agency’s (ESA) Giotto spacecraft performed the first-ever earth gravity-assisted maneuver to be retargeted for its destination, Comet P/Grigg-Skjellerup.

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Space Exploration Solar System This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Cassini entered Saturn’s orbit on July 1, 2004

NASA’s Cassini space probe entered Saturn’s orbit on July 1, 2004, and became the first spacecraft to orbit the ringed planet.

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This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History Solar System

Tunguska meteorite impacted on June 30, 1908

On June 30, 1908, at about 7:14 A.M., around the Tunguska River, a gigantic fireball devastated hundreds of square kilometers of uninhabited Siberian forest. It was about a ~12 megaton explosion, which means the blast was around 800 times more powerful than the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

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Solar System Space Exploration This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Charon, Pluto’s Moon was discovered on June 22, 1978

On June 22, 1978, Pluto’s moon Charon was discovered by United States Naval Observatory astronomer James Christy (born September 15, 1938).