This Day In Space History: September 3

1968

https://www.hq.nasa.gov/pao/History/SP-4009/v4p2n.htm

The Apollo 8 readiness date is announced to have been changed to Dec. 13,1968, according to Program Director Samuel C. Phillips.

1976

Launched Sept. 9, 1975, Viking 2 made a soft landing on the surface of Mars in the crater Utopia Planitia, returning images of the soil (no evidence of life) and frost - contributing to the mission's provision of information about Mars' climate and its mapping of Mars' surface: "The Viking program provided the first up-close look at Mars" (space.com). 

This article gives much additional information about Viking 2 and includes links to the incredible images from the program: https://www.wired.com/2010/09/0903viking2-mars/

1985

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51I.html

STS 51-I (Discovery 6) which was launched Aug. 27 (on its third attempt) returns to Earth at the Edwards Air Force Base after 7 days, 2 hours, 17 minutes, and 42 seconds.

1995

http://www.spacefacts.de/mission/english/soyuz-tm22.htm

Members of the Mir-20 crew were launched on Soyuz TM-22 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome to the Mir space station where they would dock two days later and conduct experiments alongside with other crews.

2006

https://amp.space.com/21197-moon-crash-meteor-impact-explosion.html
Launched on Sept. 27, 2003, the ESA's high tech space probe, the first European craft to orbit the moon, Small Missions for Advanced Research and Technology (START 1) makes its controlled crash into the moon at 1:42 am EDT -just seconds within its predicted time.


For a complete list of today’s Space History, see  http://www.astronautix.com/s/september03.html

This Day In Space History: August 27

1962

Mariner 2 is launched from Cape Canaveral - the first to fly by Venus, after its twin mission had failed. Read about the mission here: https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1962-041A

1984

https://www.worldspaceflight.com/bios/teacher.php
President Ronald Reagan announces the Teacher in Space program, “directing NASA to begin a search in all of our elementary and secondary schools and to choose, as the first citizen passenger in the history of our space program, one of America’s finest—a teacher. All of America will be reminded of the crucial role that teachers and education play in the life of our nation. I can’t think of a better lesson for our children and our country.” After a thorough process, Christa McAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire, was selected among thousands of applicants. Unfortunately, a failure with the shuttle Challenger occurred in just 73 seconds, resulting in a loss of all seven crew members. This most tragic disaster is one that all Americans will remember.

                                                                                   fun fact: rumor has it my middle school had sent a small science experiment on this mission!!

1985

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51I.html

Third time's a charm! After being delayed again for weather-related reasons on the 25th (from its original 24th), STS 51-I is finally launched - although still delayed, but only by three minutes.

2003

https://mars.nasa.gov/allaboutmars/nightsky/mars-close-approach/archive/

A first since 60,000 years ago, Mars and Earth are their closest distance until the year 2287. The Red Planet approaches Earth at 34,646,418 miles apart. A variety of space agencies are taking advantage of the relative closeness and sending spacecraft to Mars this year.

For a complete list of today’s Space History, see  http://www.astronautix.com/a/august27.html

This Day In Space History: August 24

With one new planet and one 'old' planet, we've got some pretty cool stuff happening today in the world of space...check it out!

1966

The Soviet Union's orbiter Luna 11 is launched. Read about the mission here: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/luna_11/indepth

1985

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51I.html
Due to poor weather conditions, STS 51-I is cancelled at T-5 minutes and rescheduled.

1981 & 1989

http://www.yearinspace.com/the-week-in-space
Launched a few days ago in 1977, Voyager 2 -the spacecraft we've been following the past couple days- flies by Saturn and in 1989, flies by Neptune.

2006

The conclusion of the 26th General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) made the conclusion that the planet Pluto would now be considered a Dwarf Planet, as they refined their definition of what a "planet" is. I remember watching the news with in my parents' room when this happened. A sad day for those who support Pluto's existence as a planet! The excerpt below is from the press release which can be read here: https://www.iau.org/news/pressreleases/detail/iau0603/

The IAU members gathered at the 2006 General Assembly agreed that a "planet" is defined as a celestial body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and (c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.

This means that the Solar System consists of eight "planets" Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. A new distinct class of objects called "dwarf planets" was also decided.

2016

A telescope at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile discovered an Earth-like exoplanet called Proxima B, which orbits Proxima Centauri, our closest star (besides our Sun). While the planet is closer to its sun than Mercury is to ours, it has the potential to have liquid water, but the potential for life would also depend on radiation from its sun and whether or not it has an atmosphere. These are two among a list of unknowns which can be found here: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/eso-discovers-earth-size-planet-in-habitable-zone-of-nearest-star  Who knows, maybe this discovery will be the push we needed to get a spacecraft out there, into another solar system!



For a complete list of today’s Space History, see  http://www.astronautix.com/a/august24.html