Daily Extra :
Sun: The star closest to Earth. The center of our solar system. A ball of hot, glowing gases which gives Earth heat and light.
Who Was Born Today?:
1937: Sigmund Jaehn, German DR, cosmonaut, Soyuz 31/29
1939: Valery Illych Rozhdestvensky, U.S.S.R., cosmonaut, Soyuz 23
1942: Donald E Williams, Lafayette, Indiana, Capt USN/astronaut, STS 51D, STS 34
Who Died Today?:
Today in History:
1633: Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei arrived in Rome for trial before Inquisition for professing belief that earth revolves around the Sun
1961: Soviet Union fires a rocket from Sputnik V to Venus
1994: Clementine - USA Lunar Orbiter - (launched January 25, 1994) spent 70 days (between February 6 and May 5, 1994) in lunar orbit. The official name for Clementine is Deep Space Probe Science Experiment (DSPSE). It was a Department of Defense program used to test new space technology. Clementine was a new design using lightweight structure and propellant systems. Its four cameras mapped the surface of the Moon at 125-250 meters/pixel resolution. Clementine also used a laser to gather altimeter data which will make it possible to generate the first lunar topographic map.
1997: Discovery captures Hubble Space Telescope