Category: Today in Science

Today in Science —> Galilean Satellites

Astronomy, Science, Today in Science

Today in Science—> On this date in 1610, Galileo observed three small “stars” in a line and very close to Jupiter. Over the next several days, he saw that the stars were changing position in relation to Jupiter and he concluded that they were orbiting the planet and also discovered a fourth such star as well. He originally called them the Medicean stars in honor of the de’ Medici family which ruled Tuscany, but they have since been renamed the Galilean satellites and are the four largest moons of Jupiter—Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. Galileo’s observations were the first that showed heavenly bodies orbiting each other and not Earth, leading to the overthrowing of the Aristotelian geocentric model of cosmology.

#Galileo #GalileanSatellites

Today in Science —> Alfred Wegener

Earth Science, Science, Today in Science

1912 – German geophysicist Alfred Wegener first presents his theory of continental drift.

Wegener’s theory was poo-pooed for a long time, but was finally accepted by 1960, 30 years after Wegener’s death. Now, using satellites, we can measure how fast the continents move. We know, for example, that Europe and North America are moving apart at about the same rate your fingernails grow: about an inch a year.

Robert Goddard

Human Space Travel, Science, Today in Science

On this day Robert Goddard, the father of American rocketry, conducted the first rocket test flight from his new laboratory in Roswell, New Mexico (December 30th) in 1930. The new laboratory and launch site was partially funded by a grant from the Smithsonian Institution. On this date Goddard’s liquid fuel rocket launched to a height of 610 meters (2,000 feet) – a new record height for his rockets, and one that he would soon break…

#Science #Rocketry #Goddard