23 September
1846: On 23 September 1846, Neptune was first observed very near to the locations independently predicted by astronomers Adams and Le Verrier. They had made their calculations based on the ...
27 FEB. 2004
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1906: On 24 September 1906, Pol Swings was born.
Swings was a Belgian astrophysicist who made spectroscopic studies to identify the elements and structure of stars and comets. He discovered the first interstellar molecule, the CH radical in 1937.
In comet atmospheres he studied the 'Swings bands' - carbon emission lines. He also identified a 'Swings effect' - a fluorescence which is partly due to solar radiation.
Swings also made spectroscopic studies of interstellar space and investigated stellar rotation, as well as nebulae, novae and variable stars.
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22 September
2003: On 22 September 2003, ESA's SMART-1 spacecraft was integrated with its Ariane 5G launcher at Europe's spaceport in French Guiana. This was done in preparation for launch on board ...
21 September
2003: On 21 September 2003, the NASA Galileo spacecraft ended its eight-year mission to Jupiter. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, directed the craft into Jupiter's atmosphere to burn ...
20 September
1873: On 20 September 1873, Giovanni Battista Donati died.An Italian astronomer, Donati was the first to observe the spectrum of a comet (Comet 1864 II on 5 August 1864). This ...
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