Happy Fourth of July!!!
Hey everyone, it's TT10, blasting in with the latest news. First of all, I
would like to say Happy Fourth of July to everyone!
As many people know, even those who live outside of the
United States, the Fourth of July is the annual celebration of the "birthday"
of the United States of America. The Fourth is the date of the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776.
There are many celebrations on this day, including speeches,
processions, bonfires and bell ringing. The Fourth of July is also celebrated
with fireworks, parties, sparklers and much much more!
And now, let's talk about space.
What? you say. What does the Fourth of July and outer space have
in common?
Well, I can answer that! On the Fourth of July, a spacecraft
called Deep Impact will launch a probe into a comet thousands of miles away,
causing a massive explosion! In other words, it'll make a humongous firework!!!
Editor's Note: You're probably reading this after the comet -- half
the size of the city of Manhattan -- was successfully struck by the washing
machine-sized probe. Congratulations to NASA/JPL, the European Space Agency
and everyone else involved in the project! Here's to some great pictures and
important science that is sure to come out of this!
On July 3, a big probe will be launched into space by
Deep Impact. On July 4, that probe will collide with an incoming comet, called
Tempel 1. Here is a schedule for the events, as given out by NASA the week before:
Mission Events (Earth-receive time -- in EDT)
July 3, 2:07 a.m: Impactor released into comet's path
July 4, 12:22 a.m.: 1st impactor targeting maneuver
July 4, 1:17 a.m.: 2nd impactor targeting maneuver
July 4, 1:39 a.m.: 3rd impactor targeting maneuver
July 4, 1:52 a.m.: (+ or - 3 min.): Impact with Tempel 1
July 4, 2:05 a.m.: Flyby goes into shield mode
July 4, 2:06 a.m.: Flyby's closest approach to Tempel 1
The success of the mission will be announced on TV and
in newspapers around the country, I'm sure. For more information, go to NASA's
homepage at http://www.nasa.gov.
Thanks for checking out my article. Over and out; gotta blast!!!
Happy Fourth of July!
TT10
