Apr 1 1969
From The Space Library
Reporting findings from four months of OAO II data to 129th meeting of American Astronomical Society in Honolulu, Univ. of Wisconsin astronomer Dr. Arthur D. Code said: "It puzzles me to see so much ultraviolet light from the Andromeda galaxy (M31) and so little from M81 because they are rather old 'garden variety' galaxies. . . . There is a possibility that we might have discovered an old quasar a few million light years away." Full impact of OAO II data would not be felt for couple of years. "Some theories on cosmology will have to be modified and others discarded. Practically all phases of optical astronomy will be affected." Temperature figures assigned to young, hot stars with masses more than 15 times sun's would require alteration. "These stars are considerably hotter than 20,000 degrees absolute. They are aging about twice as fast as we thought and are burning hydrogen at a very rapid rate." OAO data thus far provided argument against steady-state theory of universe which maintained universe always looked same, from any point at any time, Dr. Code said. At same meeting, Joseph Purcell, OAO Project Manager at GSFC, said OAO II's observatory control system had exceeded its pointing accuracy requirement of one minute of arc by factor of two. "A subsequent OAO will be 100 times more stable." (NASA Release 69-51; Lannan, W Star, 4/4/69, A5)
NASA'S Mariner VII Mars probe (launched March 27) obeyed radio command to lock its sensors on star Canopus. Spacecraft would fly past Mars night of Aug. 4. Command was radioed from NASA tracking station in Woomera, Australia. (AP, W Post, 4/2/69; UPI, C Trib, 4/3/69)
Pakistan had successfully launched her first rocket, a two-stage vehicle to investigate upper atmosphere, Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Committee announced. (AP, W Post, 4/2/69, A7)
Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird told House Armed Services Committee he planned to cut FY 1970 defense budget by at least $1.1 billion because of Nation's "extremely difficult and dangerous economic and fiscal situation." At press interview following testimony, he said DOD budget submitted to Congress included cutback in B-52 raids over South Vietnam from 1,800 to 1,600. (Transcript of Press Conference; Corddry, B Sun, 4/2/69, Al)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
