Jan 1 1971

From The Space Library

Discovery of galaxies Maffei 1 and Maffei 2 about 3 million light years from earth was reported in Astrophysical Journal by team of Univ. of California at Berkeley, Cal Tech, and Carnegie Institution astronomers headed by Robert Landau of Univ. of California at Berkeley. Galaxies previously had been obscured by interstellar dust in Milky Way. Team had begun study after Landau read 1968 report of Italian astronomer Paolo Maffei that two strange objects had been observed on infrared photo Maffei made of region between constellations Perseus and Cassiopeia. Using Mount Palomar and Lick Observatory telescopes and advanced astronomical tools and research techniques, team had located galaxies twice as far from earth as Andromeda, nearest galaxy to Milky Way. Team believed brighter of new galaxies might be larger than either Milky Way or Andromeda and thus possibly largest member of local group of galaxies, measuring 50 000 to 100 000 light years in diameter. (Astrophysical Journal, 1/1/71, L25-31)

Washington Post editorial commented on "verbal violence" at Dec. 26- 31, 1970, AAAS convention in Chicago: "It should not be beyond the power of scientists to restore reason to its normal throne at their conventions. They had better set about doing so without further paltering or delay-by calling in the police if necessary to eject disrupters and impose order. It is a scientific fact, we believe, that only a single speaker can be heard at a particular time in a particular place. Those who want to hear him should be free to do so; those who do not should be free to go away. This is not alone the basis of science; it is also the essence of freedom." (W Post, 1/1/71, A18)