9 space stories that helped us forget we lived on Earth in 2020 - Chron

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To say 2020 made us feel like we were in an episode of "The Twilight Zone" is an understatement, but at least we had the final frontier to keep ourselves occupied.

With the year finally ending, it's time for a trip back in time to remember which space stories kept us soaring to new heights in 2020. From stories about new inventions and record-breaking missions to those reminding us to look up and experience cosmic events not seen in centuries, Houston had a big year in space news.

The narrow galaxy elegantly curving around its spherical companion in this image is a fantastic example of a rare phenomenon. This image was taken with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

ESA/Hubble & NASA, S. JhaAcknowl

This year, NASA launched a website where you can look up what image the Hubble Space Telescope captured on your birthday. We featured the site in a Chron article highlighting a few interesting images captured by Hubble on the birthdays of a few famous Texans.

This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy LRG-3-817, also known as SDSS J090122.37+181432.3.

NASA

Midway through the year, the U.S. had a major racial reckoning in light of the killing of George Floyd and racial justice protests, and space was no exception. NASA reexamined nicknames it had previously given to cosmic objects. Names such as "Eskimo Nebula" were eliminated from use due to their racist history.

NASA Astronaut Jeanette Epps made history this year as the first Black woman to join the ISS.

Cindy Schultz

The year was also one of many firsts, such as NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps making history as the first Black woman to join the International Space Station. Epps is set to go on a six-month expedition to the ISS planned for launch in 2021.

SpaceX's Starship Prototype.

Loren Elliott - Getty Images

In private space news, Chron covered SpaceX's exciting plans to build a luxury spaceport resort we can visit one day. SpaceX, the American aerospace manufacturer and space transportation services company, is working on getting us closer to visiting Mars and a futuristic space resort on the red planet.

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins votes in Space during the 2020 presidential election.

Screenshot Twitter

One of my personal favorite stories of the year was about NASA astronaut Kate Rubins, who had the most interesting voting experience ever, casting her ballot for the 2020 presidential election all the way from space.

NASA revealed rare photos of what is being touted as an asteroid worth more than the global economy named 16 Psyche.

Courtesy: NASA

In November, NASA unveiled rare photos of an asteroid valued at $10,000 quadrillion. The story was a hit on our social media, as many were amazed at such a high value for a celestial object named 16 Psyche. Scientists speculated that the asteroid is made mostly of metallic iron and nickel.

You can now hear an audio sound bite from NASA's Perseverance as it travels through space.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Finding out NASA's Perseverance captured actual sound bites as it made its trek on Mars was pretty amazing. The first of its kind spacecraft was rigged with microphones to record the audio, which was captured on Oct. 19.

SpaceX successfully launched the Falcon 9 rocket carrying a huge satellite for SiriusXM.

Screenshot Twitter/SpaceX

This year was also significant for satellite radio, with SpaceX successfully launching its Falcon 9 rocket and deploying a huge satellite for SiriusXM into orbit on Dec. 13. It marked the 25th launch of the year for the company.

Views of the 'Christmas Star,' the Jupiter and Saturn conjunction.

Screenshot via Alex Baxter/Twitter

And perhaps the most exciting news came at the end the year with the Great Conjunction, also called the Christmas Star, making a grand appearance. Stargazers were treated to a once-in-a-lifetime sighting on Dec. 21, as Jupiter and Saturn came close enough to form an ultra-rare double planet illusion not seen in nearly 800 years.

The Link Lonk


December 29, 2020 at 07:03PM
https://www.chron.com/news/space/article/Houston-biggest-Space-news-roundup-2020-15822592.php

9 space stories that helped us forget we lived on Earth in 2020 - Chron

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