On April 24, 1996, Wapusk National Park, an area covering 11,475 km2 (4,430.5 mi2 ), became part of Canada’s National Parks system. Wapusk, “White Bear” in Cree, protects one of the world’s largest polar bear den areas. On the transition between boreal forest and…
On February 8, 1700, Swiss scientist, mathematician, and physician Daniel Bernoulli was born. His father, a well-known mathematician spent several decades encouraging his son to do everything else but become a mathematician because it didn’t pay well. But when both he and his son…
On December 11, 1863, American astrophysicist Annie Jump Cannon was born. She learned about constellations from her mother. However, from a fever early in her life, Cannon was hearing impaired. She studied physics at Wellesley and took graduate courses in astronomy there. She acquired…
On November 23, 1898, American biochemist Rachel Fuller Brown was born. Most famously, she worked through research and production projects with microbiologist and bacteriologist Elizabeth Lee Hazen for the New York State Department of Health; Brown in Albany and Hazen in New York City.…
On November 8, 1895, in the evening, physicist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen [Röntgen] discovered X-rays. Previously, he had investigated the electrical conductivity of crystals and electromagnetic influences on polarized light. This particular evening, Roentgen experimented with the flow of electric current through a glass tube…
On November 7, 1867, physicist and chemist Marie Skłodowska–Curie was born in Poland. A studious young daughter of a scientist, she grew up to become one of the giants of all modern science. With her husband, Pierre Curie, she studied chemical elements in their…
On November 3, 1854, Dr. Jokichi Takamine was born in Japan. His special strengths in languages and science steered him through programs in medical school and chemistry. Along with studies at the University of Glasgow in technology and work experiences in both Japan and…
On June 13, 1983, Pioneer 10 became the first human-made object to travel past Pluto. The first spacecraft to achieve escape velocity from our sun’s system, it was poised to enter interstellar space. For 10 years up to this date, the hardy pioneer had…
Twenty-eight years ago on January 22, 1992, STS-42 carried the first International Microgravity Laboratory [IML-1], dozens of experiments, and seven space shuttle crew members into orbit. Over 200 scientists from 13 countries contributed to the crew’s onboard research tasks in the physical and life…
On September 7, 1914, American space scientist James Alfred Van Allen was born. In the International Geophysical Year [July 1, 1957 to December 31, 1958] Van Allen reconfigured the radiation detectors he had designed for one rocket system to fly on a different system…
