On April 26, 1900, physicist and seismologist Charles Francis Richter was born. A Californian intrigued by earthquakes and the waves of energy they release, he worked with Beno Gutenberg, a world authority on Earth’s interior physics and the man who proved Earth had a…
On April 20, 1798, geologist William Edmond Logan was born in Montreal. He began assessing coal suppliers for an uncle’s copper plant in Wales. Logan became involved in mapping out coal resources nearby that were so accurate, that the Geological Survey of Great Britain…
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 26, 1837, English analytic chemist John Newlands was born. During his working life, the Chemical and Physical Sciences were abuzz with researchers and experimenters trying to get a handle on the atomic structure of molecules and whatever else that might be discovered…
On This Day in 2012, Space Shuttle Discovery officially retired. It was transported to Dulles International Airport en route to the Smithsonian where it has become a permanent exhibit. Discovery is now amidst thousands of aviation and space artifacts in the James S McDonnell…