Stellar Milestones: SpaceX's Starship Triumph, Interstellar Comet Insights, and Celebrating Space History

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Avery: Welcome back to Astronomy Daily, the podcast

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that brings you the universe one story at a

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time. I'm Avery.

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Anna: And I'm Anna. We have a packed show for

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you today. We'll be covering SpaceX's

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incredible new milestone with Starship.

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Avery: A, uh, rundown of a very busy week for rocket

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launches all around the world.

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Anna: An ancient interstellar visitor spotted by the

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James Webb Space Telescope for the first

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time. And a unique way to celebrate

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the unsung heroes of space history.

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Avery: It' big day for space news, so let's get right

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to it.

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Anna: First up, the news that has everyone

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buzzing. SpaceX's Starship

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completed its 10th test flight. And

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what a flight it was. This was a truly

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spectacular demonstration of progress for the

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world's largest rocket.

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Avery: It really was, Anna. Uh, this wasn't just about

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getting off the ground and reaching space. They hit

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a series of ambitious milestones that are

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absolutely critical for the rocket's operational

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future.

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Anna: Let's break them down. For the first time, they

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successfully opened and closed the payload

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door while coasting in space. This is

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that famous PEZ dispenser door we've heard about,

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designed to deploy the next generation of

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Starlink satellites.

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Avery: That test alone is a huge deal,

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but they didn't stop there. They also

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demonstrated an in space propellant

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transfer, moving super chilled liquid

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oxygen between tanks. This is a

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foundational technology for refuelling in orb,

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which is necessary for long duration missions to the moon and

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Mars.

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Anna: And the biggest one for me, Avery, was the

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successful reignition of a Raptor

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engine in space. Firing an engine

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in the vacuum of space is a completely different

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challenge than on the launch pad. This proves they

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can perform the deorbit burn needed to return

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to Earth or the landing burn for a lunar

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or Martian arrival.

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Avery: And we can't forget about the super heavy

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booster. After separation, it executed

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a perfect boostback burn and made a gentle

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targeted splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. The

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footage was just breathtaking.

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Anna: Absolutely picture perfect. It was

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so controlled. While catching it with the

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Mechazilla arms is the ultimate goal,

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proving they can bring it down to a precise location in

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the ocean is a massive hurdle cleared.

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It shows the hardware works as designed.

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Avery: So putting it all together, this is a

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monumental win for SpaceX and their vision.

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It's not just about their own goals. For Mars,

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NASA is relying heavily on a modified starship

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as the human landing system for its Artemis programme.

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This test flight will give everyone at the agency a

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lot more confidence that Starship can deliver.

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Anna: It sure will. The pace of development

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is just incredible. It Feels

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less like an incremental step and more like

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a giant leap towards a future where access to

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space is routine. Truly exciting times.

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Avery: And um, while Starship may have stolen the headlines,

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it was far from the only rocket leaving Earth.

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It's been an incredibly busy week for launches

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across the globe. A real showcase of the

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accelerating pace of the modern space industry.

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Anna: Absolutely kicking things off. In Asia,

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China's state owned CASC

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launched a Long March 2D rocket. It

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was carrying another batch of satellites for their

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gowing Low Earth Orbit Internet constellation,

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which is China's strateg strategic answer to services like

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Starlink and OneWeb.

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Avery: Back in the US SpaceX continued its

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relentless launch pace with the Falcon 9. They

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successfully launched the NAOS mission, a highly

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advanced reconnaissance satellite for the French government.

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But the payload wasn't the only story here, was

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it?

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Anna: Not at all. The first stage booster that

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lofted that satellite was completing its

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27th flight. Look at sink

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in 27 successful launches

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and landings for one piece of

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hardware. It's a number that completely

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redefines what's possible in aerospace.

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Avery: It's a stunning achievement in engineering and

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logistics. That level of reusability is

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what drives down costs and increases access to

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space for everyone. And speaking of other major

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players, Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin is

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preparing for a launch as well. Their New Shepard

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rocket is on the path for its next suborbital

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science mission. This flight,

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designated NS26, is packed

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with science. It's carrying over 40

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payloads from NASA, universities

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and commercial research institutions.

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Anna: It's a great platform for microgravity research.

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This particular flight is carrying experiments to

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study everything from the behaviour of fluids in

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space, which is critical for life support systems,

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to how spaceflight affects plant cells and dn.

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Avery: And of course, rounding out the week, it wouldn't be

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space news without the steady drumbeat

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of Starlink launches. SpaceX

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sent up several more batches, continuing to expand

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the global coverage and capacity of their

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satellite Internet service.

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Anna: From government missions to commercial science and

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global Internet, it's a clear sign of a

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vibrant and diverse launch industry. Firing on all

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cylinders.

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Avery: All right, let's pivot. From the roar of rockets to

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the silent, steady gaze of our most

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powerful eye in the sky. The James

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Webb Space Telescope has captured a stunning

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new look at a mysterious visitor from

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far beyond our solar system.

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Anna: This is a really fantastic story of

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cosmic detective work. For the first time,

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Webb focused its powerful infrared instruments

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on an object named Comet

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3I ATLAS.

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The I in its name is crucial. It

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stands for interstellar. This means

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the Comet is not gravitationally bound to our

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Sun. It's just passing through from another star

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system.

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Avery: And this isn't a common occurrence. It's only the

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third interstellar object we've ever definitively

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identified, after Oumuamua and

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Borisov. And Webb's capabilities

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allowed for an unprecedented level of

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analysis.

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Anna: Exactly. Webb didn't just take a picture. It

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performed spectroscopy on the coma, which is the

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fuzzy atmosphere of gas and dust that

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boils off the comet's icy nucleus as it gets

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closer to the Sun. This allowed scientists

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to identify its chemical makeup.

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Avery: And what they found was truly unique. This

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comet has the highest ratio of carbon

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dioxide to water ever measured

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in any comet. It's incredibly

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rich in CO2, which suggests it formed

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in very cold

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region of its home star system.

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Anna: A region likely much colder and different

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from the birthplace of our own solar system's comets.

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This distinct chemical signature is like a birth

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certificate, providing clues about the specific

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conditions in the protoplanetary disc where it

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originated light years away.

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Avery: And there's another incredible detail. It's

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age. Based on its trajectory and

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composition, scientists estimate comet size

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3i atlas is roughly 7

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billion years old. That makes it

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significantly older than our entire solar

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system, which clocks in at, uh, about

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4.6 billion years.

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Anna: So we are looking at a pristine frozen

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relic from a star system that was mature

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before our sun even ignited. It's a

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time capsule from an ancient alien world.

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And studying it helps us understand the

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vast diversity of planetary systems across

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the Galax.

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Avery: For our last story, we're coming back down to Earth for

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a moment to look at a creative way people are

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celebrating the history of getting off it.

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Anna: This is a neat one. The design studio Chop

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Shop, known for their beautiful space themed artwork and

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apparel, is releasing a new series of their

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Great Leaps enamel pins.

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Avery: And these aren't just pins of the usual suspects

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like the Saturn V or the space

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shuttle. The whole point of this series is to celebrate the

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lesser known but incredibly important milestone milestones

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in space history.

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Anna: Right. They're shining a spotlight on moments that were

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foundational to everything that came after.

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For example, one of the new pins commemorates

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Robert Goddard's first successful liquid

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fueled rocket launch in 1926,

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which was basically.

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Avery: The kitty hawk moment for the entire space age.

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It was a tiny rocket that flew for just 2 1/2

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seconds, but it proved the fundamental concept

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that would eventually take us to the moon.

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Anna: Another pen in the series celebrates a different

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kind of milestone, a political one.

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It honours the 1975 treaty between

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the United States and the Soviet Union that

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paved the way for the Apollo Soyuz test project

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and ultimately the International Space Station.

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Avery: That's so important to remember. Space

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exploration isn't just about engineering. It's about

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diplomacy, collaboration and shared human

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ambition. It's a cool way for space enthusiasts is to

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wear a piece of that deeper history on their jacket or

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backpack.

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Anna: It is. It's a wonderful reminder

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that for every famous giant leap there were

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countless smaller crucial steps that made it possible.

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And that brings us to the end of another episode.

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From the triumphant flight of starship to a

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7 billion year old interstellar comet,

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it's been another remarkable day in space.

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Avery: It certainly has. Thanks so much for joining us on

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Astronomy Daily. We hope you enjoy the journey.

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Anna: You can find more content and connect with us on our

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social media channels. Just search for

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AstroDaily Pod or visit us on

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our website at ah astronomydaily.IO

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we love hearing from our listeners.

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Avery: M. Until next time, keep looking up.