Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System.
It is the fourth largest planet by diameter, and the third largest by mass.
The planet is named after the Roman god of the sea. Discovered on September
23, 1846, Neptune was the first planet found by mathematical prediction
rather than regular observation. Unexpected changes in the orbit of Uranus
led astronomers to deduce the gravitational perturbation of an unknown
planet. Neptune was found within a degree of the predicted position. The
moon Triton was found shortly thereafter, but none of the planet's other 12
moons were discovered before the 20th century. Neptune has been visited by
only one spacecraft, Voyager 2, which flew by the planet on August 25, 1989.
Neptune is similar in composition to Uranus, and both have different
compositions from those of the larger gas giants Jupiter and Saturn. Traces
of methane in the outermost regions, in part, account for the planet's blue
appearance. At the time of the 1989 Voyager 2 flyby, its southern hemisphere
possessed a Great Dark Spot comparable to the Great Red Spot on Jupiter.
Neptune has a faint and fragmented ring system, which may have been detected
during the 1960s but was only indisputably confirmed by Voyager 2.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1885:
Mahdist War: British troops defeated Mahdist Sudanese forces at the Battle
of Abu Klea in Khartoum, Sudan.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Abu_Klea)
1899:
The United States took possession of Wake Island in the Pacific Ocean.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake_Island)
1929:
Popeye the Sailor, a cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, first
appeared in his newspaper comic strip Thimble Theater.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popeye)
1946:
The United Nations Security Council, the organ of the United Nations charged
with the maintenance of international peace and security, held its first
meeting at Church House in London.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council)
1966:
The Palomares hydrogen bombs incident: A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress
collided with a KC-135 Stratotanker during aerial refueling over the
Mediterranean Sea, dropping three hydrogen bombs near the town of Palomares,
Spain, and another one into the sea.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palomares_hydrogen_bombs_incident)
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
accentuate (v) 1. To pronounce with an accent or vocal stress.
2. To bring out distinctly; to make prominent;
to emphasize.
(
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/accentuate)
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be
hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity, that the dry,
shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut.
Whether this be the case with my history or not, I am hardly competent to
judge. I sometimes think it might prove useful to some, and entertaining to
others; but the world may judge for itself. Shielded by my own obscurity,
and by the lapse of years, and a few fictitious names, I do not fear to
venture; and will candidly lay before the public what I would not disclose
to the most intimate friend. --Anne Brontë
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anne_Bront%C3%AB)