2009 in science

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The year 2009 in science and technology involved numerous significant events and discoveries, some of which are listed below. 2009 was designated the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations.^[1]

Events and discoveries

• January – The first animal from an extinct species to be recreated by cloning, a Pyrenean Ibex, is born alive, but dies seven minutes later due to physical defects in its lungs.^[2]
• January 26 – An annular solar eclipse takes place.^[3]
• February 1 – The Cospas-Sarsat satellite search-and-rescue system stops monitoring for outdated 121.5 MHz and 243 MHz (Class B) distress signals from EPIRBs and other emergency beacons.^[4]
• February 24 – Comet Lulin, a non-periodic comet, makes its closest approach to Earth, peaking in brightness between magnitude +4 and magnitude +6.^[5]
• March 7 – The Kepler space observatory is successfully launched.^[6]
• May 11–24 – STS-125, the last expected Space Shuttle mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope, takes place.^[7]
• May 19 – Paleontologists announce the discovery of Darwinius masillae, an evolutionary "missing link" with features similar to lemurs, monkeys, and humans.^[8]
• July 22 – A total solar eclipse – the longest-lasting total eclipse of the 21st century – takes place.^[9]
• September 3 – Saturn's rings cross the plane of the Earth's orbit. This was the first such crossing since May 22, 1995, and another will not occur until March 23, 2025.^[10]
• September 29 – NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes its final flyby of Mercury, decreasing velocity enough for its orbital capture in 2011.^[11]
• October 1 – Paleontologists announce the discovery of an Ardipithecus ramidus fossil skeleton, deeming it the oldest fossil skeleton of a human ancestor yet found.^[12]
• October 20 – European astronomers discover 32 new exoplanets.^[13]
• December 31
  • A partial lunar eclipse is visible from most of Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia.^[14]
  • The SB ("Sleeping Beauty") 100X is announced as the Molecule of the Year 2009 by Isidro T. Savillo, President of the International Society for Molecular and Cell Biology and Biotechnology Protocols and Researches (ISMCBBPR). (Scientist Solutions) (MDC Berlin-Buch)

Deaths

• February 11 – Willem Johan Kolff, American physician, inventor of artificial organs (b. 1911).^[15]
• June 10 – John A. Eddy, American astronomer (b. 1931).
• November 29 – Andrew Donald Booth, British physicist and computer scientist (b. 1918).

See also

• List of years in science
• 2009 in spaceflight
• List of emerging technologies

References

1. ^ "2009 to be International Year of Astronomy, UN declares". CBC News. December 21, 2007. Archived from the original on 9 July 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5r5swSakm. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
2. ^ Gray, Richard; Dobson, Roger (January 31, 2009). "Extinct ibex is resurrected by cloning". The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/science/sciencenews/4409958/Extinct-ibex-is-resurrected-by-cloning.html. Retrieved 2011-11-02. 
3. ^ "Annular Solar Eclipse of 2009 Jan 26". NASA. http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OHfigures/OH2009-Fig01.pdf. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
4. ^ "121.5 Phase-Out". COSPAS SARSAT. http://www.cospas-sarsat.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=165&catid=29&lang=en. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
5. ^ "JPL Close-Approach Data: C/2007 N3 (Lulin)". 2010-03-11 last obs. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=C/2007+N3;orb=0;cov=0;log=0;cad=1#cad. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
6. ^ "KASC News and Schedule". Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University. Archived from the original on 9 July 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5r5tvQfFp. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
7. ^ "Shuttle Atlantis blasts off on last Hubble mission". Guardian. 11 May 2009. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/8501300. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
8. ^ Franzen, Jens L.; et al. (2009). Hawks, John. ed. "Complete Primate Skeleton from the Middle Eocene of Messel in Germany: Morphology and Paleobiology". PLoS ONE 4 (5): e5723. Bibcode 2009PLoSO...4.5723F. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0005723. PMC 2683573. PMID 19492084. http://www.plosone.org/doi/pone.0005723. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
9. ^ "Catalog of Long Total Solar Eclipses: 2001 to 3000". NASA. http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEcatmax/SE2001-3000MaxT.html. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
10. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions About Saturn's Rings". NASA. http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/saturn/faq.html. Retrieved 8 November 2011. 
11. ^ "MESSENGER Gains Critical Gravity Assist for Mercury Orbital Observations". MESSENGER Mission News. September 30, 2009. http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/news_room/details.php?id=136. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
12. ^ Gibbons, Ann (2009). "A New Kind of Ancestor: Ardipithecus Unveiled". Science 326 (5949): 36–40. doi:10.1126/science.326_36. PMID 19797636. 
13. ^ Fox, Maggie; Frank, Jackie (2009-10-19). "European scientists find trawl of 32 new planets". Reuters. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20091019/tsc-oukoe-uk-space-planets-1df2b7e.html. Retrieved 2009-10-20. ^{[dead link]}
14. ^ Espenak, F.. "Partial Lunar Eclipse of 2009 Dec 31". NASA. http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEplot/LEplot2001/LE2009Dec31P.pdf. Retrieved 9 July 2010. 
15. ^ Moore, Carrie A. (February 11, 2009). "Kolff, 'father of artificial organs,' dies at 97". Deseret News. http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705284493,00.html. Retrieved 2009-02-11.