On this day - 16 July
Historical items of interest as featured in the papers of the day.
Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 hits Jupiter
On July 16th 1994 part of the Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter, causing an impact fireball. The comet had become fragmented and therefore parts of the comet hit the surface of Jupiter at intervals. Each impact was observed, with a further 21 distinct impacts recorded over the next several days.
The comet was so named due to its discovery by Carolyn and Eugene Shoemaker and David Levy in 1993. It was the 9th periodic comet discovered by the group. A periodic comet is once whose orbit takes 200 years or less to complete.
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