› added 7 years ago

95

TIL the Voyager 1 spacecraft, currently more than 20 billion km from earth, is powered by a radioisotope with a half-life of 87.7 years. It has been slowly shutting down systems since 2007 to conserve energy, and by 2025 will go completely dark as it loses the ability to power a single instrument.

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eXKb TIL that Porphyria, a collection of diseases where symptoms include severe sun sensitivity, prominent canine teeth and peculiar behaviour, is thought to be the basis of the vampire legend – especially as symptoms are worsened by garlic.
7rwBX TIL Bear Grylls, at the age of 21, survived a fall of 16,000 feet after his parachute malfunctioned
BpXk TIL Stephen Fry is bipolar and when asked if he wished to undo the effects of manic depression he replied “Not for all the tea in China.”
R7171 TIL that jalapeños are actually red when they’re ripe and they are spicer and sweeter than green ones.
PY0DZ TIL blimps use the same amount of fuel in 2 weeks that a 747 uses to taxi to the runway