Charging the view of distant atmospheres
NASA and ESA announce that spectrographic analysis of Hubble Space Telescope data gathered during observations of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa reveals that Europa has a persistent atmosphere of water vapor, but only on the hemisphere of the moon that is opposite of the direction of its orbital motion. (This unusual effect had been predicted in computer modeling, but had not been directly observed until now.) The atmosphere is present in Hubble spectroscopy data as old as 1999 and as recent as 2015. The stability of the water vapor in the atmosphere is the real surprise find, since surface-based water was assumed to be in solid ice form.
Doctor Who: The Ghost Monument
The 844th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 145th episode since the series’ revival). Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill star. Art Malik guest stars.
Star Wars: Resistance: The Triple Dark
Cable channel Disney XD airs the second episode of the series Star Wars: Resistance, set prior to the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Gwendoline Christie (Game Of Thrones, Wizards Vs. Aliens) guest stars as the voice of Captain Phasma.
Arrow: The Candidate
The 71st episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Neal McDonough (Boomtown) guest stars.
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Star Wars Rebels: The Lost Commanders
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 16th episode of the series Star Wars: Rebels, a CGI animated storyline falling between the original and prequel trilogies of the Star Wars saga. This episode picks up the second season and continues to build links between the Rebels animated series and its predecessor, The Clone Wars, by reintroducing the now-aged Clone Trooper nicknamed Rex (Dee Bradley Baker).
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Star Wars: Rebels now streaming on Amazon Prime
Other Space
Online streaming service Yahoo! Screen premieres Paul Feig’s eight-episode science fiction comedy web series Other Space, starring Karan Soni (Deadpool) and Mystery Science Theater 3000 cast members Joel Hodgson and Trace Beaulieu. Though Other Space is popular with viewers, the Yahoo! Screen service closes within a year. That, combined with Feig shifting his focus to a big-screen remake of Ghostbusters, leaves the series’ future in doubt.
The Flash: Fastest Man Alive
The second episode of The Flash, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ superhero starring Grant Gustin, airs on the CW. William Sadler (Roswell, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey) guest stars.
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Soyuz TMA-5 / ISS Expedition 10
The tenth full-time crew of the International Space Station lifts off from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome aboard Soyuz TMA-5. Salizhan Sharipov and Leroy Chiao take up residence on the ISS for 192 days. Arriving with them on the ISS for a nine-day stay is cosmonaut Yuri Shargin, who returns to Earth aboard Soyuz TMA-4 with the Expedition 9 crew.
Voyager: Night
UPN airs the 94th episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the beginning of Voyager’s fifth season.
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Star Trek: Voyager now streaming on Paramount Plus
The Cape: Lost In Space
The sixth episode of the science fiction series The Cape premieres in syndication in North America, starring Corbin Bernsen (L.A. Law) and Adam Baldwin, and focusing on a fictionalized version of NASA’s shuttle program.
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Xena: Giant Killer
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 27th episode of Xena: Warrior Princess.
Star Trek: DS9: Looking For Par’Mach…
The week-long national syndication window opens for Looking For Par’Mach In All The Wrong Places, the 99th episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
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Star Trek: Deep Space Nine now streaming on Paramount Plus
Babylon 5: And The Rock Cried Out…
The week-long national syndication window opens for And The Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place, the 64th episode of J. Michael Straczynski’s science fiction series Babylon 5.
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Babylon 5 now streaming on Amazon Prime
Forever Knight: Blind Faith
The 53rd episode of the supernatural crime series Forever Knight airs in syndication, starring Geraint Wyn-Davies, Catherine Disher, Nigel Bennett, and Lisa Ryder.
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Forever Knight now streaming on Amazon Prime
The X-Files: Duane Barry
The 29th episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Mitch Pileggi. Steve Railsback (Lifeforce) and Nicholas Lea guest star. This is the first part of a two-part story.
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The Star Trek: TNG: Silicon Avatar
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 103rd episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
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Star Trek: The Next Generation now streaming on Paramount Plus
Superboy: Lex Luthor: Sentenced To Death
The 29th episode of the syndicated series Superboy, starring Gerard Christopher and Stacy Haiduk, airs. Sherman Howard guest stars as Luthor.
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Countdown To Looking Glass
HBO premieres the made-for-TV movie Countdown To Looking Glass, starring Scott Glenn and Helen Shaver as reporters caught in the outbreak of World War III. In later years, when the movie becomes part of a movie package syndicated to local TV stations, it will accidentally cause panic among some of its audience.
Tales Of The Unexpected: The Mugger
ITV airs the 98th episode of the anthology series Tales Of The Unexpected. Roy Marsden guest stars.
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Tales Of The Unexpected now streaming on Amazon Prime
Manimal: Illusion
The second episode of Glen A. Larson’s superhero series Manimal airs on NBC, starring Simon MacCorkindale, Melody Anderson, and Michael D. Roberts. Jonathan Goldsmith (who will later gain fame as an advertising spokesman for Dos Equis beer) guest stars.
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Konami introduces the arcade game Jason Of Star Command: Planet Of The Lost
CBS airs the sixth episode of the Space Academy spinoff series Jason Of Star Command, starring Craig Littler, Sid Haig, and James Doohan (Star Trek).
Doctor Who: The Pirate Planet, Part 3
The 486th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1, continuing the Key To Time storyline. This is the first Doctor Who script written by Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy). Bruce Purchase guest stars.
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Wonder Woman: Knockout
The 18th episode of Wonder Woman airs on CBS, starring Lynda Carter and Lyle Waggoner. Jayne Kennedy and Ted Shackelford (Space Precinct) guest star.
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Wonder Woman now streaming on Amazon Prime
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The Video Computer System
The Atari Video Computer System, model number CX2600, hits retail stores in the United States, primarily through a deal with Sears (which has a contractual right to repackage it as the Sears Video Arcade). Packaged with two joysticks, a pair of paddles, and the two-player-only tank game Combat, the VCS isn’t quite a runaway success, with only a quarter million units selling by Christmas 1977.
Soyuz 23: Soviet surprise splashdown!
The Soviet Union’s Soyuz 23 mission lifts off from Baikonur Cosmodrome, intended for a stay of up to three months at the Salyut 5 space station. A serious malfunction of the automatic rendezvous gear forces an abort of the docking with the station, and cosmonauts Vyacheslav Zudov and Valery Rozhdestvensky are recalled to Earth, ending their orbit after just two days. But blizzard conditions near the landing site blow the Soyuz crew capsule off-course, resulting in the first-ever splashdown of the normally land-locked Soviet space program as Soyuz 23 plunges through the frozen surface of a lake. With their vehicle intact and functioning, the cosmonauts have to wait nine hours underwater for rescuers to bring the capsule to dry land.
Moonbase 3: View Of A Dead Planet
The final episode of the BBC’s short-lived science fiction series Moonbase 3 premieres. Michael Gough (Batman) guest stars. 
Hear about it on the Sci-Fi 5 podcast
The Evil Touch: Happy New Year, Aunt Carrie
The fifth episode of the horror anthology series The Evil Touch airs on Australia’s Nine Network, hosted by Anthony Quayle (Strange Report). (The series will later appear in the U.S. and elsewhere in first-run syndication.) Julie Harris (Knots Landing) guest stars.
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The Sixth Sense: With Affection, Jack The Ripper
The 17th episode of The Sixth Sense airs on ABC, starring Gary Collins. Robert Foxworth (The Questor Tapes), Percy Rodrigues (Star Trek), and Patty Duke guest star.
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