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My Dad Discovered Pluto

By Alden Tombaugh

Posted 01.01.10

NOVA

The date February 18, 1930 probably doesn't stand out particularly in your mind, but it certainly does in mine. For that's the day my father, Clyde Tombaugh, a farmboy-turned-astronomer, discovered Pluto, becoming the first American to find a planet. In this slide show of old family photos, follow the trajectory of my father's remarkable career, which, in its way, began and ended at Pluto.

Launch Interactive Printable Version How did Clyde Tombaugh go from baling hay to finding Pluto? See family photos and hear his son Alden reflect.