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Nasa astronauts and Mars robot wish Ringo Starr happy 80th from space

The Curiosity Rover wished Starr a happy birthday from Mars (NASA)
The Curiosity Rover wished Starr a happy birthday from Mars (Nasa)

A Nasa rover has wished Beatles drummer Sir Ringo Starr a happy birthday from the rocks of Mars, while astronauts on board the Space Station sent a message of “peace and love”.

Nasa’s Curiosity Rover team said in a Tweet: “Happy 80th, Ringo! Here's my view of Earth (and Venus) from the surface of Mars where I'm thinking about your message of Peace and Love, and how in good times and in tough ones, we all get by with a little help from our friends.”

Nasa astronauts on the Space Station sent a greeting via social media for Starr’s birthday on Tuesday.

The musician replied: “This is a first!”

Chris Cassidy, the commander of the ISS, said: “As an icon in music, your message of peace and love has echoed around the world for decades.

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“Our crew and the entire Nasa family would like to extend this message to the world and across the universe from our orbiting laboratory.”

Starr is forgoing his annual birthday gathering due to the coronavirus pandemic, and is instead performing a virtual concert via YouTube.

The Big Birthday Show concert will feature stars including Sir Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh and Sheryl Crow.

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It will raise money for Black Lives Matter, the David Lynch Foundation and WaterAid.

Starr said: “I’m going to celebrate it a little differently than I have for the last 12 years, when we have the peace and love moment. Last year, we celebrated it in Nice. But we started in 2008 in Chicago.”

Original Beatles drummer Pete Best let bygones be bygones as he wished Starr a happy 80th birthday on Tuesday.

Starr, real name Richard Starkey, replaced Best in 1962 when the group was managed by Brian Epstein in a decision which caused controversy.

Best, 78, tweeted: "Thought about it and thought why not. Happy Birthday Ringo. It’s a special one. Have a good day.”