On this day in 1974, Mariner 10, the U.S. space probe became the
first spacecraft to reach the planet Mercury. It had been launched
on November 3, 1973. Mariner 10 was the first spacecraft to return
high-resolution digital color images.
A photomosaic of Mercury images taken by Mariner 10, tinted to approximate the appearance of Mercury.
BRIAN THOMAS
During World War II on this day in 1945, about 30,000 U.S. Marines
landed on Iwo Jima.
On this day in 1942, President Roosevelt signed an executive order
giving the military the authority to relocate and intern Japanese-Americans.
On February 19, 1473, Nicolaus Copernicus is born in Torun, a city
in north-central Poland on the Vistula River. The father of modern astronomy, he was the first modern European scientist to propose
that Earth and other planets revolve around the sun.
The monument to Nicolaus Copernicus in Warsaw.
Deng Xiaoping of China died on t his day in 1997 at the age of
92. He was the last of China’s major revolutionaries.
William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. is 78 years old today.
Singer Smokey Robinson was with The Miracles who helped define
the Motown sound. He also played with The Five Chimes until 1972
and pursued a solo career. He released such popular songs as "A
Quiet Storm," "Tears of a Clown," "You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me,"
and "I Second That Emotion."
ROSS SIMPSON
On this day in 1898, the USS Maine sank when it exploded in Havana Harbor for unknown reasons. More than 260 crew members were
killed.
On this day in 1989, after nine years of intervention, the Soviet Union announced that the remainder of its troops had left Afghanistan.
Red Army soldiers surrounded by foreign press wait their plane
to leave for Soviet Union.
Born on this day in 1564.
Susan Brownell Anthony (February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906)
Susan B. Anthony was a social reformer and women’s rights activist
who played a pivotal role in the women’s suffrage movement.
In 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed the bill
authorizing the Susan B. Anthony Dollar Coin. The
U.S. Mint officially released the coin on July 2, 1979.
Sir Isaac Newton (1643- 1727)
Physicist and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton became one of the most
influential scientists of all time, formulating the three basic laws of
motion and the law of universal gravitation. He built the first practical
reflecting telescope. Newton’s mother wanted him to be a farmer.
ROSS SIMPSON
Susan Brownell Anthony (February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906)
