On This Day
2015 - Kepler-452b
NASA announces discovery of Kepler-452b by the Kepler space telescope.
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On This Day
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1921 - 1st National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is established at the founding National Congress.
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1914 - July Crisis
July Crisis: Austria-Hungary issues a series of demands in an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia demanding Serbia to allow the Austrians to determine who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Serbia accepts all but one of those demands and Austria declares war on July 28.
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2011 - Utøya
Norway attacks: A bomb explodes, targeted at government buildings in central Oslo, followed by a massacre at a youth camp on the island of Utøya.
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1951 - Dezik and Tsygan
Soviet space dogs: Dezik and Tsygan were launched into a sub-orbital spaceflight from Kapustin Yar and became the first dogs to fly in space and the first to safely return.
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1833 - Slavery Abolition Act 1833
The Slavery Abolition Act passes in the British House of Commons, initiating the gradual abolition of slavery in most parts of the British Empire.
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1960 - A 'Weeping Widow' Breaks the Ultimate Glass Ceiling
When Sirimavo Bandaranaike took the oath of office in Ceylon on July 21, 1960, she shattered a barrier no woman had ever crossed: elected leader of a nation. The British press had to invent a new word—'stateswoman'—because their language had no term for what she had become.
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2024 - Biden Exits Race in Unprecedented Election Upheaval
After a disastrous debate performance sent Democrats into panic, the oldest president in American history made a decision not seen in over half a century. Joe Biden's withdrawal from the 2024 race would reshape the election—and ultimately end in his party's defeat.
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1969 - One Small Step: Humanity Reaches the Moon
At 02:56 UTC on July 21, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface, fulfilling a promise made eight years earlier by a president who would never see it realized. Approximately 650 million people—one-fifth of humanity—watched as two astronauts turned science fiction into history.