Today in News History

On July 12, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1406, William, Margrave of Hachberg-Sausenberg (died 1482) was born. In 1576, While exploring the North Atlantic Ocean in an attempt to find the Northwest Passage, Martin Frobisher sights Greenland, mistaking it for the hypothesized (but non-existent) island of "Frisland". In 1735, Mathematical calculations suggest that it is on this day that dwarf planet Pluto moved inside the orbit of Neptune for the last time before 1979. In 1801, French astronomer Jean-Louis Pons makes his first comet discovery. In the next 27 years he discovers another 36 comets, more than any other person in history. In 1826, Alexander Afanasyev, Russian ethnographer and author (died 1871) was born. In 1836, The Fly-fisher's Entomology is published by Alfred Ronalds. The book transformed the sport and went to many editions. In 1893, The first cultured pearl is obtained by Kōkichi Mikimoto. In 1916, Alexander Prokhorov, Australian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2002) was born. In 1978, Massimiliano Rosolino, Italian swimmer was born. In 1979, America's first space station, Skylab, is destroyed as it re-enters the Earth's atmosphere over the Indian Ocean. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.