Today in News History

On July 12, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. 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 1905, Muhammad Abduh, Egyptian jurist and scholar (born 1849) passed away. In 1906, Murder of Grace Brown by Chester Gillette in the United States, inspiration for Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy. In 1916, Alexander Prokhorov, Australian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2002) was born. In 1927, Theodore Maiman, American-Canadian physicist and engineer (died 2007) was born. In 1934, Engelbert Zaschka of Germany flies his large human-powered aircraft, the Zaschka Human-Power Aircraft, about 20 meters at Berlin Tempelhof Airport without assisted take-off. In 1961, Antony Jenkins, English banker and businessman was born. In 1962, Project Apollo: At a press conference, NASA announces lunar orbit rendezvous as the means to land astronauts on the Moon, and return them to Earth. In 1999, Jan Sloot, Dutch computer scientist and electronics technician (born 1945) passed away. In 2008, Michael E. DeBakey, American surgeon and educator (born 1908) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.