Today is Thursday, September 12, the 256th day of the 12 months 2024. There are 110 days left within the 12 months.
Today in history:
On September 12, 2013, Voyager 1, launched 36 years earlier, became the primary manned space probe ever to depart the solar system.
Also on this date:
In 1857, the SS Central America (also generally known as the “Ship of Gold”) sank off the coast of South Carolina after being caught in a hurricane. It was one among the worst maritime disasters in American history, killing 425 people and carrying 1000’s of kilos of gold to the underside of the ocean.
In 1958, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in Cooper v. Aaron that Arkansas state officials opposing public school desegregation couldn’t ignore the Supreme Court's decisions.
In 1959, the Soviet Union launched its Luna 2 space probe, which crash-landed on the moon.
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy reiterated his support for the manned space program in a speech at Rice University in Houston, declaring, “We have chosen to go to the moon and do the other things in this decade, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”
In 1977, 30-year-old South African black student leader and anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko died in police custody, sparking a global outcry.
In 1994, truck driver Frank Eugene Corder flew a stolen single-engine Cessna plane into the Washington, DC restricted area and crashed on the South Lawn of the White House.
In 2003, US forces mistakenly opened fire on vehicles carrying law enforcement officials within the Iraqi city of Fallujah, killing eight of them.
In 2008, a Metrolink commuter train collided head-on with a freight train in Los Angeles, killing 25 people.
In 2011, Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal to win his first US Open title.
Today's birthdays:
- Actress Linda Gray is 84.
- Singer Maria Muldaur is 82.
- Author Michael Ondaatje is 81.
- Actor Joe Pantoliano is 73.
- Photographer Nan Goldin is 71.
- The composer Hans Zimmer is 67.
- Actress Rachel Ward is 67.
- Television presenter and commentator Greg Gutfeld is 60.
- Actor and comedian Louis (loo-ee) CK is 57.
- Golfer Angel Cabrera is 55.
- Country singer Jennifer Nettles (Sugarland) is 50.
- Rapper 2 Chainz is 47.
- Singer Ruben Studdard is 46.
- Yao Ming, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, is 44.
- Singer and actress Jennifer Hudson is 43.
- Actor Alfie Allen is 38.
- Actress Emmy Rossum is 38.
- Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman is 35.
- Country singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini is 31.
- Actor Sydney Sweeney is 27.
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