#On this day

[autistook]

ON THIS DAY

April 28th - Bilbo, Gandalf and the Dwarves leave Bag End

'Very puffed he was, when he got to Bywater just on the stroke of eleven, and found he had come without a pocket-handkerchief!'

[sacramentohistorymuseum]

On April 27, 1791, Samuel Morse was born. Morse developed in the 1830s what became known as Morse Code, the primary language used in the transmission of messages using an electric telegraph machine.

The telegraph, using Morse Code, is intimately tied to the development of Sacramento starting in the 1850s. In 1854, the Alta Telegraph Company built a telegraph line between Sacramento and Nevada City. Other lines started to connect Sacramento to other cities in California. On October 24, 1861, the first transcontinental telegraph message was transmitted to Sacramento, ending the Pony Express overland mail service two days later. California was finally able to receive news from the east coast within hours rather than 10 days by the Pony Express.

Construction of the transcontinental telegraph line began July 4, 1861 in Missouri. The nearly $500,000 project was largely made possible by the passing of the Telegraph Act of 1860. The telegraph made Sacramento the hub for communication between California and the eastern United States. California newspapers became more up to date on national news as well.

For today, Jared typeset SACRAMENTO in 36 point Cheltenham Bold Italic font. Luckily, the typecase had enough dashes and periods. This was printed with black rubber base ink using our Washington hand press.

[andrewmsaidso]

methinks today is the anniversary of Riko Moriyama’s death??

[bobbyhasstardust]

100 years ago, Buster Keaton’s “Sherlock Jr.” had its grand premiere in Los Angeles (April 26, 1924)

[chic-a-gigot]

La Mode nationale, no. 17, 27 avril 1895, Paris. Nos. 2 à 25. — Alphabet brodé au passé. Bibliothèque nationale de France

Décalquer la lettre que l'on veut employer, au moyen de la poucette et de poudre bleue, puis broder au passé avec de la soie de nuances variées.

S'emploie beaucoup pour coin de pochettes de couleur, dessus de sachèt ou chemin de table.

—

Trace the letter you want to use, using the thumbnail and blue powder, then embroider in the passé with silk of various shades.

Widely used for corners of colored pockets, tops of sachets or table runners.

[ourshadowstallerthanoursoul]

On this day... - April 28th

On this day Led Zeppelin performed:

+ 1977: Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio, USA

“Five limousines escorted by police slowly drive past hundreds of cars packed with eager fans waiting to see the ultimate heavy metal group perform. […] This is Led Zeppelin, the world's most acclaimed rock group. Within the next few hours they brought 20,000 people to a thunderous roar at the Coliseum April 27 and 28. From the opener The Song Remains the Same to the incredible Stairway to Heaven they played to the utmost perfection. The crowd would not let them go. They came back after 10 minutes of clapping and screaming for two encores Trampled Underfoot and the exciting Rock and Roll." – ‘Crowd of 20,000 attend concert starring Led Zeppelin group’ by Angie Czelusniak (Tatler)

[nando161mando]

Today in 1945, 79 years ago: in Dongo (Italy), anti-fascist partisans capture former dictator Benito Mussolini (who was trying to escape Italy disguised as a German soldier). The next day he will be lynched.

[humanoidhistory]

Jupiter, observed by Voyager 1 on March 1, 1979.

[flowerytale]

The Early Diary of Anaïs Nin, 1923–1927

[nasa]

Moonbound: One Year Since Artemis I

On this day last year, the Artemis I rocket and spacecraft lit up the sky and embarked on the revolutionary mission to the Moon and back. The first integrated flight test of the rocket and spacecraft continued for 25.5 days, validating NASA’s deep exploration systems and setting the stage for humanity’s return to the lunar surface.

On Nov. 16, 2022, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket met or exceeded all expectations during its debut launch on Artemis I. The twin solid rocket booster motors responsible for producing more than 7 million pounds of thrust at liftoff reached their performance target, helping SLS and the Orion spacecraft reach a speed of about 4,000 mph in just over two minutes before the boosters separated.

Quite a few payloads caught a ride aboard the Orion spacecraft on the Artemis I mission: In addition to a number of small scientific satellites called CubeSats, a manikin named Commander Moonikin Campos sat in the commander’s seat. A Snoopy doll served as a zero-gravity indicator — something that floats inside the spacecraft to demonstrate microgravity. 

During the mission, Orion performed two lunar flybys, coming within 80 miles of the lunar surface. At its farthest distance during the mission, Orion traveled nearly 270,000 miles from our home planet, more than 1,000 times farther than where the International Space Station orbits Earth. This surpassed the record for distance traveled by a spacecraft designed to carry humans, previously set during Apollo 13.

The Orion spacecraft arrived back home to planet Earth on Dec. 11, 2022. During re-entry, Orion endured temperatures about half as hot as the surface of the Sun at about 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Within about 20 minutes, Orion slowed from nearly 25,000 mph to about 20 mph for its parachute-assisted splashdown. 

Recovery teams successfully retrieved the spacecraft and delivered it back to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for de-servicing operations, which included removing the payloads (like Snoopy and Commander Moonikin Campos) and analyzing the heat shield.  

With the Artemis I mission under our belt, we look ahead to Artemis II — our first crewed mission to the Moon in over 50 years. Four astronauts will fly around the Moon inside Orion, practicing piloting the spacecraft and validating the spacecraft’s life support systems. The Artemis II crew includes: NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen. 

As we look ahead to Artemis II, we build upon the incredible success of the Artemis I mission and recognize the hard work and achievements of the entire Artemis team. Go Artemis!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

[autistook]

ON THIS DAY

April 26th - Gandalf arrives in Bag End and tries to pursuade Bilbo to take part in an adventure, but he declines the offer.

"Sorry! I don't want any adventures, thank you. Not today. Good morning! But please come to tea - any time you like! Why not tomorrow? Come tomorrow! Good bye!" With that the hobbit turned and scuttled inside his round green door, and shut it as quickly as he dared, not to seem rude. Wizards after all are wizards.

[petaltexturedskies]

Virginia Woolf, in a letter to Vita Sackville-West dated 31st January 1927

[amnhnyc]

Did you participate in a Christmas Bird Count this year? If so, you can thank ornithologist Frank Chapman! In 1900, Chapman established this tradition in hopes that it would counteract the then-common practice of trying to hunt as many birds as possible on Christmas Day.

Chapman worked at the Museum for more than 50 years, from 1888 to 1942. Among his achievements were popularizing birdwatching and bird identification among the general public. There’s still time to participate in this year’s count! Audubon's Christmas Bird Count started on Dec 14, 2023 and ends on January 5, 2024! Let us know which beautiful birds you've seen this holiday season.

Photo: James St. John, CC BY 2.0, flickr

[countingstars-17]

30th March 2019 -> Charles Leclerc becomes the second youngest pole sitter in F1 history and the youngest Ferrari pole sitter

[chic-a-gigot]

Le Petit écho de la mode, no. 17, vol. 25, 26 avril 1903, Paris. 3. Boucles de ceinture. Ville de Paris / Bibliothèque Forney

(3.) Boucles de ceinture haute nouveauté, en métal vieil argent ou doré, représentant une divinité mythologique émergeant d'une pivoine ou d'un volubilis.

(3.) High-novelty belt buckles, in old silver or gold metal, representing a mythological divinity emerging from a peony or morning glories.

[meerawrites]

We made it to the moon for cheaper than NASA or Russia, or any colonial power ever has! (very positive)

Take that Great Britain and screw you all colonizers and imperialism (extremely derogatory).