1639 - 1st observation of transit of Venus by Jeremiah Horrocks and William Crabtree - helped establish size of the Solar System
1642 - Abel Janzoon Tasman discovers Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania)
1859 - Charles Darwin publishes "On the Origin of Species"
1950 - "Storm of the Century": a violent snowstorm takes shape on this date before paralyzing the northeastern United States and the Appalachians the next day, bringing winds up to 100 mph and sub-zero temperatures, records 57 inches of snow, 353 people would die as a result of the storm.
1969 - Apollo Program:, Apollo 12; command module splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean, ending the second manned mission to the Moon.
1974 - Donald Johanson and Tom Gray discover the 40% complete Australopithecus afarensis skeleton, nicknamed "Lucy" (after The Beatles"), in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression.
1976 - Çaldıran-Muradiye earthquake; in eastern Turkey kills between 4,000 and 5,000 people.
