Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 January 26

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Today's featured article
Hurricane Kyle was the fourth longest-lived Atlantic tropical or subtropical cyclone on record. The eleventh named storm and third hurricane of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season, Kyle developed as a subtropical cyclone on September 20 to the east-southeast of Bermuda. It transitioned into a tropical cyclone and became a hurricane on September 25, then tracked westward for the next two weeks. On October 11, the cyclone turned northeastward and made landfalls near Charleston, South Carolina, and Long Beach, North Carolina, at tropical storm status. After 22 days as a cyclone, it dissipated on October 12 as it was absorbed by an approaching cold front. Kyle brought light precipitation to Bermuda, but no significant damage was reported there. Moderate rainfall accompanied its two landfalls in the Carolinas, causing localized flash flooding and road closures. Kyle spawned at least four tornadoes, the costliest of which struck Georgetown, South Carolina; it damaged 106 buildings and destroyed seven others, causing eight injuries. Overall damage totaled about $5 million (2002 USD, $6.1 million 2011 USD). Though no direct deaths were reported, the remnants of Kyle contributed to one indirect death in the seas off the British Isles. (more...) Recently featured: Little Thetford – Lions – Lightning Bar Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest articles: ... that the surface of the South African plant Peucedanum galbanum (pictured) is covered with blister-causing toxins, and that exposure to sunlight could make the blisters worse? ... that the Emmanuel DeHodiamont House, a stone house built in 1830, shares the status of being the oldest house in St. Louis, Missouri? ... that Francesco Nullo is commemorated in both Italy and Poland as a hero of those countries' struggle for independence? ... that the Republic of Ireland has no honours system, though the issue has been considered by successive governments since 1930? ... that controversy over New Brunswick's Common Schools Act of 1871 resulted in two deaths in the town of Caraquet? ... that Cully Dahlstrom was the first American born player to win the Calder Trophy as the National Hockey League's rookie of the year? ... that the I.S.T. XL-14 Maya, a light aircraft, was constructed primarily from woven bamboo? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Thousands of Egyptians join the anti-government protests after an internet campaign inspired by the recent Tunisian uprising. Bomb attacks in the Iraqi cities of Baghdad and Karbala kill 27 people and injure over 70 others. At least 35 people are killed and more than 100 others wounded in a bombing at Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow. The Irish Green Party (leader John Gormley pictured) withdraws from the country's coalition government, leaving it without an overall majority. The South Korean Navy rescues the crew of the hijacked Samho Jewelry, killing eight Somali pirates. More than 140 people are killed in widespread flooding across southern Africa. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
January 26: Australia Day (1788); Republic Day in India (1950) 1500 – Spanish navigator, explorer, and conquistador Vicente Yáñez Pinzón reached the north coast of what today is Brazil. 1808 – Governor of New South Wales William Bligh was deposed by the New South Wales Corps in the only successful armed takeover of government in Australia's recorded history. 1841 – Commodore Sir James Bremer raised the Union Jack at Possession Point and formally claimed Hong Kong as a colony for the British Empire. 1856 – Puget Sound War: United States Marines from the USS Decatur defeated Native American forces after an all day battle with settlers in Seattle, Washington. 1918 – A group of Red Guards hung a red lantern atop the tower of Helsinki Workers' Hall to symbolically mark the start of the Finnish Civil War. 1991 – Factions led by warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid and his rebel group, the United Somali Congress, ousted President of Somalia Siad Barre (pictured) from office. More anniversaries: January 25 – January 26 – January 27 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now January 26 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The geography of Australia, the world's smallest continent, encompasses a wide variety of biogeographic regions. By surface area, it is the sixth-largest country in the world, but as can be seen in this composite satellite image, much of the interior is arid desert. The vast majority of the human population is concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts, and it is the fiftieth most populous nation.

Photo: MODIS (NASA)

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