A birthday on the globe
15 November on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 15 November, the English Wikipedia lists 65 events and 199 births. 36 of the events stand at their places as rays of light; 13 more are dashed circles, where the sentence links only to a country or a sea. The taller the ray, the longer ago it happened. The people born that day come further down, as blue points.
A birthday, yours or someone else’s:
Turn it into a greetingScroll: the globe turns to each place
The day you were born, on the globe.
Three things from your day
Scroll: your day first, then 15 November through the years
The Earth on 15 November
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in November 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 15 November the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 18.5° south. In London, the day lasts about 8 hours 55 minutes.
Beyond 72° south the Sun no longer sets; beyond 72° north it no longer rises.
The line between day and night is tilted on the globe exactly as on this day of the year. On the dark side you can see the lights of towns.
Britain & Ireland · RNLB Mary Stanford
1928
The RNLI lifeboat Mary Stanford capsizes in Rye Harbour with the loss of the entire 17-man crew.
On the map: RNLB Mary Stanford.
Britain & Ireland · Hillsborough Castle
1985
The Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed at Hillsborough Castle by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Irish Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald.
On the map: Hillsborough Castle.
Europe · Castellania
1760
The secondly-built Castellania in Valletta is officially inaugurated with the blessing of the interior Chapel of Sorrows.
On the map: Castellania.
Europe · Athens
1859
Sponsored by Greek businessman Evangelos Zappas, the first modern revival of the Olympic Games took place in Athens.
On the map: Athens.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Europe · Geneva
1920
The first assembly of the League of Nations is held in Geneva, Switzerland.
On the map: Geneva.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Chinese.
Asia · Istanbul Park
2020
Lewis Hamilton wins the Turkish Grand Prix and secures his seventh drivers' title, equalling the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.
On the map: Istanbul Park.
Latin America · Cusco
1533
Francisco Pizarro arrives in Cuzco, the capital of the Inca Empire.
On the map: Cusco.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Latin America · Western Hemisphere
1968
The Cleveland Transit System becomes the first transit system in the western hemisphere to provide direct rapid transit service from a city's downtown to its major airport.
On the map: Western Hemisphere.
North America · Pikes Peak
1806
Pike Expedition: Lieutenant Zebulon Pike spots a mountain peak while near the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It is later named Pikes Peak in his honor.
On the map: Pikes Peak.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
North America · Washington Park
1922
Fountain of Time, in Chicago's Washington Park, was dedicated as a tribute to 100 years of peace between the United States and Great Britain following the Treaty of Ghent.
On the map: Washington Park.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
15 November
Born on 15 November#
The English Wikipedia lists 199 births for this day. The blue points are the birthplaces of 60 of these people: those written about in the most Wikipedia editions, where Wikidata gives a place of birth.
Born on 15 November
1862
Gerhart Hauptmann, German novelist, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1946)
Place of birth: Szczawno-Zdrój.
Born on 15 November
1738
William Herschel, German-English astronomer and composer (died 1822)
Place of birth: Hanover.
Born on 15 November
1887
Georgia O'Keeffe, American painter and educator (died 1986)
Place of birth: Sun Prairie.
Born on 15 November
1929
Ed Asner, American actor, singer, and producer (died 2021)
Place of birth: Kansas City.
Born on 15 November
1993
Paulo Dybala, Argentine footballer
Place of birth: Laguna Larga.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1932
Petula Clark, English singer-songwriter and actress
Place of birth: Ewell.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1972
Jonny Lee Miller, English-American actor
Place of birth: Kingston upon Thames.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1977
Peter Phillips, English businessman
Place of birth: St Mary's Hospital.
15 November
Number one in the charts that week
At the cinema
An animal recorded that day
The record can be seen in GBIF, which brings together wildlife records from around the world.
All your birthdays
The weather that day
Data: Met Office Hadley Centre (HadCET); NOAA (GHCN-Daily, Mauna Loa).
Above the Earth
Sources: Jonathan McDowell, GCAT (launches); GFZ Potsdam (Kp index). Days are counted in Universal Time.
Football that day
International matches played that day:
Source: the “International football results” dataset kept by Mart Jürisoo (CC0).
Also that day
The earthquake’s page at the USGS
Source: the USGS catalogue. The day is counted in Universal Time (UTC).
In those days
Make a link for someone
Type the name, pick the day and the year of birth. The link opens straight on their day, with their name in the greeting.
The link carries the name, date and place typed here; anyone who gets it can see them.
Put another birthday beside it
Your mother’s, your child’s, a friend’s: the two days appear side by side.
Below: 15 November through the years.
The whole globe of the day
Drag the globe to turn it. Touch a ray or a point to read what happened there.
Everything Wikipedia lists for 15 November
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 16 events have no place on the map: the sentence links to no place with coordinates, only to places too wide to mark, or to several countries.
- 655
Battle of the Winwaed: Penda of Mercia is defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria.
Britain & Ireland · Cock BeckWikipedia: Battle of the Winwaed - 1315
Growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy: The Schweizer Eidgenossenschaft ambushes the army of Leopold I in the Battle of Morgarten.
Europe · Battle of MorgartenWikipedia: Battle of Morgarten - 1532
Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire: Commanded by Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conquistadors under Hernando de Soto meet Incan Emperor Atahualpa for the first time outside Cajamarca, arranging for a meeting in the city plaza the following day.
Latin America · Battle of CajamarcaWikipedia: Battle of Cajamarca - 1533
Francisco Pizarro arrives in Cuzco, the capital of the Inca Empire.
Latin America · CuscoWikipedia: Francisco Pizarro - 1705
Rákóczi's War of Independence: The Habsburg Empire and Denmark win a military victory over the Kurucs from Hungary in the Battle of Zsibó.
Europe · JibouWikipedia: Battle of Zsibó - 1760
The secondly-built Castellania in Valletta is officially inaugurated with the blessing of the interior Chapel of Sorrows.
Europe · CastellaniaWikipedia: Castellania - 1777
American Revolutionary War: After 16 months of debate the Continental Congress approves the Articles of Confederation.
no place on the mapWikipedia: American Revolutionary War - 1806
Pike Expedition: Lieutenant Zebulon Pike spots a mountain peak while near the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It is later named Pikes Peak in his honor.
North America · Pikes PeakWikipedia: Pike Expedition - 1842
A slave revolt in the Cherokee Nation commences.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1842 Slave Revolt in the Cherokee Nation - 1849
Boilers of the steamboat Louisiana explode as she pulls back from the dock in New Orleans, killing more than 150 people.
North America · New OrleansWikipedia: Boiler explosion - 1859
Sponsored by Greek businessman Evangelos Zappas, the first modern revival of the Olympic Games took place in Athens.
Europe · AthensWikipedia: Zappas Olympics - 1864
American Civil War: Union General William Tecumseh Sherman begins his March to the Sea through Georgia towards the city of Savannah.
North America · Sherman's March to the SeaWikipedia: American Civil War - 1884
The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 met on 15 November 1884, and after an adjournment concluded on 26 February 1885, with the signature of a General Act, regulating the European colonisation and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period.
Europe · Berlin ConferenceWikipedia: Berlin Conference - 1889
Brazil is declared a republic by Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca as Emperor Pedro II is deposed in a military coup.
Latin America · BrazilWikipedia: Brazil - 1899
Second Boer War: Battle of Chieveley, a British armored train is ambushed and partially derailed. British lose the battle, with 80 soldiers captured, along with war correspondent Winston Churchill.
Africa · Battle of ChieveleyWikipedia: Battle of Chieveley - 1908
As a result of numerous atrocities in the territory, the Congo Free State was annexed to Belgium to form the Belgian Congo.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Atrocities in the Congo Free State - 1917
Eduskunta declares itself the supreme state power of Finland, prompting its declaration of independence and secession from Russia.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Independence of Finland - 1920
The Free City of Danzig is established.
Europe · Free City of DanzigWikipedia: Free City of Danzig - 1920
The first assembly of the League of Nations is held in Geneva, Switzerland.
Europe · GenevaWikipedia: League of Nations - 1922
At least 300 are massacred during a general strike in Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Latin America · GuayaquilWikipedia: 1922 Guayaquil general strike - 1922
Fountain of Time, in Chicago's Washington Park, was dedicated as a tribute to 100 years of peace between the United States and Great Britain following the Treaty of Ghent.
North America · Washington ParkWikipedia: Treaty of Ghent - 1928
The RNLI lifeboat Mary Stanford capsizes in Rye Harbour with the loss of the entire 17-man crew.
Britain & Ireland · RNLB Mary StanfordWikipedia: Royal National Lifeboat Institution - 1933
Thailand holds its first election.
Asia · ThailandWikipedia: 1933 Siamese general election - 1938
Nazi Germany bans Jewish children from public schools in the aftermath of Kristallnacht.
Europe · Nazi GermanyWikipedia: Kristallnacht - 1942
World War II: The Battle of Guadalcanal ends in a decisive Allied victory.
Oceania · Naval Battle of GuadalcanalWikipedia: World War II - 1943
The Holocaust: German SS leader Heinrich Himmler orders that Gypsies are to be put "on the same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps".
no place on the mapWikipedia: The Holocaust - 1951
Nikos Beloyannis, along with 11 comrades, is sentenced to death for attempting to reestablish the Communist Party of Greece.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Nikos Beloyannis - 1955
The first part of the Saint Petersburg Metro is opened.
Europe · Saint Petersburg MetroWikipedia: Saint Petersburg Metro - 1957
Short Solent 3 crashes near Chessell.
Britain & Ireland · 1957 Aquila Airways Solent crashWikipedia: 1957 Aquila Airways Solent crash - 1959
Four members of the Clutter family are murdered near Holcomb, Kansas, by Perry Smith and Richard Hickock, a crime later detailed by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood.
North America · Clutter family murdersWikipedia: Clutter family murders - 1965
Craig Breedlove sets a land speed record of 600.601 mph (966.574 km/h) in his car, the Spirit of America, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.
North America · UtahWikipedia: Craig Breedlove - 1966
Project Gemini: Gemini 12 completes the program's final mission, when it splashes down safely in the Atlantic Ocean.
Oceans · Atlantic OceanWikipedia: Project Gemini - 1967
The only fatality of the North American X-15 program occurs during the 191st flight when Air Force test pilot Michael J. Adams loses control of his aircraft which is destroyed mid-air over the Mojave Desert.
North America · Mojave DesertWikipedia: X-15 Flight 3-65-97 - 1968
The Cleveland Transit System becomes the first transit system in the western hemisphere to provide direct rapid transit service from a city's downtown to its major airport.
Latin America · Western HemisphereWikipedia: Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority - 1969
Cold War: The Soviet submarine K-19 collides with the American submarine USS Gato in the Barents Sea.
Oceans · Barents SeaWikipedia: Cold War - 1969
Vietnam War: In Washington, D.C., 250,000–500,000 protesters staged a peaceful demonstration against the war, including a symbolic "March Against Death".
North America · Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: Vietnam War - 1971
Intel releases the world's first commercial single-chip microprocessor, the 4004.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Intel - 1976
René Lévesque and the Parti Québécois take power to become the first Quebec government of the 20th century clearly in favor of independence.
North America · QuebecWikipedia: 1976 Quebec general election - 1978
A chartered Douglas DC-8 crashes near Colombo, Sri Lanka, killing 183.
Asia · Loftleiðir Flight 001Wikipedia: Loftleiðir Flight 001 - 1979
A package from Unabomber Ted Kaczynski begins smoking in the cargo hold of a flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C., forcing the plane to make an emergency landing.
North America · American Airlines Flight 444Wikipedia: American Airlines Flight 444 - 1983
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus declares independence; it is only recognized by Turkey.
Asia · Northern CyprusWikipedia: Northern Cyprus - 1985
A research assistant is injured when a package from the Unabomber addressed to a University of Michigan professor explodes.
North America · University of MichiganWikipedia: Ted Kaczynski - 1985
The Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed at Hillsborough Castle by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Irish Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald.
Britain & Ireland · Hillsborough CastleWikipedia: Anglo-Irish Agreement - 1987
Continental Airlines Flight 1713 crashes during takeoff from Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado, killing 25.
North America · Continental Airlines Flight 1713Wikipedia: Continental Airlines Flight 1713 - 1987
In Brașov, Romania, workers rebel against the communist regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu.
Europe · BrașovWikipedia: Brașov rebellion - 1988
In the Soviet Union, the uncrewed Shuttle Buran makes its only space flight.
Asia · Soviet UnionWikipedia: Soviet Union - 1988
Israeli–Palestinian conflict: An independent State of Palestine is proclaimed by the Palestinian National Council.
Asia · PalestineWikipedia: Israeli–Palestinian conflict - 1988
The first Fairtrade label, Max Havelaar, is launched in the Netherlands.
Europe · NetherlandsWikipedia: Fair-trade certification - 1990
Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on STS-38, a classified mission for the Department of Defense.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Space Shuttle Atlantis - 1990
The Communist People's Republic of Bulgaria is disestablished and a new republican government is instituted.
no place on the mapWikipedia: People's Republic of Bulgaria - 1994
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits the central Philippine island of Mindoro, killing 78 people, injuring 430 and triggering a tsunami up to 8.5 m (28 ft) high.
Asia · 1994 Mindoro earthquakeWikipedia: 1994 Mindoro earthquake - 2000
A chartered Antonov An-24 crashes after takeoff from Luanda, Angola, killing more than 40 people.
Africa · 2000 ASA Pesada Antonov An-24 crashWikipedia: 2000 ASA Pesada Antonov An-24 crash - 2000
Edoardo Agnelli, son of the industrialist patriarch Gianni Agnelli, was found dead under a bridge on the outskirts of Turin, Italy.
Europe · TurinWikipedia: Edoardo Agnelli - 2000
Jharkhand officially becomes the 28th state of India, formed from eighteen districts of southern Bihar.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Jharkhand - 2001
Microsoft launches the Xbox game console in North America.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Microsoft - 2002
Hu Jintao becomes General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and a new nine-member Politburo Standing Committee is inaugurated.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Hu Jintao - 2003
The first day of the 2003 Istanbul bombings, in which two car bombs, targeting two synagogues, explode, kill 25 people and wound 300 more.
Asia · 2003 Istanbul bombingsWikipedia: 2003 Istanbul bombings - 2006
Al Jazeera English launches worldwide.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Al Jazeera English - 2007
Cyclone Sidr hits Bangladesh, killing an estimated 5,000 people and destroying parts of the world's largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Cyclone Sidr - 2010
A fire in a high-rise apartment building in Shanghai, China kills 58 people.
Asia · 2010 Shanghai fireWikipedia: 2010 Shanghai fire - 2012
Xi Jinping becomes General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and a new seven-member Politburo Standing Committee is inaugurated.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Xi Jinping - 2016
Hong Kong's High Court bans elected politicians Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from the city's Parliament.
Asia · Hong Kong High CourtWikipedia: Hong Kong High Court - 2017
A flood a few miles outside of Athens results in the death of 25 people.
Europe · MandraWikipedia: 2017 West Attica floods - 2020
Lewis Hamilton wins the Turkish Grand Prix and secures his seventh drivers' title, equalling the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.
Asia · Istanbul ParkWikipedia: 2020 Turkish Grand Prix - 2022
The world population reached eight billion.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Day of Eight Billion
Who was born on 15 November
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 199 are shown.
- 1862
Gerhart Hauptmann, German novelist, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1946)
Szczawno-ZdrójWikipedia: Gerhart Hauptmann - 1738
William Herschel, German-English astronomer and composer (died 1822)
HanoverWikipedia: William Herschel - 1891
Erwin Rommel, German field marshal (died 1944)
Heidenheim an der BrenzWikipedia: Erwin Rommel - 1935
Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian politician
- 1887
Georgia O'Keeffe, American painter and educator (died 1986)
Sun PrairieWikipedia: Georgia O'Keeffe - 1397
Nicholas V, pope of the Catholic Church (died 1455)
SarzanaWikipedia: Pope Nicholas V - 1929
Ed Asner, American actor, singer, and producer (died 2021)
Kansas CityWikipedia: Ed Asner - 1907
Claus von Stauffenberg, German colonel (died 1944)
Jettingen-ScheppachWikipedia: Claus von Stauffenberg - 1993
Paulo Dybala, Argentine footballer
Laguna LargaWikipedia: Paulo Dybala - 1954
Aleksander Kwaśniewski, Polish journalist and politician, 3rd President of Poland
BiałogardWikipedia: Aleksander Kwaśniewski - 1945
Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Norwegian-Swedish singer
BjørkåsenWikipedia: Anni-Frid Lyngstad - 1986
Sania Mirza, Indian tennis player
MumbaiWikipedia: Sania Mirza - 1708
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, English politician, Prime Minister of Great Britain (died 1778)
- 1931
Mwai Kibaki, Kenyan economist and politician, 3rd President of Kenya (died 2022)
GatuyainiWikipedia: Mwai Kibaki - 1874
August Krogh, Danish zoologist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1949)
GrenaaWikipedia: August Krogh - 1991
Shailene Woodley, American actress
San BernardinoWikipedia: Shailene Woodley - 1316
John I, king of France and Navarre (died 1316)
- 1607
Madeleine de Scudéry, French author (died 1701)
Le HavreWikipedia: Madeleine de Scudéry - 1930
J. G. Ballard, English novelist, short story writer, and essayist (died 2009)
Shanghai International SettlementWikipedia: J. G. Ballard - 1983
John Heitinga, Dutch footballer and coach
Alphen aan den RijnWikipedia: John Heitinga - 1886
René Guénon, French-Egyptian philosopher and author (died 1951)
- 1895
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia (died 1918)
- 1942
Daniel Barenboim, Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor
Buenos AiresWikipedia: Daniel Barenboim - 1967
François Ozon, French director, producer, and screenwriter
14th arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: François Ozon - 1741
Johann Kaspar Lavater, Swiss poet and physiognomist (died 1801)
- 1970
Patrick M'Boma, Cameroonian footballer
DoualaWikipedia: Patrick Mboma - 1784
Jérôme Bonaparte, French husband of Catharina of Württemberg (died 1860)
AjaccioWikipedia: Jérôme Bonaparte - 1932
Petula Clark, English singer-songwriter and actress
- 1922
Francesco Rosi, Italian director and screenwriter (died 2015)
- 1887
Marianne Moore, American poet, critic, and translator (died 1972)
KirkwoodWikipedia: Marianne Moore - 1939
Yaphet Kotto, American actor and screenwriter (died 2021)
New York CityWikipedia: Yaphet Kotto - 1983
Fernando Verdasco, Spanish tennis player
- 1498
Eleanor of Austria, queen of Portugal and France (died 1558)
- 1793
Michel Chasles, French mathematician and academic (died 1880)
ÉpernonWikipedia: Michel Chasles - 1940
Roberto Cavalli, Italian fashion designer (died 2024)
FlorenceWikipedia: Roberto Cavalli - 1940
Sam Waterston, American actor
CambridgeWikipedia: Sam Waterston - 1996
Kim Min-jae, South Korean footballer
TongyeongWikipedia: Kim Min-jae - 1988
B.o.B, American rapper, songwriter, and producer
Winston-SalemWikipedia: B.o.B - 1931
Pascal Lissouba, Congolese politician, President of the Republic of the Congo (died 2020)
TsiguindiWikipedia: Pascal Lissouba - 1952
Randy Savage, American wrestler (died 2011)
ColumbusWikipedia: Randy Savage - 1897
Aneurin Bevan, Welsh journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Health (died 1960)
TredegarWikipedia: Aneurin Bevan - 1852
Tewfik Pasha, Egyptian ruler (died 1892)
- 1932
Alvin Plantinga, American philosopher, author, and academic
Ann ArborWikipedia: Alvin Plantinga - 1936
Wolf Biermann, German singer-songwriter and guitarist
HamburgWikipedia: Wolf Biermann - 1951
Beverly D'Angelo, American actress, singer, and producer
ColumbusWikipedia: Beverly D'Angelo - 1972
Jonny Lee Miller, English-American actor
Kingston upon ThamesWikipedia: Jonny Lee Miller - 1995
Karl-Anthony Towns, Dominican-American basketball player
PiscatawayWikipedia: Karl-Anthony Towns - 1976
Virginie Ledoyen, French actress
10ᵗʰ arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: Virginie Ledoyen - 1982
Kalu Uche, Nigerian footballer
- 1891
W. Averell Harriman, American businessman and politician, 11th United States Secretary of Commerce (died 1986)
New York CityWikipedia: W. Averell Harriman - 1977
Peter Phillips, English businessman
St Mary's HospitalWikipedia: Peter Phillips - 1992
Sofia Goggia, Italian skier
BergamoWikipedia: Sofia Goggia - 1992
Kevin Wimmer, Austrian footballer
- 1906
Curtis LeMay, American general and politician (died 1990)
ColumbusWikipedia: Curtis LeMay - 1947
Bill Richardson, American politician and diplomat, 21st United States Ambassador to the United Nations (died 2023)
PasadenaWikipedia: Bill Richardson - 1974
Chad Kroeger, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1945
Bob Gunton, American actor and singer
Santa MonicaWikipedia: Bob Gunton - 1968
Ol' Dirty Bastard, American rapper and producer (died 2004)
Fort GreeneWikipedia: Ol' Dirty Bastard - 1948
Jimmy Choo, Malaysian fashion designer[page needed]
George TownWikipedia: Jimmy Choo - 1977
Sean Murray, American actor
BethesdaWikipedia: Sean Murray
What is celebrated on 15 November
- America Recycles Day (United States)
- Christian feast day: Abibus of Edessa
- Christian feast day: Albert the Great
- Christian feast day: Blessed Caius of Korea
- Christian feast day: Didier of Cahors
- Christian feast day: Francis Asbury and George Whitefield (Episcopal Church)
- Christian feast day: Blessed Hugh Faringdon
- Christian feast day: Leopold III, a public holiday in Lower Austria and Vienna.
- Christian feast day: Malo
- Christian feast day: Mechell
- Christian feast day: November 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Day of the German-speaking Community of Belgium (German-speaking Community of Belgium)
- Day of the Imprisoned Writer (International observance)
- Independence Day, unilaterally declared in 1988. (Palestine)
A greeting link for someone
Type a name and, if you like, the year of birth. The link opens with a greeting, and beside each event it says how old the person turned that day, or how many years before their birth it happened.
The name and the year go only into the link you send.
All 366 days
How the globe is made
Where the events come from
Each edition of this page uses the day’s list from Wikipedia in its own language: Romanian, English, Spanish, Chinese. The lists are written by volunteers and differ from one edition to the next; the text of each event is Wikipedia’s, with a link to the article. A row that appears twice in a list is shown once. The lists have not been checked event by event: they are Wikipedia’s, mistakes included.
For events before 1582, and for countries that moved to the Gregorian calendar later (Britain in 1752, Russia in 1918), the same day may be counted Old Style in one list and New Style in another.
The chapter “What the other Wikipedias remember” adds up to five events a day from the lists of the other three editions, only for years in which the English list has nothing on that day. They were translated for this page, passed the same filters as the tour, and are not counted among the events of the English list.
How an event gets onto the map
The place comes from Wikidata. If the sentence links to the article about the event itself (a battle, an opening, an earthquake), dated to the same year, the ray stands on its coordinates or on those of its location. Otherwise it stands on the first place the sentence links to: a town, a building, a mountain, an island. This second step can be wrong: sometimes the sentence only mentions the place. That is why the page says, under each event, which place the ray stands on.
When the sentence links to a single state or province, or to a single sea, lake or desert larger than 5,000 km², the globe shows a dashed circle, not a ray. The circle has the area Wikidata gives, with its radius kept between 1.2° and 16°, or a radius of 4.5° when Wikidata gives no area; it says only that the sentence links to that place. Organisations, ships, spacecraft, museum objects, rivers, mountain ranges, languages and continents are never used as places. When a sentence names several states and no exact place, the event stays in the list only.
What the height means
The height of a ray shows how many years have passed, on a logarithmic scale: 10 years, 100 years and 1,000 years are equal steps apart; anything older than about 2,600 years has the tallest ray. The colour runs from pale yellow for recent years to violet for antiquity.
Where the tour stops
In each region the tour stops at up to three events (five in Britain and Ireland), chosen mainly by three things: whether Wikipedia’s editors put the event in the “On this day” box of their main page (the English, Spanish and Chinese editions), how many Wikipedia editions have an article about it, and how many of the four lists include it. Events whose sentence or article is about a war, an attack, a crime or a disaster are left out of the tour; they stay in the whole list, in Wikipedia’s wording. The filter is a list of words and a list of Wikidata types, so it can miss some.
The tour of births names the people with articles in the most editions and leaves aside those whom the list or Wikidata describes as rulers, politicians, commanders, leaders of movements or criminals; they stay in the list.
The Earth and the Sun
The daytime images are NASA’s Blue Marble Next Generation mosaics, one for each month of 2004; the night side is Black Marble 2016. The tilt of the line between day and night is computed for the day; the hour is chosen so that the place being read is in daylight. The latitude where the Sun stands overhead is the average of the four years of the leap cycle; in a given year it can differ by up to 0.4°.
The day you were born
The number ones come from the weekly lists on Wikipedia: Billboard for the United States (from 1940; the Hot 100 from August 1958), the UK Singles Chart (from November 1952), Los 40 Principales for Spain (from July 1966) and, for Romania, the Romanian Top 100 and Airplay 100 (2001–2021, with missing weeks). The page shows the chart of the week in which the day of birth falls, with its date; Billboard and the UK chart are dated at the end of their week. For Romania before 2001 and for China these sources have no weekly chart.
The films are those that reached cinemas in the United States up to ten days before or three days after that day (some of them in a few cinemas at first), from the English Wikipedia’s yearly lists (from 1968), in order of how many editions have an article about them. The events “in those days” are the ones on the neighbouring days’ lists that carry the year of birth, passed through the same filter as the tour.
The day of birth, year included
The Moon, the star sign and the constellation are worked out by the page itself, for noon Universal Time on the day. The lit part of the Moon is rounded and can differ by a few per cent from that at the hour of birth. The sign follows the usual zodiac of twelve equal parts starting at the March equinox; the constellation is the one the Sun actually stood in front of, by the borders set by the International Astronomical Union, and within a day of a border the page does not name it. When the Sun changes sign while it is that day anywhere on Earth, the page gives the moment of crossing, rounded to ten minutes and accurate to within about a quarter of an hour, and the clock time in a few cities, with the time zone and summer time of that year.
The year in the Chinese calendar is the one your device’s own calendar gives for the date, checked against the Hong Kong Observatory’s tables. “All your birthdays” uses the same sources as the rest of the chapter for the same day in every year since the birth: the temperature, well-known launches that took place on that very day, matches of the teams the edition follows, snow deeper than 10 cm and strong geomagnetic storms. The three things at the top and the four on the picture are chosen in a fixed order (the song, the animal, a full Moon, a well-known launch before an ordinary earthquake); on the picture you can change them.
When the link carries a year of birth, the page adds a few things about that exact day. The weather is the Met Office’s Central England temperature record and the readings from New York’s Central Park; the “usual high” is the average of the daily highs of 1961–1990 for that date, with two days either side. The carbon dioxide figure is the monthly mean at the Mauna Loa observatory, where measurements begin in March 1958.
The earthquake is the one with the largest magnitude in the USGS catalogue for that day, counted in Universal Time. Before the 1960s the catalogue has gaps even above magnitude 5.5, so in the older years many days have no earthquake. The page gives only the magnitude and the place: the country the epicentre falls in or, when the epicentre is at sea within 300 km of a coast, the nearest country; farther out, only the ocean.
The launches are those that reached orbit or left for the Moon and the planets, from Jonathan McDowell’s GCAT catalogue. If nothing left that day, the page shows the nearest launch within three days before or after, and says how many days away it was. The geomagnetic storm appears only when the Kp index reached at least 5 in one of the day’s eight three-hour intervals.
The animal comes from GBIF: an observation made by a person (the animal seen or heard, or its tracks), dated to that exact day, with coordinates and a CC0 or CC BY licence. Only a few hundred well-known species are searched (mammals, birds, turtles, butterflies); of those noted that day, mammals and species with articles in many Wikipedia editions come first; birds noted almost every day, and species used recently, wait their turn. Observations dated 1 January are left out, because records without a day are often filed there. An observation shows that the animal was recorded there, not how many animals there were.
The matches are those between national teams. Only matches of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, Canada and Australia are shown, along with those at the big final tournaments. The picture to send is drawn in the page from the day’s globe and the facts above, and stays on your device until you send it.
Sources
- Events, births and holidays: the day’s page on Wikipedia, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates, places of birth and the number of editions: Wikidata (CC0).
- The Earth by day: NASA Blue Marble Next Generation. The Earth by night: NASA Black Marble 2016.
- Borders and regions: Natural Earth.
- World population and births per year: UN World Population Prospects 2024.
- Charts and films: Wikipedia’s lists for Billboard, the UK Singles Chart, Los 40 Principales, Romanian Top 100, Airplay 100 and American films by year (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Weather: Met Office Hadley Centre, HadCET (Open Government Licence) and NOAA GHCN-Daily, New York Central Park. Carbon dioxide: NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, Mauna Loa.
- Earthquakes: the USGS catalogue. Launches: Jonathan McDowell, GCAT (CC BY). Kp index: GFZ Potsdam (CC BY 4.0). Matches: International football results, Mart Jürisoo (CC0).
- Animal observations: GBIF, with a link to each record; species names come from Wikidata.