A birthday on the globe
25 June on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 25 June, the English Wikipedia lists 55 events and 195 births. 27 of the events stand at their places as rays of light; three 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 25 June through the years
The Earth on 25 June
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in June 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 25 June the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 23.4° north. In London, the day lasts about 16 hours 40 minutes.
Beyond 67° north the Sun no longer sets; beyond 67° south 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.
Europe · University of Padua
1678
Venetian Elena Cornaro Piscopia is the first woman awarded a doctorate of philosophy when she graduates from the University of Padua.
On the map: University of Padua.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Asia · Dunhuang manuscripts
1900
The Taoist monk Wang Yuanlu discovers the Dunhuang manuscripts, a cache of ancient texts that are of great historical and religious significance, in the Mogao Caves of Dunhuang, China.
On the map: Dunhuang manuscripts.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
North America · St. George, Alaska
1786
Gavriil Pribylov discovers St. George Island of the Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea.
On the map: St. George, Alaska.
North America · United States Congress
1910
The United States Congress passes the Mann Act, which prohibits interstate transport of women or girls for "immoral purposes"; the ambiguous language would be used to selectively prosecute people for years to come.
On the map: United States Congress.
North America · Supreme Court of the United States
1998
In Clinton v. City of New York, the United States Supreme Court decides that the Line Item Veto Act of 1996 is unconstitutional.
On the map: Supreme Court of the United States.
25 June
What the other Wikipedias remember#
For these years the English list has nothing on this day. The events below come from the same day’s lists on Wikipedia in Chinese and were translated for this page.
From Wikipedia in Chinese · Charter of the United Nations
1945
In San Francisco, United States, the conference to draw up the Charter of the United Nations is held, and 51 countries sign the UN Charter.
On the map: Charter of the United Nations.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Chinese.
25 June
Born on 25 June#
The English Wikipedia lists 195 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 25 June
1903
George Orwell, British novelist, essayist, and critic (died 1950)
Place of birth: Motihari.
Born on 25 June
1852
Antoni Gaudí, Spanish architect, designed the Park Güell and the Sagrada Família (died 1926)
Place of birth: Reus.
Born on 25 June
1963
George Michael, English singer-songwriter and producer (died 2016)
Place of birth: East Finchley.
Born on 25 June
1956
Anthony Bourdain, American chef and author (died 2018)
Place of birth: New York City.
Born on 25 June
1864
Walther Nernst, German chemist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1941)
Place of birth: Wąbrzeźno.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1961
Ricky Gervais, English comedian, actor, director, producer and singer
Place of birth: Reading.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1964
Johnny Herbert, English racing driver and sportscaster
Place of birth: Brentwood.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1973
Jamie Redknapp, English footballer and coach
Place of birth: Barton on Sea.
25 June
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: 25 June 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 25 June
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 25 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.
- 524
The Franks are defeated by the Burgundians in the Battle of Vézeronce.
Europe · Battle of VézeronceWikipedia: Battle of Vézeronce - 841
In the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye, forces led by Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeat the armies of Lothair I of Italy and Pepin II of Aquitaine.
Europe · Battle of FontenoyWikipedia: Battle of Fontenoy - 1258
War of Saint Sabas: In the Battle of Acre, the Venetians defeat a larger Genoese fleet sailing to relieve Acre.
Asia · AcreWikipedia: Battle of Acre - 1357
The English defeat a French fleet which aimed to bring relief to the besieged Calais in the battle of Crotoy.
Europe · Battle of CrotoyWikipedia: Battle of Crotoy - 1401
Schaffhausen massacre: 30 Jews are executed, following torture, after being accused of a blood libel in Schaffhausen (in present-day Switzerland).
Europe · Schaffhausen massacreWikipedia: Schaffhausen massacre - 1530
At the Diet of Augsburg the Augsburg Confession is presented to the Holy Roman Emperor by the Lutheran princes and Electors of Germany.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Augsburg Confession - 1658
Spanish forces fail to retake Jamaica at the Battle of Rio Nuevo during the Anglo-Spanish War.
Latin America · Battle of Rio NuevoWikipedia: Battle of Rio Nuevo - 1678
Venetian Elena Cornaro Piscopia is the first woman awarded a doctorate of philosophy when she graduates from the University of Padua.
Europe · University of PaduaWikipedia: University of Padua - 1741
Maria Theresa is crowned Queen of Hungary.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Maria Theresa - 1786
Gavriil Pribylov discovers St. George Island of the Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea.
North America · St. George, AlaskaWikipedia: Gavriil Pribylov - 1788
Virginia becomes the tenth state to ratify the United States Constitution.
North America · VirginiaWikipedia: Virginia - 1848
A photograph of the June Days uprising becomes the first known instance of photojournalism.
no place on the mapWikipedia: June Days uprising - 1876
American Indian Wars: Battle of the Little Bighorn: 300 men of the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer are wiped out by 5,000 Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho, led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.
North America · Battle of the Little BighornWikipedia: Battle of the Little Bighorn - 1900
The Taoist monk Wang Yuanlu discovers the Dunhuang manuscripts, a cache of ancient texts that are of great historical and religious significance, in the Mogao Caves of Dunhuang, China.
Asia · Dunhuang manuscriptsWikipedia: Taoism - 1906
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania millionaire Harry Thaw shoots and kills prominent architect Stanford White.
North America · PittsburghWikipedia: Pittsburgh - 1910
Igor Stravinsky's ballet The Firebird is premiered in Paris, bringing him to prominence as a composer.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Igor Stravinsky - 1910
The United States Congress passes the Mann Act, which prohibits interstate transport of women or girls for "immoral purposes"; the ambiguous language would be used to selectively prosecute people for years to come.
North America · United States CongressWikipedia: United States Congress - 1913
American Civil War veterans begin arriving at the Great Reunion of 1913.
no place on the mapWikipedia: American Civil War - 1926
French police arrested Los Errantes, while they were preparing to assassinate Spanish king Alfonso XIII, as part of a mass raid against Spanish immigrants in Paris.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Los Errantes - 1935
Colombia–Soviet Union relations are established.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Colombia–Russia relations - 1938
Dr. Douglas Hyde is inaugurated as the first President of Ireland.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Douglas Hyde - 1940
World War II: The French armistice with Nazi Germany comes into effect.
Europe · Armistice of 22 June 1940Wikipedia: Armistice of 22 June 1940 - 1941
World War II: The Continuation War between the Soviet Union and Finland, supported by Nazi Germany, began.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Continuation War - 1943
The Holocaust and World War II: Jews in the Częstochowa Ghetto in Poland stage an uprising against the Nazis.
Europe · Częstochowa GhettoWikipedia: The Holocaust - 1943
The left-wing German Jewish exile Arthur Goldstein is murdered in Auschwitz.
Europe · Auschwitz concentration campWikipedia: Arthur Goldstein - 1944
The final page of the comic Krazy Kat is published, exactly two months after its author George Herriman died.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Krazy Kat - 1944
World War II: The Battle of Tali-Ihantala, the largest battle ever fought in the Nordic countries, begins.
Europe · Battle of Tali–IhantalaWikipedia: Battle of Tali–Ihantala - 1944
World War II: United States Navy and British Royal Navy ships bombard Cherbourg to support United States Army units engaged in the Battle of Cherbourg.
Europe · Bombardment of CherbourgWikipedia: Bombardment of Cherbourg - 1947
The Diary of a Young Girl (better known as The Diary of Anne Frank) is published.
no place on the mapWikipedia: The Diary of a Young Girl - 1948
The United States Congress passes the Displaced Persons Act to allow World War II refugees to immigrate to the United States above quota restrictions.
North America · United States CongressWikipedia: United States Congress - 1950
The Korean War begins with the invasion of South Korea by North Korea.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Korean War - 1950
The United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 82 condemning the North Korean invasion of South Korea.
no place on the mapWikipedia: United Nations Security Council - 1960
Cold War: Two cryptographers working for the United States National Security Agency left for vacation to Mexico, and from there defected to the Soviet Union.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Martin and Mitchell defection - 1967
More than an estimated 400 million people viewed Our World, the first live international satellite television production.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Our World - 1975
Mozambique achieves independence from Portugal.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Mozambique - 1975
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declares a state of internal emergency in India.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Indira Gandhi - 1976
Missouri Governor Kit Bond issues an executive order rescinding the Extermination Order, formally apologizing on behalf of the state of Missouri for the suffering it had caused to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
North America · MissouriWikipedia: Missouri - 1978
Hosts Argentina defeat the Netherlands by a score of 3–1 in the final to win their first ever FIFA World Cup.
Latin America · Monumental Stadium, Buenos AiresWikipedia: 1978 FIFA World Cup final - 1978
The rainbow flag representing gay pride is flown for the first time during the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade.
no place on the mapWikipedia: San Francisco Pride - 1981
Microsoft is restructured to become an incorporated business in its home state of Washington.
North America · WashingtonWikipedia: Washington - 1991
The breakup of Yugoslavia begins when Slovenia and Croatia declare their independence from Yugoslavia.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Breakup of Yugoslavia - 1992
Space Shuttle Columbia launches on STS-50, the first shuttle mission to carry Extended Duration Orbiter hardware.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Space Shuttle Columbia - 1993
Kim Campbell is sworn in as the first female Prime Minister of Canada.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Kim Campbell - 1996
American rapper Jay-Z releases his debut album, Reasonable Doubt.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Jay-Z - 1996
The Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia kills 19 U.S. servicemen.
Asia · Khobar Towers bombingWikipedia: Khobar Towers bombing - 1997
An uncrewed Progress spacecraft collides with the Russian space station Mir.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Progress M-34 - 1997
The National Hockey League approved expansion franchises for Nashville (1998), Atlanta (1999), Columbus (2000), and Minneapolis-Saint Paul (2000).
no place on the mapWikipedia: Nashville Predators - 1998
In Clinton v. City of New York, the United States Supreme Court decides that the Line Item Veto Act of 1996 is unconstitutional.
North America · Supreme Court of the United StatesWikipedia: Line Item Veto Act of 1996 - 2007
PMTair Flight 241 crashes in the Dâmrei Mountains in Kampot Province, Cambodia, killing all 22 people on board.
Asia · PMTair Flight 241Wikipedia: PMTair Flight 241 - 2009
The death of American entertainer Michael Jackson triggers an outpouring of worldwide grief as reactions online cause the flow of internet traffic to surge to unprecedented and historic levels.
North America · UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical CenterWikipedia: Death of Michael Jackson - 2013
In response to a Freedom of Information Act request, the CIA acknowledged the existence of Area 51, a secretive U.S. Air Force facility in Nevada and a subject of various UFO, and other, conspiracy theories.
North America · Area 51Wikipedia: Freedom of Information Act - 2022
Russo-Ukrainian War: The Battle of Sievierodonetsk ends after weeks of heavy fighting with the Russian capture of the city, leading to the Battle of Lysychansk.
Europe · Battle of SievierodonetskWikipedia: Russo-Ukrainian war - 2022
The prime minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina inaugurates the longest bridge of Bangladesh, Padma Bridge.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Padma Bridge - 2022
Two people are killed and 21 more injured after a gunman opens fire at three sites in Oslo in a suspected Islamist anti-LGBTQ+ attack.
Europe · 2022 Oslo shootingWikipedia: 2022 Oslo shooting - 2024
Thousands of people storm Kenya's Parliament Buildings protesting the passing of the government's 2024/25 Finance Bill.
Africa · Parliament BuildingsWikipedia: 2024 storming of the Kenyan Parliament
What the other Wikipedias remember
For these years the English list has nothing on this day. The events below come from the same day’s lists on Wikipedia in Chinese and were translated for this page.
- 1945
In San Francisco, United States, the conference to draw up the Charter of the United Nations is held, and 51 countries sign the UN Charter.
North America · Charter of the United NationsTranslated from the list on Wikipedia in ChineseWikipedia: 联合国宪章
Who was born on 25 June
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 195 are shown.
- 1903
George Orwell, British novelist, essayist, and critic (died 1950)
MotihariWikipedia: George Orwell - 1852
Antoni Gaudí, Spanish architect, designed the Park Güell and the Sagrada Família (died 1926)
- 1963
George Michael, English singer-songwriter and producer (died 2016)
East FinchleyWikipedia: George Michael - 1956
Anthony Bourdain, American chef and author (died 2018)
New York CityWikipedia: Anthony Bourdain - 1864
Walther Nernst, German chemist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1941)
WąbrzeźnoWikipedia: Walther Nernst - 1928
Alexei Alexeyevich Abrikosov, Russian-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2017)
- 1936
B. J. Habibie, Indonesian engineer and politician, 3rd President of Indonesia (died 2019)
ParepareWikipedia: B. J. Habibie - 1907
J. Hans D. Jensen, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1973)
HamburgWikipedia: J. Hans D. Jensen - 1975
Vladimir Kramnik, Russian chess player
- 1924
Sidney Lumet, American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2011)
PhiladelphiaWikipedia: Sidney Lumet - 1900
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, English admiral and politician, 44th Governor-General of India (died 1979)
Windsor CastleWikipedia: Lord Mountbatten - 1961
Ricky Gervais, English comedian, actor, director, producer and singer
ReadingWikipedia: Ricky Gervais - 1908
Willard Van Orman Quine, American philosopher and academic (died 2000)
- 1954
Sonia Sotomayor, American lawyer and jurist, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
The BronxWikipedia: Sonia Sotomayor - 1963
Yann Martel, Spanish-born Canadian author
SalamancaWikipedia: Yann Martel - 1926
Ingeborg Bachmann, Austrian author and poet (died 1973)
Klagenfurt am WörtherseeWikipedia: Ingeborg Bachmann - 1894
Hermann Oberth, Romanian-German physicist and engineer (died 1989)
- 1911
William Howard Stein, American chemist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1980)
New York CityWikipedia: William Howard Stein - 1931
V. P. Singh, Indian lawyer and politician, 7th Prime Minister of India (died 2008)
PrayagrajWikipedia: V. P. Singh - 1972
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, Libyan engineer and politician (died 2026)
- 1925
Robert Venturi, American architect and academic (died 2018)
PhiladelphiaWikipedia: Robert Venturi - 1966
Dikembe Mutombo, Congolese-American basketball player (died 2024)
KinshasaWikipedia: Dikembe Mutombo - 1975
Linda Cardellini, American actress
Redwood CityWikipedia: Linda Cardellini - 1943
Carly Simon, American singer-songwriter
The BronxWikipedia: Carly Simon - 1952
Péter Erdő, Hungarian cardinal
BudapestWikipedia: Péter Erdő - 1956
Boris Trajkovski, Macedonian politician, 2nd President of the Republic of Macedonia (died 2004)
MurtinoWikipedia: Boris Trajkovski - 1981
Simon Ammann, Swiss ski jumper
- 2006
Mckenna Grace, American actress, singer and songwriter
GrapevineWikipedia: Mckenna Grace - 1903
Anne Revere, American actress (died 1990)
New York CityWikipedia: Anne Revere - 1933
Álvaro Siza Vieira, Portuguese architect, designed the Porto School of Architecture
MatosinhosWikipedia: Álvaro Siza Vieira - 1982
Mikhail Youzhny, Russian tennis player
- 1983
Marc Janko, Austrian footballer
ViennaWikipedia: Marc Janko - 1925
June Lockhart, American actress (died 2025)
New York CityWikipedia: June Lockhart - 1892
Shirō Ishii, Japanese microbiologist and general (died 1959)
ShibayamaWikipedia: Shirō Ishii - 1961
Timur Bekmambetov, Kazakh director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1982
Rain, South Korean singer and actor
SeoulWikipedia: Rain - 1970
Erki Nool, Estonian decathlete and politician
- 1988
Miguel Layún, Mexican footballer
CórdobaWikipedia: Miguel Layún - 1886
Henry H. Arnold, American general (died 1950)
GladwyneWikipedia: Henry H. Arnold - 1975
Albert Costa, Spanish tennis player and coach
LleidaWikipedia: Albert Costa - 1928
Peyo, Belgian author and illustrator, created The Smurfs (died 1992)
- 1988
Therese Johaug, Norwegian cross-country skier
DalsbygdaWikipedia: Therese Johaug - 1371
Joanna II of Naples (died 1435)
- 1887
Frigyes Karinthy, Hungarian author, poet, and journalist (died 1938)
BudapestWikipedia: Frigyes Karinthy - 1929
Eric Carle, American author and illustrator (died 2021)
SyracuseWikipedia: Eric Carle - 1964
Johnny Herbert, English racing driver and sportscaster
BrentwoodWikipedia: Johnny Herbert - 1858
Georges Courteline, French author and playwright (died 1929)
- 1949
Patrick Tambay, French racing driver (died 2022)
14th arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: Patrick Tambay - 1973
Jamie Redknapp, English footballer and coach
Barton on SeaWikipedia: Jamie Redknapp - 1860
Gustave Charpentier, French composer and conductor (died 1956)
- 1942
Willis Reed, American basketball player, coach, and manager (died 2023)
DubachWikipedia: Willis Reed - 2002
Benson Boone, American singer-songwriter
MonroeWikipedia: Benson Boone - 1755
Natalia Alexeievna of Russia (died 1776)
PrenzlauWikipedia: Natalia Alexeievna - 1923
Jamshid Amouzegar, 43rd Prime Minister of Iran (died 2016)
- 1941
Denys Arcand, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter
Deschambault-GrondinesWikipedia: Denys Arcand - 1979
Busy Philipps, American actress
Oak ParkWikipedia: Busy Philipps - 1985
Karim Matmour, Algerian footballer
StrasbourgWikipedia: Karim Matmour - 1568
Gunilla Bielke, Queen of Sweden (died 1597)
ÖstergötlandWikipedia: Gunilla Bielke - 1887
George Abbott, American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1995)
ForestvilleWikipedia: George Abbott - 1971
Neil Lennon, Northern Irish-Scottish footballer and manager
LurganWikipedia: Neil Lennon
What is celebrated on 25 June
- Arbor Day (Philippines)
- Christian feast day: David of Munktorp
- Christian feast day: Dorothea of Montau
- Christian feast day: Eurosia
- Christian feast day: Maximus (Massimo) of Turin
- Christian feast day: Moluag
- Christian feast day: Our Lady of Medjugorje
- Christian feast day: Philipp Melanchthon (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
- Christian feast day: Presentation of the Augsburg Confession (Lutheran)
- Christian feast day: Prosper of Aquitaine
- Christian feast day: Prosper of Reggio
- Christian feast day: William of Montevergine
- Christian feast day: June 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Mozambique from Portugal in 1975.
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.