Feb. 1, 2003: Sixteen minutes before it was scheduled to land, the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart in flight over west Texas, killing all seven crew members. The accident may have resulted from damage caused during liftoff when a piece of insulating foam from the external fuel tank broke off, piercing a hole in the shuttles left wing that allowed hot gases to penetrate the wing upon re-entry into the Earths atmosphere. This was the second space shuttle lost in flight. In January 1986, Challenger exploded during liftoff. Feb. 3, 1943: An extraordinary act of heroism occurred in the icy waters off Greenland after the U.S. Army transport ship Dorchester was hit by a German torpedo and began to sink rapidly. When it became apparent there were not enough life jackets, four U.S. Army chaplains on board removed theirs, handed them to frightened young soldiers, and chose to go down with the ship while praying. Feb. 4, 1985: Twenty countries in the United Nations signed a document entitled Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Feb. 5, 1917: The new constitution of Mexico, allowing for sweeping social changes, was adopted. Feb. 6, 1952: King George VI of England died. Upon his death, his daughter, Princess Elizabeth, became Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Her actual coronation took place on June 2, 1953. Feb. 10, 1942: The first Medal of Honor during World War II was awarded to Second Lt. Alexander Nininger (posthumously) for heroism during the Battle of Bataan. Feb. 11, 1990: In South Africa, Nelson Mandela, at age 71, was released from prison after serving 27 years of a life sentence on charges of attempting to overthrow the apartheid government. In April 1994, he was elected president in the first all-race elections. Feb. 12, 1999: The impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton in the U.S. Senate ended. With the whole world watching via television, Senators stood up one by one during the final roll call to vote guilty or not guilty. On Article 1 (charging Clinton with perjury) 55 senators, including 10 Republicans and all 45 Democrats voted not guilty. On Article 2 (charging Clinton with obstruction of justice) the Senate split evenly, 50 for and 50 against the President. With the necessary two-thirds majority not having been achieved, President Clinton was thus acquitted on both charges and served out the remainder of his term of office lasting through Jan. 20, 2001. Feb. 13, 1945: During World War II in Europe, British and American planes began massive bombing raids on Dresden, Germany. A four-day firestorm erupted that was visible for 200 miles and engulfed the historic old city, killing an estimated 135,000 German civilians. Feb. 14, 1929: The St. Valentines Day Massacre occurred in Chicago as seven members of the Bugs Moran gang were gunned down by five of Al Capones mobsters posing as police. Feb. 15, 1933: An assassination attempt on newly elected U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt occurred in Miami, Fla. A spectator deflected the gunmans aim. As a result, Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak was shot and killed instead. The gunman, an Italian immigrant, was captured and later sentenced to death. Feb. 19, 1942: Internment of Japanese Americans began after President Franklin Roosevelt issued an Executive Order requiring those living on the Pacific coast to report for relocation. Over 110,000 persons therefore shut down their businesses, sold off their property, quit school and moved inland to the relocation centers. Feb. 20, 1962: Astronaut John Glenn became the first American launched into orbit. Traveling aboard the Friendship 7 spacecraft, Glenn reached an altitude of 162 miles (260 kilometers) and completed three orbits in a flight lasting just under five hours. Glenn was the third American in space, preceded by Alan Shepard and Virgil Gus Grissom, who had each completed short sub-orbital flights. All of them had been preceded by Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who was the first human in space, completing one orbit on April 12, 1961 -- a feat that intensified the already ongoing Space Race between the Russians and Americans. Glenns successful flight showed the Americans had caught up and was followed in September 1962 by President John F. Kennedys open call to land an American on the moon before the decades end. Feb. 21, 1965: Former Black Muslim leader Malcolm X (1925-1965) was shot and killed while delivering a speech in a ballroom in New York City. Feb. 22, 1956: In Montgomery, Ala., 80 participants in the three-month-old bus boycott voluntarily gave themselves up for arrest after an ultimatum from white city leaders. Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks were among those arrested. Later in 1956, the U.S. Supreme Court mandated desegregation of the buses. Feb. 23, 1991: In Desert Storm, the Allied ground offensive began after a devastating month-long air campaign targeting Iraqi troops in both Iraq and Kuwait. Feb. 27, 1950: The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, limiting the president to two terms or a maximum of 10 years in office. Feb. 28, 1844: During a demonstration of naval fire power, one of the guns aboard the USS Princeton exploded, killing several top U.S. government officials on the steamer ship, and narrowly missed killing President John Tyler.
Posted on: Sun, 02 Feb 2014 17:00:47 +0000
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