ON THIS DAY
On this day in history October 1-7, 2017
October 1, 2017 - October 7, 2017 - Graphics show birthdays and anniversaries on each day for the week.This week features Japan’s Shinkansen “bullet train”, the first telescope, Germany’s V2 rockets, the Space Race, Egypt’s president Anwar Sadat, the jazz singer Al Jolson, and the birth of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
October 1, 1964: Japan’s Shinkansen “bullet train” made its first journey from Tokyo to Osaka. The world’s busiest high-speed rail line carries 150 million passengers per year
October 2, 1608: Dutch optician Hans Lippershey demonstrated the first telescope, having reportedly come up with the idea after seeing a child playing with two lenses
October 3, 1942: Germany’s V2 rocket made its first successful test flight. It had a range of 200 miles and killed over 2,700 Londoners in the last months of World War II
October 4, 1957: The Space Race began when the Soviet Union launched the world’s first man-made satellite, Sputnik 1, into orbit. It completed 1,440 orbits over 21 days
October 5, 1970: Anwar Sadat was nominated to succeed Gamal Abdel Nasser as president of Egypt. In power for 11 years, he was assassinated by Islamic fundamentalists in 1981
October 6, 1927: The Jazz Singer, starring Al Jolson, opened in New York. It was the first full-length feature film to include spoken dialogue and is regarded as the first “talkie”
October 7, 1952: Russian president Vladimir Putin was born. He has been Russia’s dominant political figure since he succeeded Boris Yeltsin as president in 2000