January 281986: Explosion of the space shuttle ChallengerOn this day in 1986, the U.S. space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after its liftoff from Florida, killing all seven aboard, including a schoolteacher who was the first private citizen to fly on a shuttle.
More events on this day1915: Congress created the U.S. Coast Guard by combining the Revenue Cutter Service with the U.S. Lifesaving Service.
1912: American painter
Jackson Pollock, a leading exponent of Abstract Expressionism who received widespread publicity and serious recognition for the radical poured, or "drip," technique he used to create his major works, was born.
1881: Russian novelist and short-story writer
Fyodor Dostoyevsky died in St. Petersburg.
1871: The French capital, Paris, fell following a four-month siege during the
Franco-German War.
1457: King Henry VII of England, who succeeded in ending the
Wars of the Roses, was born in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
814:
Charlemagne, ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, died at
Aachen (Germany).
