This Day In History : April 19

2021 United States

NASA Flies Drone Helicopter on Mars

On April 19, 2021, NASA successfully flew its drone helicopter, Ingenuity, on Mars, marking the first powered aircraft flight on another world. The helicopter achieved a brief, yet historic, flight, rising about 10 feet above the Martian surface. This achievement demonstrates the potential for aerial exploration on other planets.

Also on This Day in History April 19

Discover what happened on April 19 with HISTORY's summaries of major events, anniversaries,
famous births and notable deaths.

Births on This Day, April 19
  • 1883 Richard von Mises

    Austrian-American mathematician and aerodynamicist who notably advanced statistics and the theory of probability.

  • 1795 Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg

    German biologist, microscopist, explorer and micropaleontologist who has been called the founder of micropaleontology (the study of fossil microorganisms).

  • 1877 Ole Evinrude

    Norwegian inventor and manufacturer of the outboard marine engine.

  • 1880 Albert Wallace Hull

    American physicist who independently discovered the powder method of X-ray analysis of crystals (1917), which permits the study of crystalline materials in a finely divided microcrystalline, or powder, state.

  • 1904 Richard Pough

    American ecologist who was founding president of the Nature Conservancy (1950), one of the nation's largest environmental organizations.

Deaths on This Day, April 19
  • 1975 Percy L. Julian

    American chemist, whose 100 patents include the synthesis of cortisone, hormones, and other products from soybeans.

  • 1937 William Morton Wheeler

    American entomologist who published extensively on the classification, structure and behaviour of ants, on which he was a recognized world authority.

  • 1914 Charles Sanders Peirce

    American mathematician, logician and philosopher who is noted for his work on the logic of relations and on pragmatism as a method of research.

  • 1906 Pierre Curie

    French physical chemist and cowinner of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1903.

  • 1932 William Watson Cheyne

    (1st Baronet) Scottish surgeon and bacteriologist who was a pioneer of antiseptic surgical methods in Britain.

2021

Mars first powered controlled flight

In 2021, the first powered, controlled flight on another planet was achieved by NASA experimental helicopter, named Ingenuity, at Jezero Crater.
1975

Indian satellite

In 1975, the first satellite built in India was launched from Volgograd Launch Station, Russia, on a Soviet Interkosmos C-1 rocket. It was named Aryabhata, after a noted 5th-century Indian mathematician.
1971

First space station

In 1971, Salyut 1 (DOS 1) was launched on a Proton-K rocket by the Soviet Union. Primitive, with only a single main module, it was the first space station ever in Earth orbit.
1971

Sierra Leone Becomes a Republic

On April 19, 1971, Sierra Leone transitioned from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. This significant change marked the end of Queen Elizabeth II's role as head of state. Siaka Stevens, the then Prime Minister, became the first President of the newly formed republic. This day is celebrated as National Day in Sierra Leone.
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