This Day In History : January 9

2001 China

China Launches Shenzhou 2, Advancing Space Exploration

China successfully launches the Shenzhou 2 spacecraft on January 9, 2001, marking a significant milestone in its space program. The unmanned mission aims to further test spacecraft systems and prepare for future manned missions, demonstrating China's growing capabilities in space exploration.

Also on This Day in History January 9

Discover what happened on January 9 with HISTORY's summaries of major events, anniversaries,
famous births and notable deaths.

Births on This Day, January 9
  • 1950 Alec Jeffreys

    English geneticist who discovered the technique of DNA fingerprinting, used for unique identification of humans, animals and other organisms from their DNA material on 10 Sep 1984.

  • 1908 Karl Dussik

    Karl (Theodore) Dussik was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who has been called the "Father of Ultrasonic Diagnosis".

  • 1823 Friedrich von Esmarch

    German surgeon who was the first to introduce a first-aid kit and triage on the battlefield.

  • 1869 Richard Wilhelm Heinrich Abegg

    He was a German chemist and pioneer of valence theory. He proposed that the difference of the maximum positive and negative valence of an element tends to be eight.

  • 1870 Amadeus W. Grabau

    He was an American geologist and palaeontologist known for his work on world stratigraphic deposits and the deciphering of Earth history.

Deaths on This Day, January 9
  • 1998 Kenichi Fukui

    Japanese chemist who shared the 1981 Nobel Prize for Chemistry with Roald Hoffmann for investigation of the mechanisms of chemical reactions.

  • 1799 Maria Gaetana Agnesi

    Italian mathematician and philosopher who was the first woman in the Western world considered to be a mathematician.

  • 1833 Adrien-Marie Legendre

    French mathematician who contributed to number theory, celestial mechanics and elliptic functions.

  • 1848 Caroline Lucretia Herschel

    German-born British astronomer, sister of Sir William Herschel, who assisted in his astronomical researches making calculations associated with his studies.

  • 1958 Willis R. Whitney

    He was an American chemist and research director who founded the General Electric Company's research laboratory and directed pioneering work there.

1816

Safety lamp

In 1816, Sir Humphry Davy's safety lamp was first used in a coal mine. Deadly explosions had been a continual hazard caused by the flammable gas, methane, leaking out of the coal seams ignited by the flame of a miner's lamp.
1643

Ashen light of Venus

In 1643, Giovanni Riccioli first reported the phenomenon known as the Ashen Light of Venus.
1768

Philip Astley Opens the World's First Modern Circus

In 1768, Philip Astley, a former cavalryman, opened the first modern circus in London, England. Astley's circus featured a ring where he performed equestrian tricks and later expanded to include acrobats, clowns, and other acts. This marked the beginning of the circus as a popular entertainment form that would spread worldwide.
2005

The Second Sudanese War ends

The Second Sudanese Civil War, one of Africa's longest and deadliest conflicts, concludes with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) on January 9, 2005, in Naivasha, Kenya, ending over two decades of devastating violence between the Sudanese government and southern rebel groups.
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