This Day In History : March 9

2011 United States

Space Shuttle Discovery Concludes Final Mission

On March 9, 2011, Space Shuttle Discovery landed for the last time at Kennedy Space Center, concluding a storied career of 39 missions. This landing marked the end of Discovery's service in NASA's shuttle program, which began in 1984.

Also on This Day in History March 9

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

Births on This Day, March 9
  • 1934 Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin

    Soviet cosmonaut who on 12 Apr 1961 became the first man to travel into space when he was 27 years old.

  • 1923 Walter Kohn

    Austrian-American physicist who shared (with John A. Pople) the 1998 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

  • 1900 Howard Hathaway Aiken

    American mathematician who invented the Harvard Mark I, forerunner of the modern electronic digital computer.

  • 1856 Edward Goodrich Acheson

    American inventor who discovered the abrasive carborundum, the second hardest substance (next to diamonds) and later perfected a method for making graphite.

  • 1676 Zabdiel Boylston

    American physician who introduced smallpox inoculation into the American colonies.

Deaths on This Day, March 9
  • 1908 Henry Clifton Sorby

    English geologist whose microscopic studies of thin slices of rock earned him the title "father of microscopical petrography."

  • 1981 Max Ludwig Henning Delbrück

    German-American microbiologist, who pioneered in the study of molecular genetics.

  • 1974 Earl W. Sutherland Jr.

    Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr. was an American pharmacologist and biochemist born in Burlingame, Kansas.

  • 1930 Henry Chapman Mercer

    American archaeologist, collector, and tilemaker. In his early years, he pursued archaeology.

  • 1851 Hans Christian Oersted

    Danish physicist and chemist who discovered that electric currents create magnetic fields, which was the first connection found between electricity and magnetism.

1611

Sunspots

In 1611, Johannes Fabricius, a Dutch astronomer, observed the rising sun through his telescope, and observed several dark spots on it.
1959

Barbie Doll Makes Debut at American International Toy Fair

On March 9, 1959, the Barbie doll was introduced at the American International Toy Fair in New York. Created by Ruth Handler, Barbie has become an iconic toy, with over 800 million sold worldwide, shaping fashion and popular culture for generations.
1976

The Deadliest Cable Car Accident in History Occurs in Italy

On March 9, 1976, Italy witnessed the deadliest cable car accident ever recorded. The disaster occurred when a cable car in the Cermis area malfunctioned, leading to the tragic loss of 43 lives. It remains a somber chapter in the history of cable car travel.
1961

Ivan Ivanovich Becomes the First Human Dummy in Space

On March 9, 1961, Ivan Ivanovich, a human dummy, was launched into space aboard the Soviet spacecraft Vostok 1. This mission was a precursor to Yuri Gagarin's historic spaceflight, testing equipment and procedures for human space travel.
Holiday
Special day
Discover invention