Also Within this year in history

In 1911, a historic heatwave killed hundreds, possibly thousands, in the Northeastern U.S., while in New York City, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire took the lives of more than 140 trapped immigrant workers. Norwegian Roald Amundsen became the first explorer to reach the South Pole, the Titanic was launched in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and future president Ronald Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois.

Aug

20

Inventions & Science

Blazingly fast around-the-world telegram sent, 66 years before Voyager II launch

On August 20, 1911, a dispatcher in the New York Times office sends a blazingly fast telegram around the world via commercial service. Exactly 66 years later, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sends a different kind of message—a phonograph record containing information about Earth for extraterrestrial beings—shooting into space aboard the unmanned spacecraft Voyager II.

In a This Day in History video, host Russ Mitchell takes us through the history of August 20th. On this day in 1953, the Soviet Union publically admitted it had tested a hydrogen bomb. On this day in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signed a $1 billion anti-poverty bill. On this day in 1980, Reinhold Messner became the first solo climber to scale Mt. Everest. Also on this day in 1911, the New York Times sent a commercial cablegram around the world in 16 and a half minutes. And also on this day in 1977, Voyager II carried a message into space.

Dec

14

Exploration

Roald Amundsen becomes first explorer to reach the South Pole

On December 14, 1911, Norwegian Roald Amundsen becomes the first explorer to reach the South Pole, beating his British rival, Robert Falcon Scott.

Walking On Ice

1911: Norwegian explorer Captain Roald Amundsen, the first man to reach the South Pole, inspecting ice fields near a glacier in the Atlantic Ocean. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)

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