Almanac - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

TOP TEN LISTS

World's Most Dangerous Animals

Deadliest animals in the world ranked by estimated number of human fatalities per year

Best Selling Musicians

Top selling musicians of all time ranked by estimated number of albums sold

Best Selling Books of All-Time

Best selling novels worldwide ranked by estimated number of copies sold

Fastest Manned Aircraft in the World

Fastest manned aircraft (excluding spacecraft) ranked by top speed

World's Most Practiced Religions

Major religions of the world ranked by estimated number of followers

Worst Genocides of the Twentieth Century

The ten worst genocides of the 20th century listed by dictators responsible; ranked by number of deaths

World's Fastest Land Animals

The fastest land animals in the world ranked by maximum speed

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Today in History

Friday, 02 October 2026

2007

President Roh Moo-hyun of South Korea walks across the Military Demarcation Line into North Korea on his way to the second Inter-Korean Summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

2006

Five school girls are murdered by Charles Carl Roberts in a shooting at an Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania before Roberts commits suicide.

2005

Ethan Allen Boating Accident: The ''Ethan Allen'' tour boat capsizes on Lake George in Upstate New York, killing twenty people.

2002

The Beltway sniper attacks begin, extending over three weeks.

2001

NATO backs U.S. military strikes following 9/11.

Swissair liquidates and the airline is replaced by SWISS.

1996

The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments are signed by U.S. President Bill Clinton.

Aeroperú Flight 603, a Boeing 757, crashes into the Pacific Ocean shortly after takeoff from Lima, Peru, killing 70.

1992

The Carandiru Massacre takes place after a riot in the Carandiru Penitentiary in São Paulo, Brazil.

1990

Xiamen Airlines Flight 8301 is hijacked; after landing at Guangzhou, it crashes into two airliners on the ground, killing 132 people.

FACTOIDS

Vincent van Gogh

Vincent Van Gogh sold only one painting in his lifetime.

Blue Whale

The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever lived.

Gold

Every ton of seawater contains approximately 1 milligram of dissolved gold.

Mosquito

Studies show that mosquitoes prefer biting blondes to brunettes.

Timelines

People's Republic of China

Afghanistan