Main Page (original) (raw)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From today's featured article
Did you know ...
Paora
- ... that following public backlash over the mistreatment of Paora (pictured), Zoo Miami stated: "We have offended the nation of New Zealand"?
- ... that lacrosse player Austin Staats was undefeated in his college career?
- ... that one of the major prey groups of the paddle crab, Ovalipes catharus, is other paddle crabs?
- ... that Arab Christian physician Abu Sulayman Da'ud served both Latin Christian and Arab Muslim rulers?
- ... that jazz dancer LaTasha Barnes used to be a sergeant in the U.S. Army?
- ... that the basic tune for "As Long as You're Mine" from 2003's Wicked was written by Stephen Schwartz in the 1970s?
- ... that Jing Tsu remembers being called "female tiger" because her schoolteachers' punishments had little effect on her?
- ... that booing heard after the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1984 was reportedly either a response to past football hooliganism, claims of lip syncing, or alleged plagiarism of the Supremes?
- ... that the 2024 American Samoan gubernatorial election was won by Pula and Pulu?
In the news
location of truck-ramming attack
- Eleven people are killed and thirty-six others are injured in a truck-ramming and shooting attack in New Orleans, Louisiana (street pictured).
- Former president of the United States and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jimmy Carter dies at the age of 100.
- Jeju Air Flight 2216 crashes at Muan International Airport, South Korea, killing 179 people.
- Acting president and prime minister of South Korea Han Duck-soo is impeached by the National Assembly.
On this day
Today's featured picture
 |
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. It is the densest planet in the Solar System and the largest and most massive of its four rocky planets. About 29 percent of Earth's surface is land, with the remaining 71 percent covered with water and much of Earth's polar regions covered in ice. Earth's interior is active with a solid-iron inner core, a liquid outer core that generates Earth's magnetic field, and a convective mantle that drives plate tectonics. Earth formed more than 4.5 billion years ago. Within the first billion years of Earth's history, life appeared in the oceans and began to affect Earth's atmosphere and surface. Since then, the combination of Earth's distance from the Sun, its physical properties and its geological history have allowed life to evolve and thrive, including more than 8 billion humans as of 2024. Earth is orbited by one permanent natural satellite, the Moon, which orbits Earth at a radius of 384,400 km (238,900 mi) and is roughly a quarter as wide as Earth. This photograph of Earth straddling the lunar horizon was taken in 2015 by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter while located 134 km (83 mi) above the crater Compton, visible in the foreground. To capture the image, the spacecraft had to be rolled 67 degrees to its side, and slewed with the direction of travel to maximize the width of the lunar horizon, while traveling more than 1600 m/s (3600 mph) relative to the surface. Photograph credit: NASA / Goddard Space Flight Center / Arizona State University; edited by Bammesk |
|---|
Other areas of Wikipedia
- Community portal – The central hub for editors, with resources, links, tasks, and announcements.
- Village pump – Forum for discussions about Wikipedia itself, including policies and technical issues.
- Site news – Sources of news about Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement.
- Teahouse – Ask basic questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
- Help desk – Ask questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
- Reference desk – Ask research questions about encyclopedic topics.
- Content portals – A unique way to navigate the encyclopedia.
Wikipedia's sister projects
Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects:
Meta-Wiki
Wikimedia project coordination
Wikipedia languages
This Wikipedia is written in English. Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.