On April 5, 1815, the Tambora stratovolcano erupted after several thousand years in repose. This Indonesian super-volcano signalled its awakening with a few years of steam releases, tremors, and small eruptions until the April 5th explosion, heard up to 1,400 km (870 mi.) away,…
On April 3, 1837, writer/naturalist, John Burroughs was born. In his early adult years, he alternated teaching with studying at different institutions or colleges. The works of Wordsworth and Emerson inspired him to write from his personal vantage point – a man raised and…
On March 27, 1905, aeronautical engineer Elizabeth Muriel Gregory “Elsie” MacGill was born in Vancouver, British Columbia. Attracted first to the red-hot field of radio, she became the first woman electrical engineering graduate from the University of Toronto. Working her first job at the…
On March 23, 1950, the World Meteorological Organization was created as a specialized agency of the United Nations. The WMO speaks on the state of Earth’s atmosphere and reports its interaction with oceans, the climate it produces, and the resulting distribution of water resources.…
On March 22, 2022, we celebrate World Water Day, a special day for focusing upon the most vital food for life on Earth. Each year, the United Nations Organization chooses a special water focus that has included water for cities, groundwater, health, disasters, scarcity,…
On March 21, 1971, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization declared this as World Forestry Day to share information, research, and project updates on forests and forestry around the world. This day was chosen because it is the vernal equinox in the Northern…
Today the world celebrates International Women’s Day to commemorate the contribution of women locally and globally. We salute women who have and continue to inspire, women who have paved the way for so many who follow, role models, heroines, firsts in so many fields…
On August 25, 1916, the United States National Park Service was created by Congress through the National Park Service Organic Act to care for all national parks, historic battlefields, and monuments throughout the country. More than 400 National Parks later… the USNPS celebrates its…
On August 24, 79, the first recorded explosion of Mount Vesuvius, Italy, was witnessed by the 18-year-old nephew of the Commander of the Roman Fleet. His uncle sailed with ships to rescue survivors, leaving the teen to observe the eruption from home across the…
On August 23, 2003, Ukkusiksalik, became Nunavut’s 4th and Canada’s 41st national park. Pronounced /ooo koo SIK sa lik/, the name Ukkusiksalik refers to the carvable stone found in the area from which an ukkusik [pot] is made. Just south of the Arctic Circle…