The significance of history is not confined to the mere events that occurred in the past but it also establishes a connection to the present day. The past plays an extremely vital role in shaping the present because the decisions of yesterday can change the destiny of today. History is a story that teaches us about the past mistakes and the wise actions that brought great accomplishments. They are the lessons we learn from others for ages to come. It is not just about who we were and where we came from but also what we want to become and where we want to go from this day onward. Let us read the historical milestones of August 7.
1971 – Apollo 15 returns to Earth.
Apollo 15 completed its journey and returned to Earth regarded as the most successful manned flight ever achieved by NASA. The mission to the moon had marked the first use of the Lunar Roving Vehicle. The mission began on July 26, and the astronauts spent three days on the moon. The crew set an endurance record and became the longest Apollo spaceflight to that point.
1976 – The US Viking 2 spacecraft goes to orbit Mars and Viking 1 indicated the possibility of life on Mars.
US Viking 2 enters Martian orbit after an 11-month flight from Earth. Scientists in Pasadena, California, announce Viking 1 has found the strongest indications of possible life on Mars. Both Viking 1 and Viking 2 had to primary elements, an orbiter and a lander used for studying the Mars surface to find a possibility of life.
1908 – The first train runs on New Zealand’s North Island ‘main trunk line’.
The North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) is the main railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, which connects the capital city Wellington with the country’s largest city, Auckland. The line is 682 kilometers long. The first train was run on the main trunk line for the first time today in 1908 with Prime Minister Sir Joseph Ward and other parliamentarians on board. This train widely connected from one end of New Zealand to another. The train left from Wellington on August 7 and reached Auckland.
1936 – First basketball competition starts in the Berlin Olympics Games
Twenty-one nations were lined up for the very first competition of Basketball in the Berlin Olympics as an official Olympic medal event. This marked basketball as the largest tournament of the team sports. Nine matches were played on the first day. The USA won the tournament and got the gold medal whereas the silver going to Canada and the bronze to Mexico.
2007 – “Eclipse” 3rd book of “Twilight Saga” is published
Eclipse was published which was the third part of the Twilight Saga. It is a vampire-fantasy romance novel written by the author Stephenie Meyer. The initial print of Eclipse ran 1 million copies published by little brown and sold over 150,000 copies in the first 24 hours. The novel series also has a movie adaptation made on it.
2009 – “Tik Tok” single released by Kesha
Tik Tok was the debut single of American singer Kesha and was a dance-pop incorporating a minimalist bit-pop beat interspersed with handclaps and synths. The song achieved commercial success by topping the charts in eleven countries. This song broke many records internationally being selling 610,000 digital downloads in one week. “Tik Tok” was certified 8× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has sold 6.8 million copies in the United States, topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 9 consecutive weeks. The song was the best-selling single worldwide in 2010, selling 12.8 million copies in that year alone. As of 2019, it has sold over 25 million copies, making it the third best-selling digital singles worldwide. The song was listed 61st on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of All-time.
