The city of Oulu, Finland, is founded by Charles IX of Sweden

Charles IX of Sweden, also known as Karl IX in Swedish, was born on October 4, 1550, and he passed away on October 30, 1611. He belonged to the House of Vasa, a royal house that played a significant role in Swedish and Polish history during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Charles IX is primarily known for his reign as King of Sweden from 1604 until his death in 1611. He was the youngest son of Gustav I of Sweden, also known as Gustav Vasa, who is credited with establishing the modern Swedish state. Charles IX’s elder brother, Eric XIV, had previously been king but was deposed due to mental instability.

During his reign, Charles IX pursued various policies aimed at strengthening the Swedish monarchy and expanding its influence. He sought to consolidate power by centralizing administration and reducing the influence of the nobility. He also initiated significant reforms in the military and taxation systems, which helped to modernize the Swedish state and increase its military capabilities.

One of the most notable events during Charles IX’s reign was the end of the Kalmar Union, a political union that had linked Sweden, Denmark, and Norway since the late 14th century. In 1611, Charles IX’s forces invaded Norway, which was then part of the union under Danish rule. This marked the beginning of the Kalmar War, which aimed to assert Swedish independence from Danish control. However, Charles IX died later that year, and the conflict continued under his son and successor, Gustavus Adolphus.

Charles IX is also remembered for his patronage of the arts and sciences. He supported the establishment of the Uppsala University in 1595, which remains one of Sweden’s most prestigious institutions of higher learning. He was also interested in architecture and commissioned several notable buildings during his reign.

Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovers superconductivity.

Superconductivity is a phenomenon that occurs when certain materials are cooled to extremely low temperatures, usually near absolute zero (-273.15°C or -459.67°F). At this temperature, some materials lose all electrical resistance and can conduct electricity with almost no energy loss, leading to zero electrical resistance and an ideal conductor.

The discovery of superconductivity dates back to 1911 when a Dutch physicist, Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, discovered that the electrical resistance of mercury drops to zero at a temperature close to absolute zero. Since then, many other materials have been found to exhibit superconductivity, including metals, alloys, and some ceramics.

The phenomenon is explained by the behavior of the electrons in the superconductor. When the material is cooled below its critical temperature, the electrons form pairs called Cooper pairs, which can move through the material without any resistance. This is because the pairs are held together by a kind of attractive force that results from the interaction between the electrons and the atoms of the material.

Superconductivity has many practical applications, such as in the construction of powerful magnets used in medical imaging, particle accelerators, and magnetic levitation trains. However, the need for extreme cooling has limited the practicality of superconductors in everyday use, although research continues to develop materials that exhibit superconductivity at higher temperatures.

Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovers superconductivity.

Harvard University votes to establish the Harvard Business School.

Otto and Elise Hampel are executed in Berlin for their anti-Nazi activities.

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A Gemini 1 test flight is conducted.

Project Gemini was NASA’s second human spaceflight program. Conducted between projects Mercury and Apollo, Gemini started in 1961 and concluded in 1966. The Gemini spacecraft carried a two-astronaut crew. Ten Gemini crews flew low Earth orbit missions during 1965 and 1966, putting the United States in the lead during the Cold War Space Race against the Soviet Union.

Gemini’s objective was the development of space travel techniques to support the Apollo mission to land astronauts on the Moon. It performed missions long enough for a trip to the Moon and back, perfected working outside the spacecraft with extra-vehicular activity, and pioneered the orbital maneuvers necessary to achieve space rendezvous and docking. With these new techniques proven by Gemini, Apollo could pursue its prime mission without doing these fundamental exploratory operations.

All Gemini flights were launched from Launch Complex 19 at Cape Kennedy Air Force Station in Florida. Their launch vehicle was the Gemini–Titan II, a modified Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. Gemini was the first program to use the newly built Mission Control Center at the Houston Manned Spacecraft Center for flight control.

The astronaut corps that supported Project Gemini included the “Mercury Seven”, “The New Nine”, and the 1963 astronaut class. During the program, three astronauts died in air crashes during training, including the prime crew for Gemini 9. This mission was flown by the backup crew, the only time that has happened in NASA’s history to date.

Gemini was robust enough that the United States Air Force planned to use it for the Manned Orbital Laboratory program, which was later canceled. Gemini’s chief designer, Jim Chamberlin, also made detailed plans for cislunar and lunar landing missions in late 1961. He believed that Gemini spacecraft could fly in lunar operations before Project Apollo, and cost less. NASA’s administration did not approve those plans. In 1969, McDonnell-Douglas proposed a “Big Gemini” that could have been used to shuttle up to 12 astronauts to the planned space stations in the Apollo Applications Project. The only AAP project funded was Skylab – which used existing spacecraft and hardware – thereby eliminating the need for Big Gemini.

A test flight of Gemini 1 is conducted.

Project Gemini was NASA’s second human spaceflight program. Conducted between projects Mercury and Apollo, Gemini started in 1961 and concluded in 1966. The Gemini spacecraft carried a two-astronaut crew. Ten Gemini crews flew low Earth orbit missions during 1965 and 1966, putting the United States in the lead during the Cold War Space Race against the Soviet Union.

Gemini’s objective was the development of space travel techniques to support the Apollo mission to land astronauts on the Moon. It performed missions long enough for a trip to the Moon and back, perfected working outside the spacecraft with extra-vehicular activity, and pioneered the orbital maneuvers necessary to achieve space rendezvous and docking. With these new techniques proven by Gemini, Apollo could pursue its prime mission without doing these fundamental exploratory operations.

All Gemini flights were launched from Launch Complex 19 at Cape Kennedy Air Force Station in Florida. Their launch vehicle was the Gemini–Titan II, a modified Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. Gemini was the first program to use the newly built Mission Control Center at the Houston Manned Spacecraft Center for flight control.

The astronaut corps that supported Project Gemini included the “Mercury Seven”, “The New Nine”, and the 1963 astronaut class. During the program, three astronauts died in air crashes during training, including the prime crew for Gemini 9. This mission was flown by the backup crew, the only time that has happened in NASA’s history to date.

Gemini was robust enough that the United States Air Force planned to use it for the Manned Orbital Laboratory program, which was later canceled. Gemini’s chief designer, Jim Chamberlin, also made detailed plans for cislunar and lunar landing missions in late 1961. He believed that Gemini spacecraft could fly in lunar operations before Project Apollo, and cost less. NASA’s administration did not approve those plans. In 1969, McDonnell-Douglas proposed a “Big Gemini” that could have been used to shuttle up to 12 astronauts to the planned space stations in the Apollo Applications Project. The only AAP project funded was Skylab – which used existing spacecraft and hardware – thereby eliminating the need for Big Gemini.

The retired tennis player Arthur Ashe announces that he has AIDS that he got from blood transfusions during one of his two heart surgeries.

The Battle of Dayr al-‘Aqul prevents the Saffarids from taking over Baghdad.