Also known as the Loch Lomond phase. This was a very cold snap at the end of the last ice age, lasting from 13,000 years ago until about 11,700 years ago. See 'A Brief History of Climate Change'.
Younger Dryas
Fact of the Day
The US manufactured so many Purple Hearts for the planned invasion of Japan that there is still a reserve of over 100,000 today.
Quote of the Day
"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.
"
~ Confucius
On This Day
1707 Four ships of the fleet led by Sir Cloudesley Shovell were shipwrecked on the Isles of Scilly after bad weather and navigational mistakes sent them off course. Between 1,400 and 2,000 people were killed, making it one of the worst maritime disasters in British history.
1797 André-Jacques Garnerin made the first notable parachute jump from a hydrogen balloon 3,200 ft above Paris. He landed shaken but in one piece half a mile away from the take-off site.
1877 Two hundred and seven people died in Scotland's worst mining disaster, when firedamp ignited at Blantyre Colliery. It would not be the last time the mine experienced disaster: further explosions occurred in 1878 and 1879.
1975 The Soviet unmanned space probe Venera 9 landed on Venus. It was the first such probe to return images from the surface of another planet.