Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 May 7

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Subtropical Storm Andrea was the first named storm and first subtropical cyclone of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. Six people drowned as a result of the storm. It arose out of an extratropical storm that attained hurricane-force winds on May 7, three and a half weeks before the official start of the hurricane season. A non-tropical low developed on May 9 about 150 miles (240 km) northeast of Daytona Beach, Florida. It weakened to a subtropical depression the next day while remaining nearly stationary, and the National Hurricane Center discontinued advisories early on May 11. Andrea was the first pre-season storm since Tropical Storm Ana in April 2003 and the first Atlantic named storm in May since Tropical Storm Arlene in 1981. The storm produced rough surf along the coastline from Florida to North Carolina, causing beach erosion and some damage. In some areas, the waves eroded up to 20 feet (6 m) of beach, leaving 70 homes in danger of collapse. Off North Carolina, high waves of 34 feet (10 m) and tropical-storm-force winds damaged three boats; their combined nine passengers sustained injuries before being rescued by the Coast Guard. (Full article...)

Part of the Off-season Atlantic hurricanes series, one of Wikipedia's featured topics.

Recently featured:

Did you know...

A Pickett-Hamilton fort

... that a Pickett-Hamilton fort (example pictured) could be lowered into the ground when not in use and raised for combat?
... that professional wrestler Garza Jr. showed his face for the first time on a television dating show?
... that "crawler" cycad scale insects are sometimes carried away by the wind, landing on nearby plants and infesting them?
... that the contralto Anna Erler-Schnaudt performed in the premiere of Mahler's Eighth Symphony in 1910?
... that foreigners who openly call for a boycott of Israel may be banned from entering the country?
... that Alexander Bonner Latta made the first steam fire engine to be used regularly by a city fire department in the United States?
... that William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse, the first airman to receive the Victoria Cross, is buried at Parnham House?
... that the main characters of Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard fight zombies with paintballs?

In the news

Mark Selby

The maiden flight of the Chinese Comac C919 airliner takes place.
Puerto Rico files for debt restructuring, the largest ever de facto municipal bankruptcy in the United States.
Mark Selby (pictured) defeats John Higgins to win the World Snooker Championship.
China launches its first domestically built aircraft carrier.
In the London Marathon, Mary Keitany and Daniel Wanjiru win the women's and men's races, respectively.
A Taliban attack on an Afghan National Army base kills 140 soldiers.

On this day...

May 7

Alexander Stepanovich Popov

351 – Jews in the Roman province of Syria Palaestina rebelled against the rule of Constantius Gallus, Caesar of the Eastern Roman Empire.
1685 – Great Turkish War: Ottoman forces prevailed over Venetian irregulars in the Battle on Vrtijeljka.
1763 – Pontiac of the Odawa Native American tribe led an attempt to seize Fort Detroit from the British, marking the start of Pontiac's War.
1895 – Alexander Stepanovich Popov (pictured) presented his radio receiver, refined as a lightning detector, to the Russian Physical and Chemical Society.
2009 – Police in Napier, New Zealand, began a 40-hour siege of the home of a former New Zealand Army member who shot at officers during the routine execution of a search warrant.

David Hume (b. 1711) · Mary of Modena (d. 1718) · Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (b. 1840)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

Gold certificates were a United States paper currency between 1863 and 1933. Each certificate gave its holder title to a corresponding amount of gold coin as established by the Coinage Act of 1834. The Series of 1882, shown here, was the first series to be payable to the bearer; unlike previous issues, anyone could redeem these certificates for the equivalent in gold. Shown here is a $5,000 specimen banknote, depicting James Madison.

Other notes: $20, $50, $100, $500, $1,000, $10,000

Banknote: Bureau of Engraving and Printing (image courtesy of the National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History)

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.