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From today's featured article

Radar timelapse of the Greensburg tornado

The Greensburg tornado struck on May 4, 2007, in Kiowa County, Kansas, United States, heavily damaging the town of Greensburg. It tracked 28.8 miles (46.3 km) through the area, killing 12 people and injuring 63. The tornado was the first to be rated EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita scale. The tornado heavily damaged Greensburg; 662 structures in the town sustained some form of damage and 95 percent of the town was damaged or destroyed. It dissipated northwest of Greensburg after being on the ground for just over an hour. The tornado left monetary losses of $250 million (2007 USD) in its wake. Kiowa County was declared a federal disaster area in the immediate aftermath. Rebuilding efforts were intensive, and several major federal government agencies collaborated with state agencies to help restore the town with the goal of making it a "green town" using a long-term community recovery plan. (This article is part of a featured topic: Tornado outbreak of May 4–6, 2007.)

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Did you know ...

Carmen Moreno (right) with Anna Serafińska

... that Carmen Moreno was a vocalist with a Polish jazz group in 1951, and performed with her granddaughter Anna Serafińska in 2010 (pictured)?
... that broadspotted molly males are exploited for their sperm by a female-only species?
... that Christl-Marie Schultes resumed flying six months after losing her left leg in a plane crash?
... that James Wade "hated every single minute" of his 2025 World Matchplay semi-final darts match—the longest semi-final in the tournament's history?
... that Radio Ozodi has been blocked in Tajikistan for the majority of its existence?
... that actor James Stewart served as an executive officer of a bomb group commanded by Ramsay D. Potts during World War II?
... that HMS Busy's first naval engagement cost her crew two legs, an arm and a fractured skull?
... that The Economist said in 2025 that Dwarkesh Patel "rose from nowhere to become Silicon Valley's favourite podcaster"?
... that tens of thousands of students biked to Kaifeng in one night?

In the news

An Iryo train

A diplomatic crisis over Greenland provokes European troop deployments and a trade war with the United States.
At least 42 people are killed after two trains collide (similar train pictured) in Adamuz, Spain.
The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria agrees to a ceasefire after an offensive led by the transitional government.
Yoweri Museveni is re-elected for a seventh term as President of Uganda amid protests over contested results.

On this day

January 21: Feast day of Saint Agnes (Christianity); National Hugging Day (United States)

Isaac Isaacs

1326 – King Edward II of England issued a royal charter confirming Adam de Brome's foundation of Oriel College, Oxford.
1931 – Isaac Isaacs (pictured) became the first Australian-born governor-general of Australia.
1968 – Vietnam War: The People's Army of Vietnam attacked Khe Sanh Combat Base, a U.S. Marines outpost in Quảng Trị province, South Vietnam, starting the Battle of Khe Sanh.
1976 – The Concorde, an Anglo-French supersonic airliner, began scheduled commercial flights to London, Paris, Bahrain, and Rio de Janeiro.
2011 – Demonstrations against alleged corruption in the Albanian government led to the killings of four protesters in Tirana by the Republican Guard.

Anna Morandi Manzolini (b. 1714)
Phan Đình Phùng (d. 1896)
Yasunori Mitsuda (b. 1972)
IShowSpeed (b. 2005)

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From today's featured list

Pysanky, traditional Ukrainian decorated eggs

As of 2026, there are 120 Intangible Cultural Heritage elements listed on Ukraine's national register, seven of which are also recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Under the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, UNESCO defines intangible cultural heritage as non-physical traditions and practices performed by a people. Ukraine ratified the convention on 27 May 2008, and since 2012 its Ministry of Culture has maintained a national register to protect the traditions and make them eligible for inclusion on UNESCO's lists. Petrykivka decorative painting became Ukraine's first internationally recognized Intangible Cultural Heritage element in 2013. The egg-painting tradition of pysanka (example pictured) – the only transnational element, shared with Estonia – and the safeguarding programme for the kobza and wheel lyre musical-instrument tradition were most recently inscribed in 2024. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

Nohkalikai Falls is a 340-foot-tall (100 m) plunge waterfall located in the northeast Indian state of Meghalaya. It is the tallest plunge waterfall in India and is situated near Cherrapunji, one of the wettest places on Earth. Nohkalikai Falls are fed by the rainwater collected on the summit of a relatively small plateau. Below the falls is a plunge pool with water of an unusual shade of green.

Photograph credit: Vikramjit Kakati

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