› added 4 years ago

157

TIL: Project Corona, one of the earliest reconnaissance satellites, sent film back to earth via recovery vehicles that would be caught in mid air by an Air Force C-119. The recovery vehicles were designed to sink in the ocean after two days should the plane fail to catch it.

Read more army.mil

via reddit.com

QJ1xp TIL The smelliest substance on earth, Tioacetone (CH3)2CS, smells so bad that it can effect areas up to a half-mile in radius. "When it was accidentally made it was followed by cases of vomiting, nausea and unconsciousness in a radius of 0.75 kilometres (0.47 mi) around the laboratory"
0dQdA TIL about the Empire of Atlantium—a micronation founded in 1981 when teenager George Cruickshank and friends painted a 10 sq-meter patch in his Sydney backyard, declaring independence. Now it has a 0.75 sq-km territory, 3,000 "citizens" from 100 countries, and you can stay at its capital via Airbnb.
bXQN TIL that Comcast has prevented PS3 users from using HBO GO since March and Roku users since 2011, but not XBOX 360 and Apple TV
p8wyN TIL 24 astronauts flew around the moon. 12 of those walked on the lunar surface, and 6 of those drove a lunar rover on the moon. 3 astronauts have been out to the moon twice, and of those 3, 2 of them have landed. Nobody has been on the moon more than once.
XErar TIL, Charles Rigoulot, a French weightlifter, was jailed for hitting a Nazi guard, but broke out of his jail cell by bending the bars. He allowed other prisoners to escape as well. Then beat the guard who jailed him.