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TIL: In 1973, Britain's "Black Arrow" rocket successfully launched from Australian soil and placed a satellite into orbit. Government arguments over who would fund continued development led to its cancellation, making Britain the only nation to abandon a successful space launch program.

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DQ0kp TIL Jacques-Louis David, the famous artist who painted Napoleon multiple times, including his crossing of the Alps and his coronation, signed the death warrant for the first husband of Napoleon’s wife
nWnbb TIL The blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield got famous through a media blitz and a series of intentional wardrobe malfunctions. Mansfield's strategically busting seams got her constant coverage, even her measurements were nationally famous. In 1960 Mansfield was in more print than anyone else on earth.
ARkw TIL an uncontacted tribe still inhabits an island in the Indian Ocean, living as simple hunter-gatherers. They are vigorously hostile to outsiders, and have not yet developed early technologies such as agriculture or writing.
m1ldY TIL Buildings cover less of Britain than the land revealed when the tide goes out
6Ywm TIL the iconic whistling in Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” was originally a mistake. The song lyrics accidentally fell to the floor during the recording session and because studio time was running out, Redding improvised a whistled tune on the spot.