› added 10 months ago

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TIL that a rocket engine startup company's plan for using mercury propellant to launch satellites ended up getting the UN global ban

Read more spectrum.ieee.org

via reddit.com

pYmlG TIL that during the making of "Thriller" by Michael Jackson, sound engineer Bruce Swedien set up tape recorders around his Great Dane in a barn overnight to record the howls used as sound effects in the song. When the dog didn't howl, it was decided that Jackson would record the howls himself.
7rELP TIL that the term Soap Opera originated with radio dramas that were sponsored by soap manufacturers.
p81ZZ TIL that Every year during the summer and winter solstices, Luxor's Karnak Temple witnesses an astronomical event. The sun rises between the portals of the western gate of the temple and falls perfectly perpendicular, lighting up the sanctuary of AmunRaa at the centre of the temple.
Br0bk TIL during the meltdown, Chernobyl electrician Oleksander Lelechenko saved his younger colleagues from radiation exposure by walking through radioactive water three times to effect emergency repairs alone. He died in Kiev hospital less than 2 weeks after the disaster
4gKR TIL there is an ISO standard for making tea.