Welcome to Wikipedia

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit

Almanac · Categories · Glossaries · Lists · Overviews · Portals · Search · Questions · Site news · Index

	Art		Geography		History	File:Socrates blue.png	Philosophy		Society
	Culture		Health		People		Science		Technology

Today's featured article

Artist's impression of Galileo's arrival at Jupiter

The Galileo project was an American robotic space program that studied Jupiter and its moons (including Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto), as well as several other Solar System bodies. Named after the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei, the Galileo spacecraft consisted of an orbiter and an atmospheric entry probe. It was launched in 1989 by the Space Shuttle Atlantis on the STS-34 mission. Despite suffering major antenna problems, Galileo achieved the first asteroid flyby (of 951 Gaspra), discovered the first asteroid moon (Dactyl, around 243 Ida), and observed Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9's collision with Jupiter. After gravity-assisted flybys of Venus and Earth, Galileo became the first spacecraft to orbit Jupiter. It then launched the first probe to directly measure Jupiter's atmosphere. In 2003, the mission was terminated by sending the orbiter into Jupiter's atmosphere to eliminate the possibility of contaminating the Jovian moons with terrestrial bacteria. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

{{{Image text}}} Today's featured picture

{{{caption}}}

Wikipedia community

Every page on Wikipedia is a collaborative effort. But there are some special places reserved for specific types of discussion and assistance. Find what you're looking for here:

Help (contents) — Use this if you need help editing. There is also a comprehensive range of help articles available here. You can ask a question about using Wikipedia at the Help Desk.
Community bulletin board — Requests for help within the Wikipedia community.
The Village Pump — These are main discussion forums for Wikipedia.
The Signpost — This is Wikipedia's local newspaper.
The Community Portal — This is the center of community involvement. Learn about projects and activities you can join to help improve Wikipedia.

Collaborations — Weekly, monthly, and ongoing collaborative article improvement drives within specific subject areas.
Reference Desk — Help other Wikipedians who are looking for specific information by answering their subject-related questions at the reference desk (like a library's information desk).
Local Embassy — For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Department of Fun — Dedicated to FUN on Wikipedia.
Clinic for Wikipediholics — Sign-in to Wikipedia!
Welcoming committee — Greet newcomers.
Wikipedia Boot Camp — Take a crash course about Wikipedia!

In the News

Daron Acemoglu

Yahya Sinwar, the acting leader of Hamas, is killed in a firefight with Israeli forces in Gaza.
The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences is awarded to Daron Acemoglu (pictured), Simon Johnson, and James A. Robinson for their comparative studies of prosperity between nations.
The Europa Clipper spacecraft is launched to investigate Europa, an icy moon of Jupiter.
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to the Japanese atomic bomb survivors group Nihon Hidankyo.

Did you know?

Ferrari FF

... that the Ferrari FF (pictured) was, upon its release, the world's fastest four-seater car?
... that a Paralympic gold medalist originally did not know that she qualified for parasports?
... that Karan Aujla's Hindi-language single "Tauba Tauba" from the 2024 film Bad Newz became a Canadian Hot 100 top-25 song ahead of the film's release?
... that Dani Sanchez-Lopez wanted to be an actor but switched to cinematography after realizing that actors deliver others' lines?
... that in UnMetal, the player has to heal any enemies whom they shoot?
... that manga artist Shinichi Ishizuka was told that becoming a manga artist would be "absolutely impossible"?
... that two Wisconsin radio stations purchased and reassembled the Wisconsin Pavilion from the 1964 New York World's Fair for use as their studios?
... that the extension to the Yumeshima Station was originally supposed to be opened in 2008 for when the Osaka Olympics was being bid for?
... that Tonia Ko once composed a three-part concerto played on bubble wrap?

On this day...

October 18: Alaska Day (1867)

Bob Beamon

1565 – The first recorded naval battle between Europeans and the Japanese occurred when a flotilla of samurai attacked two Portuguese trade vessels at the Battle of Fukuda Bay in Nagasaki.
1748 – The War of the Austrian Succession ended with the signing of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle.
1873 – Renton defeated Kilmarnock 2–0 in the opening match of the inaugural Scottish Cup.
1968 – At the Summer Olympics in Mexico City, American athlete Bob Beamon (pictured) achieved a distance of 8.90 m (29.2 ft) in the long jump event, setting a world record that stood for 23 years.

John FitzWalter, 2nd Baron FitzWalter (d. 1361)
Mehmet Esat Bülkat (b. 1862)
Maria Antonescu (d. 1964)
Bess Truman (d. 1982)

More anniversaries:

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects: