Today in 1945, 78 years ago: Japan requests an armistice from the Allies through the Swiss Government. Allies call for “unconditional surrender.”

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Today in 1990, 33 years ago: The Magellan space probe reaches Venus.

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Today in 1977, 46 years ago: In Yonkers, New York, 24-year-old postal employee David Berkowitz ("Son of Sam") is arrested for a series of killings in the New York City area over the period of one year.

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Today in 1809, 214 years ago: in Quito (Ecuador) a group of rebels formed a provisional governing board in support of the deposed king of Spain, Fernando VII. (This event is known in Ecuador as the First Cry of Independence). For that reason, the city is subtitled “Light of America.”

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Today in 2019, 4 years ago: Thirty-two are killed and one million are evacuated as Typhoon Lekima makes landfall in Zhejiang, China. Earlier it had caused flooding in the Philippines.

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Today in 1962, 61 years ago: first publication of the fictional character and superhero "Spider-Man" (Spider-Man).

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Today in 2004, 19 years ago: in northwestern Colombia, the Army kills 30 FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) guerrillas.

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Today in 1934, 89 years ago: in Chicago (United States), about 350 people die from a heat wave.

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Today in 2003, 20 years ago: the last chapter of the Futurama series is broadcast in the United States.

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Today in 2012, 11 years ago: The Marikana massacre begins near Rustenburg, South Africa, resulting in the deaths of 47 people.

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Today in 1585, 438 years ago: The Treaty of Nonsuch signed by Elizabeth I of England and the Dutch Rebels.

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Today in 1944, 79 years ago: in Ecuador, a railway strike paralyzes passenger and freight trains.

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Today in 1957, 66 years ago: in the U12c.02 area of the Nevada Atomic Test Site, at 0:59 (UTC time) -at 16:59 (local time) on August 9 - the United States detonates its 0.00005 kiloton Saturn atomic bomb. It is the 102nd of 1132 bombs that the United States detonated between 1945 and 1992.

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Today in 2003, 20 years ago: The Okinawa Urban Monorail is opened in Naha, Okinawa.

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Today in 1949, 74 years ago: An amendment to the National Security Act of 1947 enhances the authority of the United States Secretary of Defense over the Army, Navy and Air Force, and replaces the National Military Establishment with the Department of Defense.

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Today in 1932, 91 years ago: in Spain General José Sanjurjo attempts a coup d 'état (Sanjurjada).

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Today in 1978, 45 years ago: Three members of the Ulrich family are killed in an accident. This leads to the Ford Pinto litigation.

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Today in 1741, 282 years ago: King Marthanda Varma of Travancore defeats the Dutch East India Company at the Battle of Colachel, effectively bringing about the end of the Dutch colonial rule in India.

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Today in 1941, 82 years ago: in Spain, Fermín Trueba is proclaimed cycling champion.

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Today in 1952, 71 years ago: the ECSC was inaugurated in Luxembourg.

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