Our front page for October 15 — written and set by The Yesterday Times from the events below. Not an archival document.
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On October 15 in 2003, 23 years ago, China Launches First Astronaut Into Orbit Aboard Shenzhou 5. This page reports 10 stories from the date, 25 people born on this day and 15 who died on it.
The stories in full
Space Flight
2003 — China Launches First Astronaut Into Orbit Aboard Shenzhou 5
A single taikonaut blasts into history from the Gobi desert — Beijing joins elite club of spacefaring nations after four decades of pursuit.
The Shenzhou 5 rocket lifts off from the launch pad — Wikimedia Commons
The Shenzhou 5 rocket lifts off from the launch pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, carrying Yang Liwei on a 21-hour mission that makes China the third nation to send a human into space.
The 38-year-old air force lieutenant colonel, selected from 14 candidates, orbited Earth 14 times before touching down in Inner Mongolia. His capsule carried the flag of the People's Republic and a blade of grass from his hometown.
The mission caps a program that began in earnest in 1992, when Beijing approved Project 921 to develop independent human spaceflight capability. Four unmanned Shenzhou test flights preceded Wednesday's launch.
The Long March 2F rocket rose at 9:00 a.m. local time. State television carried the launch live, breaking with precedent for such sensitive events.
Chinese officials said the flight demonstrated mastery of life-support, orbital maneuvering, and re-entry technologies. Yang's vitals were monitored continuously from the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center.
The achievement places Beijing alongside Moscow and Washington in a capability long seen as a marker of great-power status. Officials indicated further flights would follow, with eventual goals including a space station.
China launches Shenzhou 5, its first crewed space mission.
1997 — Cassini Probe Blasts Off for Seven-Year Journey to Saturn
A 22-foot-high spacecraft carrying 72 pounds of plutonium launched at 4:43 a.m. on a $3.4 billion mission to reach Saturn in 2004.
A Titan IVB rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral carrying the Cassini probe — Wikimedia Commons
Humanity's most detailed examination of the ringed planet began at 4:43 a.m. as a Titan IVB rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral carrying the Cassini probe toward Saturn.
The $3.4 billion joint NASA-European Space Agency mission will reach the gas giant in July 2004 after gravity assists from Venus, Earth, and Jupiter. Upon arrival, Cassini will release the Huygens probe to descend through the thick atmosphere of Titan, Saturn's largest moon.
Riding atop the most powerful rocket in the U.S. inventory, the 22-foot-high spacecraft carries a camera capable of resolving features 30 feet across on Titan's surface. Its infrared spectrometer will map the moon's hydrocarbon lakes.
The mission has drawn protest from anti-nuclear activists concerned about the 72 pounds of plutonium dioxide powering Cassini's generators.
The Cassini probe launches from Cape Canaveral on its way to Saturn.
1815 — Napoleon Reaches Saint Helena to Begin Final Exile
Britain has judged the former emperor too dangerous for closer shores, confining him upon the windswept volcanic rock for his remaining years.
The long arc of revolutionary ambition found its terminus this month as Napoleon Bonaparte was deposited upon Saint Helena, the windswept volcanic rock where Britain confines those it judges too dangerous for closer shores.
Napoleon I surrendered on 15 July 1815 and was transported to England before exile.
Saint Helena is one of the most remote settlements in the world and was used by the British for exiling over 5,000 Boer prisoners.
The island was discovered by the Portuguese in 1502 and claimed as Britain's second oldest colony after Bermuda.
1932 — J.R.D. Tata Pilots First Mail Flight as Tata Airlines Launches Karachi-Madras Run
A single de Havilland Puss Moth and a former RAF officer open weekly airmail service.
J.R.D. Tata lifted a de Havilland Puss Moth from Karachi on October 15, 1932, inaugurating Tata Airlines with a weekly airmail run to Madras via Ahmedabad and Bombay. The flight carried Imperial Airways mail, the fruit of a contract won in April. Nevill Vintcent, late of the Royal Air Force, took the controls for the onward leg to Madras. The infant line fields two craft: the Puss Moth and a Leopard Moth. The Bombay touchdown marked India's entry into scheduled commercial aviation.
J.R.D. Tata flew the first de Havilland Puss Moth carrying air mail from Karachi to Bombay on October 15, 1932.
The flight continued to Madras, piloted by former Royal Air Force officer Nevill Vintcent.
Tata Airlines began operations with a weekly airmail service between Karachi and Madras via Ahmedabad and Bombay.
The airline's initial fleet consisted of a de Havilland Puss Moth and a Leopard Moth.
Tata won a contract to carry mail for Imperial Airways in April 1932, leading to the airline's founding.
1954 — Hurricane Hazel Kills 176 in Deadly Sweep From Carolinas to Toronto
Storm made landfall near Calabash, North Carolina, as Category 4 with 130 mph winds.
Hurricane Hazel slammed the Carolinas this morning as a Category 4 storm, then carried death north to Toronto. The toll stands at 95 dead in the United States and 81 in Canada, mostly in flooded residential districts. Damage reaches $281 million in the U.S. and over C$135 million in Canada.
Hurricane Hazel killed 95 people in the United States and 81 in Canada, mostly in Toronto.
Hazel made landfall near Calabash, North Carolina, as a Category 4 hurricane with winds estimated at 130 mph.
The storm caused $281 million (1954 USD) in damage in the US and over C$135 million in Canada.
In Toronto, rivers overflowed, flooding residential areas like Raymore Drive, later converted to parkland.
Eight hundred military members were summoned for cleanup, and a Hurricane Relief Fund distributed $5.1 million in aid.
1990 — Gorbachev Wins Nobel Peace Prize for Cold War Thaw
The 1990 Nobel Peace Prize recognizes Mikhail Gorbachev's policies of glasnost and perestroika.
In Oslo, the Nobel Committee named Mikhail Gorbachev its 1990 Peace laureate. The Soviet president received the honor for efforts to lessen Cold War tensions and open his nation to the world. The prize recognizes his policies of glasnost and perestroika, which have transformed the Soviet Union's relationship with the West.
Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to lessen Cold War tensions and open up his nation.
1783 — Man Ascends in Hot Air Balloon, Leaves Earth for First Time
Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier pilots Montgolfier brothers' craft.
Humanity has conquered the air. This day saw the first manned ascent in a hot air balloon, piloted by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier in a craft built by the Montgolfier brothers. The flight proved man may rise above the earth by artificial means.
The Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon makes the first human ascent, piloted by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier.
1989 — Gretzky Passes Howe as NHL's All-Time Points Leader
The Edmonton Oilers center claimed the record with an assist in a 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles Kings.
The age of Wayne Gretzky arrived in full on October 15, 1989, when hockey's most prodigious talent surpassed Gordie Howe's career points total to become the National Hockey League's all-time scoring leader. Gretzky, playing in his eleventh NHL season, recorded an assist in the first period of Edmonton Oilers' 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles Kings at Northlands Coliseum, pushing his career total to 1,851 points. The 28-year-old center from Brantford, Ontario, had entered the game needing one point to break Howe's mark, set over 26 seasons with Detroit and Hartford.
Wayne Gretzky becomes the all-time leading points scorer in the NHL.
1793 — Marie Antoinette Condemned for Treason Against the Republic
The former Queen of France faced the Revolutionary Tribunal on charges of plotting with foreign powers.
Marie Antoinette stood before the Revolutionary Tribunal in Paris on October 15, 1793, and heard herself convicted of high treason against the French Republic. The former Queen, widow of Louis XVI—executed nine months prior—had been transferred from the Temple prison to the Conciergerie in August. The tribunal heard two days of proceedings alleging conspiracy with émigrés and foreign courts to restore the monarchy. Witnesses included Hébert, editor of the radical Père Duchesne, and former servants from Versailles. The verdict carried the single penalty: death. The sentence is to be carried out at the Place de la Révolution.
Queen Marie Antoinette of France is tried and convicted of treason.
1844Friedrich NietzscheFriedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a German philosopher and writer who started his career as a classical philologist and turned to philosophy early in his academic career.
1926Michel FoucaultPaul-Michel Foucault, known as Michel Foucault, was a French philosopher, literary critic, and historian of ideas who analyzed the relationships between power, knowledge, and liberty, and how they are used as a form of social control through institutions.
1968Didier Deschamps(58 this year)Didier Claude Deschamps, popularly known as Dédé, is a French professional football manager and former player.
1836James TissotJacques Joseph Tissot, better known as James Tissot, was a French painter, illustrator, and caricaturist.
1944Haim Saban(82 this year)Haim Saban is an Israeli and American media proprietor, investor, musical composer and producer of records, film, and television.
1970Ginuwine(56 this year)Elgin Baylor Lumpkin, better known by his stage name Ginuwine, is an American R&B singer.
1980Tom Boonen(46 this year)Tom Boonen is a Belgian former road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 2002 and 2017 for the U.S. Postal Service and Quick-Step Floors teams and a professional racing driver who currently competes in Belcar, having previously competed in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.
1785José Miguel CarreraJosé Miguel Carrera Verdugo was a Chilean general, formerly Spanish military, member of the prominent Carrera family, and considered one of the founders of independent Chile.
1858John L. SullivanJohn Lawrence Sullivan was an American professional boxer.
1887Frederick FleetFrederick Fleet was a British merchant sailor who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
1899Adolf BrudesAdolf Brudes von Breslau was a Formula One driver from Germany and a member of German nobility.
1900Mervyn LeRoyMervyn LeRoy was an American film director and producer.
1906Victoria SpiveyVictoria Regina Spivey, sometimes known as Queen Victoria, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and record company founder.
1908John Kenneth GalbraithJohn Kenneth Galbraith, also known as J. K. Galbraith or Ken Galbraith, was a Canadian-American economist, diplomat, public official, and intellectual.
1917Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.Arthur Meier Schlesinger Jr. was an American historian, social critic, and public intellectual.
1920Mario PuzoMario Francis Puzo was an American author and screenwriter.
1935Willie O'Ree(91 this year)William Eldon O'Ree is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player from Fredericton, New Brunswick.
1942Harold W. Gehman, Jr.(84 this year)Harold Webster Gehman Jr. is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic (SACLANT), Commander-in-Chief of the United States Joint Forces Command, one of the United States' Unified Combatant Commands, and Vice Chief of Naval Operations.
1943Stanley FischerStanley Fischer was an American and Israeli economist who served as the 20th vice chair of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2017.
1945Jim Palmer(81 this year)James Alvin Palmer is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles.
1948Chris de Burgh(78 this year)Christopher John Davison, known professionally as Chris de Burgh, is an English singer-songwriter and musician born in Argentina.
1953Larry Miller(73 this year)Lawrence John Miller is an American comedian, actor, voice actor, podcaster, and columnist.
1965Nasser El SonbatyNasser El Sonbaty was an IFBB professional bodybuilder.
1972Fred Hoiberg(54 this year)Fredrick Kristian Hoiberg is an American college basketball coach and former player.
1976Elisa Aguilar(50 this year)Elisa Aguilar López is a Spanish former women's basketball player, member of the Spanish women's basketball team.
Died on October 15
2024Mike JacksonGeneral Sir Michael David Jackson was a British Army officer and one of its most high-profile generals since the Second World War.
55 BCLucretiusTitus Lucretius Carus was a Roman poet and philosopher.
1958Elizabeth AlexanderFrances Elizabeth Somerville Alexander was a British geologist, academic, and physicist, whose wartime work with radar and radio led to early developments in radio astronomy and whose post-war work on the geology of Singapore is considered a significant foundation to contemporary research.
892Al-Mu'tamidAbu’l-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muʿtamid ʿalā’Llāh, better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtamid ʿalā 'llāh, was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 870 to 892.
1820Karl PhilippKarl Philipp, Fürst zu Schwarzenberg was an Austrian Generalissimo and former Field Marshal.
1925Dolores Jiménez y MuroDolores Jiménez y Muro was a Mexican revolutionary, schoolteacher, poet, and military commander.
2017Deng KenDeng Ken was a Chinese politician who served as Vice Governor of Hubei.
1983Pat O'BrienWilliam Joseph Patrick O'Brien was an American film actor with more than 100 screen credits.
1988Kaikhosru Shapurji SorabjiKaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was an English composer, music critic, pianist and writer.
961Abd-al-Rahman IIIʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn al-Ḥakam al-Rabdī ibn Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Dākhil al-Marwānī al-Umawī al-Qurashī, or simply ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III, was the Umayyad Emir of Córdoba from 912 to 929, at which point he founded the Caliphate of Córdoba, serving as its first caliph until his death.
925RhazesAbū Bakr al-Rāzī, also known as Rhazes, 864 or 865 – 925 or 935 CE, was a Persian physician, philosopher and alchemist who lived during the Islamic Golden Age.
1978W. Eugene SmithWilliam Eugene Smith was an American photojournalist.
2011Betty DriverElizabeth (Betty) Mary Driver was a British actress and singer, best known for her role as Betty Williams in the long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street, a role she played for 42 years from 1969 to 2011, appearing in 2,732 episodes.
1173Petronilla of AragonPetronilla, whose name is also spelled Petronila or Petronella, was Queen of Aragon (1137–1164) from the abdication of her father, Ramiro II, in 1137 until her own abdication in 1164.
1900Zdeněk FibichZdeněk Fibich was a Czech composer of classical music.
Holidays and observances
Bruno of Querfurt
October 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Teresa of Ávila
World Students' Day
Breast Health Day (Europe)
Cúan of Ahascragh
Thecla of Kitzingen
National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (United States)
Shwmae Su'mae Day (Wales)
White Cane Safety Day
Quote of the Day
“Tell me, O muse, of that ingenious hero who travelled far and wide after he had sacked the famous town of Troy.” — Homer (trans. Samuel Butler), The Odyssey
October 15 History Quiz
Which Chinese astronaut became the first person from China to travel to space aboard Shenzhou 5 in 2003?
Yang Liwei
What year did the Cassini-Huygens probe launch toward Saturn?
1997
Who did Wayne Gretzky surpass to become the NHL's all-time leading scorer on October 15, 1989?
Every event on this page was picked by hand from the historical record, written up as a news report, and checked against its source. Photographs are matched to the event they illustrate and verified before they are used. Sources are linked on each story.
![Front page of The Indianapolis times, Indianapolis [Ind.], 15 October 1932](https://tile.loc.gov/image-services/iiif/service:ndnp:in:batch_in_huxley_ver01:data:sn82015313:0038334945A:1932101501:0553/full/pct:50/0/default.jpg)
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann
“You Light Up My Life”, 
The Silmarillion, J. R. R. Tolkien
“Total Eclipse Of The Heart”, 
“I'll Make Love To You”, 
Debt of Honor, Tom Clancy
“Gold Digger”, 
Anansi Boys, Neil Gaiman
Heat Rises, Richard Castle
“Bad Habit”, 
Dreamland, Nicholas Sparks
