Today in 20th Century Tech History

February 4 in 20th century tech history

In 1936: Radium E becomes the first radioactive element to be made synthetically, by J. J. Livingood at the University of California.

In 1957: USS Nautilus, the first nuclear-powered submarine, logs her 60,000th nautical mile, matching the endurance of the fictional Nautilus described in Jules Verne's novel " 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea".

February 3 in 20th century tech history

In 1918: The two mile long Twin Peaks Tunnel in San Francisco begins service as the longest streetcar tunnel in the world.

In 1966: The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft makes the first controlled soft landing on the Moon.

February 2 in 20th century tech history

In 1974: The F-16 Fighting Falcon flies for the first time.

February 1 in 20th century tech history

In 1957: Felix Wankel completes the first working prototype of a Wankel rotary engine at NSU in Germany.

In 1972: The first scientific hand-held calculator, the HP-35, is introduced for $395 by Hewlett-Packard.

January 31 in 20th century tech history

In 1930: 3M begins marketing Scotch Tape.

In 1958: Explorer I, the first successful American satellite, is launched.

In 1961: Mercury-Redstone 2 travels into outer space with Ham the Chimp on board. Ham becomes the first hominid to travel into outer space and returns safely to Earth after a flight lasting just under 17 minutes.

In 1971: Astronauts Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa, and Edgar Mitchell lift off on Apollo 14 mission to the Fra Mauro Highlands on the Moon.

January 30 in 20th century tech history

In 1930: Soviet meteorologist Pavel Molchanov launches the first radiosonde in Pavlovsk, USSR.

In 1958: The first two-way moving sidewalk is put into service at Love Field in Dallas, Texas.

In 1982: Rich Skrenta writes the first self-spreading virus code for personal computers, Elk Cloner, which attacked Apple II computers.

January 29 in 20th century tech history

In 1944: USS Missouri, the last battleship commissioned by the US Navy is launched.