On a day like today on April 26, 1986, that Explosion of a reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (Ukraine) caused the largest nuclear accident in history, along with that in Fukushima (Japan) in 2011. Chernobyl’s RBMK reactor number four (high-efficiency capacitor) started to burn and those responsible for the plant did not follow the safety measures, which resulted in overheating and finally led to the explosion of uranium fuel and released radioactive elements (plutonium, iodine, strontium and cesium) that contaminated an area of 142,000 square kilometers in northern Ukraine, southern Belarus and the Bryansk region of Russia.
That April 26, but from 1937 the German Condor Legion and the Italian Legionary Aviation They bombard the Basque population of Gernika in Biscay as part of the Spanish Civil War. The official aim was to destroy the Rentería Bridge to stop the Basque troops retreating towards Bilbao, but the disproportionate force of the attack (between 31 and 41 tons of bombs were dropped) shows that it was also a method to demoralize troops, discouraging the civilian population and thus hastening the future fall of the northern front. After four hours of bombardment, the city was virtually destroyed, with civilian casualties difficult to quantify.
You want to know more? Discover the ephemeris of April 26th and see what happened, who was born on a day like today and who died. Also, don’t miss what’s celebrated, today’s horoscope and saints.
What happened on April 26th?
1860: The Wad Ras Treaty is signed, ending the war in Africa between Spain and Morocco.
1962: The Ranger IV lunar probe arrives on the far side of the moon, marking the first arrival of a US spacecraft to another celestial body. He did not send any pictures due to a technical defect.
1991: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is awarded the Prince of Asturias Prize for International Cooperation.
2008: The Spanish fishing vessel Playa de Bakio, seized by pirates in Somali waters six days earlier, is released.
2010: Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Antonio Noriega is extradited to France after serving 20 years in US prison.
2012: The Special Court of Sierra Leone (SCLT) convicted former Liberian President Charles Taylor of war crimes and crimes against humanity
2018: In Spain, the Audiencia de Navarra sentenced each of the 5 members of “La Manada” to 9 years in prison for continuing crimes of prevalence sexual abuse rather than sexual assault, a sentence later corrected.
2020: Saudi Arabia abolishes the death penalty for minors.
Who was born on April 26th?
1564: William Shakespeare, English playwright.
1798: Eugene Delacroix, French painter.
1889: Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian philosopher.
1898: Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish poet, Nobel Prize 1977.
1956: Imanol Arias, Spanish actor.
1988: Macarena Garcia, Spanish actress.
Who died on April 26?
1946: Hermann A. Keyserling, German philosopher.
1984: Count Basie, American jazz musician.
1989: Lucille Ball, American actress.
1994: Estanislao de Aranzadi, Spanish legal publisher.
2005: Augusto Roa Bastos, Paraguayan writer.
2017: Jonathan Demme, film director.
What is celebrated on April 26th?
April 26th is celebrated today that World Intellectual Property Day, International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day and Lesbian Visibility Day.
Horoscope for April 26
Those born on April 26 are among the Star sign Taurus.
Santoral from April 26th
Our Lady of Good Counsel; Saints Isidore of Seville, Basilio, Pedro and Cleto.