1953
Faster than sound. American pilot Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to fly faster than the speed of sound.
Wikipedia: Jacqueline CochranPhoto: Unknown author Unknown author or not provided / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
On this day
18 May in history.
5 moments from 1953 to 2005: discovery, creativity and courage, each with a source to read more.
5 moments
More from 18 May
1969
Apollo 10, the dress rehearsal
Apollo 10 launched to test everything needed for a Moon landing, flying the lunar module close to the surface without landing.
Photo: Unknown author / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
1990
A train at 515 km/h
A specially modified French TGV reached 515.3 kilometres per hour, a world record for trains on rails at the time.
Wikipedia: TGVWikipedia: TGV world speed record
Photo: Nelso Silva / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
1996
Ireland's seventh Eurovision win
With its seventh win in the Eurovision Song Contest, Ireland set a record no other country has matched.
Wikipedia: Eurovision Song Contest 1996Wikipedia: Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest
Photo: Éire / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
2005
Two more moons for Pluto
A second Hubble photo confirmed that Pluto has two more small moons. They were later named Nix and Hydra.
Wikipedia: Nix (moon)Wikipedia: Hydra (moon)
Photo: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute/A… / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Moments chosen for discovery, creativity and courage. Each one links to a source where you can read more; photos are credited to their owners.