On this day in history - October 11

What Happened On This Day – October 11

• 2000 100th Mission of NASA’s Space Shuttle Program

  Also known as the Space Transportation System or STS, the program was the first in the world to employ reusable spacecraft to take people into outer space. The first flight of the space shuttle fleet, which included Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour took place on April 12, 1981. The 100th flight was on space shuttle Discovery and the mission was designated STS-92. It was the 30th time Discovery had flown into space.

• 1984 First American Woman to walk in Space

  Kathryn Dwyer Sullivan undertook a 3.5-hour long space walk with fellow astronaut David Leestma while on the Space Shuttle Challenger mission STS-41-G. The spacewalk was performed to demonstrate the possibility of refueling a satellite. STS-41-G was the first flight mission to carry two women astronauts - Sullivan and Sally Ride.

• 1975 The First Episode of Saturday Night Live Airs

  A popular sketch comedy show, SNL, as it is popularly known, was initially called NBC's Saturday Night, and it was created and produced by Lorne Michaels. The original cast members of the show, which usually opens with the slogan “Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!”, included Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, and Chevy Chase.

• 1911 Wuchang Uprising

  The Wuchang Uprising occurred in Wuchang, China, leading to the fall of the Qing dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China. This day is celebrated as an important holiday in Taiwan.

• 1899 Second Boer War Begins

  The almost 3-year long conflict was fought between British and Irish troops and the Boers from the Transvaal and Orange Free State. The war began as a result of disagreements between the two sides over the ownership of gold and diamond mines in the region. The two countries were annexed by the British at the end of the war in May 1902. The word Boer is the Afrikaans word for farmer and it was used at that time to refer to Afrikaans-speaking settlers in the region.