Apollo 16 (April 16–27, 1972) was the tenth crewed mission in the United States Apollo space program, administered by NASA, and the fifth and next-to-last to land on the Moon. The mission was crewed by John Young, Commander; Charles Duke, Lunar Module Pilot; and Ken Mattingly, Command Module Pilot. Launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 16, 1972 (pictured), Apollo 16 experienced a number of minor glitches en route to the Moon. These culminated with a problem with the spaceship's main engine that resulted in a six-hour delay in the Moon landing. Young and Duke explored the Descartes Highlands, a site thought volcanic, although this proved to be not so. Mattingly orbited the Moon in the command and service module, taking photos and operating scientific instruments. During the return trip to Earth, Mattingly performed a one-hour spacewalk to retrieve several film cassettes from the exterior of the service module. Apollo 16 returned safely to Earth on April 27, 1972.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_16

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1847:

New Zealand Wars: A minor Māori chief was accidentally shot by a junior British Army officer in the settlement of Whanganui on New Zealand's North Island, triggering the Whanganui campaign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whanganui_campaign

1912:

American pilot Harriet Quimby became the first woman to fly across the English Channel. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_Quimby

1963:

In response to an open letter written by white clergymen, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote the Letter from Birmingham Jail in defence of the strategy of nonviolent resistance against racism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letter_from_Birmingham_Jail

2001:

India and Bangladesh began a six-day conflict over their disputed border, which ended in a stalemate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001_Bangladesh%E2%80%93India_border_clashes

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

boiling frog: (idiomatic, often attributively) A person who, or thing which, is in a gradually worsening situation without any realization of the peril until it is too late. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/boiling_frog

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

We are in the days preceding Easter. We are preparing to celebrate the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ over sin and death — over sin and death — not over someone and against someone else. But today, there is a war. Why do we want to win like this, according to the way of the world? There are only losses this way. Why not allow Him to win? Christ bore his cross to free us from the dominion of evil. He died so that life, love, peace may reign. Let the weapons be put down! Let the Easter truce begin. But not to reload the weapons and pick up the fighting again — no! — a truce that will lead to peace, through real negotiation that is also willing to make some sacrifice for the good of the people. Indeed, what victory is there in planting a flag on a pile of rubble?   --Pope Francis https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Pope_Francis