Wikipedia:Picture of the day/January 2009
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These featured pictures, as scheduled below, appeared as the picture of the day (POTD) on the English Wikipedia's Main Page in January 2009. Individual sections for each day on this page can be linked to with the day number as the anchor name (e.g. [[Wikipedia:Picture of the day/January 2009#1]] for January 1).
You can add an automatically updating POTD template to your user page using {{Pic of the day}} (version with blurb) or {{POTD}} (version without blurb). For instructions on how to make custom POTD layouts, see Wikipedia:Picture of the day.Purge server cache
January 1
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A team of obstetricians perform a Caesarean section (commonly called a "C-section") in a modern hospital. The image shows the very first moment the mother glimpses her new-born child. This is a surgical procedure in which incisions are made through a mother's abdomen (laparotomy) and uterus (hysterotomy) to deliver one or more babies. It is usually performed when a vaginal delivery would put the baby's or mother's life or health at risk, although in recent times it has been also performed upon request for childbirths that would otherwise have been natural. Photo credit: Salim Fadhley
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January 2
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A lunar transit of the sun captured during calibration of STEREO B's ultraviolet imaging cameras. A transit is the astronomical event that occurs when one celestial body appears to move across the face of another celestial body, as seen by an observer at some particular vantage point. In this video the Moon appears smaller than it does from Earth because the satellite's viewpoint is farther from the Moon than the Earth is. Film credit: STEREO mission (NASA)
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January 3
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An AV-8B Harrier II belonging to the United States Marine Corps attack squadron VMA-231 takes off during the 2003 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. As the AV-8B is a V/STOL aircraft, it is capable of taking off both vertically as well as with a short runway. Photo credit: Paul Maritz
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January 4
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The three tallest skyscrapers in Canary Wharf, a large business and shopping development in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets (London, England), as viewed from Cabot Square: 8 Canada Square (centre-left), One Canada Square (centre), Citigroup Centre (centre-right). Photo credit: David Iliff
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January 5
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A hand-drawn 1943 United States Army map of world ocean currents and drift ice, as they were known at the time. An ocean current is continuous, directed movement of seawater, like rivers of hot or cold water within the ocean. They are generated from the forces acting upon the water like the Earth's rotation, the wind, the temperature, salinity differences and the gravitation of the moon. Map credit: United States Army
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January 6
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The Willie Wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys) is a passerine bird native to Australia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Bismarck Archipelago, and eastern Indonesia. It is a common and familiar bird throughout much of its range, living in most habitats apart from thick forest. Photo credit: Fir0002
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January 7
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A series of photos showing the process of oviposition in an Ichneumon wasp, which lays its eggs inside or near the maggots or caterpillars of other insects, where they hatch and then eat their host from inside.
Photo credit: Richard Bartz
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January 8
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An example of guttation, the appearance of drops of xylem sap on the tips or edges of leaves of some vascular plants, on an Equisetum. At night, transpiration usually does not occur because most plants have their stomata closed. When there is a high soil moisture level, water will enter plant roots, because the water potential of the roots is lower than in the soil solution. The water will accumulate in the plant creating a slight root pressure. The root pressure forces some water to exude through special leaf tip or edge structures, hydathodes, forming drops. Guttation is not to be confused with dew, which condenses from the atmosphere onto the plant surface. Photo credit: Luc Viatour
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January 9
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Chamaeleo jacksonii, commonly known as Jackson's Chameleon or the Three-horned Chameleon, is an African chameleon. Native to the humid, cooler regions of Kenya and Tanzania, this specimen is from a feral population established in Hawaii in the 1970s. Males possess three brown horns, but females usually have none or just traces of the rostral horn (on the nose). Photo credit: Rich Torres
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January 10
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The most detailed full-disc view of Titan, the largest moon of Saturn and second-largest in the Solar System. The brighter region on the right side and equatorial region is named Xanadu, and the large, dark region at the center is Shangri-la. This image has been processed to reduce the effects of the atmosphere and to sharpen surface features. It has been trimmed to show only the illuminated surface and not the atmosphere above the edge of the moon. Image credit: Cassini orbiter
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January 11
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A lobby card for the 1921 film adaptation of Little Lord Fauntleroy, starring Mary Pickford as both the title character (center) and his mother (lower right). Lobby cards are a form of film poster, usually 11 by 14 in (28 by 36 cm) or smaller. They are typically issued in sets of six, eight, or twelve, each featuring a different scene from the film. Image credit: Elco. Corp.
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January 12
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Aerial bombing of rail yards at Siena during Operation Strangle, a series of air operations during the Italian Campaign of World War II by the United States Fifteenth and Twelfth Air Forces to interdict German supply routes in Italy north of Rome. On the alternate line from Pisa and Florence south to Rome, the Siena yards were bombed by Mediterranean Allied Air Force Bombers. Photo credit: United States Army Air Forces
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January 13
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A 1793 etching with watercolor of Jean-Paul Marat, a radical journalist and politician from the French Revolution, carried on shoulders with a crown of laurel leaves, celebrating his acquittal by the Revolutionary Tribunal. From January to May 1793, Marat fought bitterly with the Girondins, whom he believed to be covert enemies of republicanism. The National Convention ordered the trial, but his acquittal only served to increase his public profile and popular support. Credit: anonymous
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January 14
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A 1909 panorama showing the gathering of Cheyenne peoples for a Sun Dance, one of the most important rituals practiced by North American Plains Indians. Each tribe has its own distinct rituals and methods, but many of the ceremonies have features in common, including dancing, singing, praying, drumming, the experience of visions, fasting, and in some cases piercing of the chest or back—here, on the Tree of Life (center, in front of tent). Photo credit: Henry Chaufty
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January 15
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The Long-billed Corella (Cacatua tenuirostris) is a cockatoo native to Australia. The species can be found in the wild around western Victoria and southern New South Wales. Feral populations have sprung up in Sydney, Perth and Hobart from the release of unwanted birds. This has serious implications in Western Australia where they may hybridize with the endangered southern race of the Western Corella. Photo credit: Noodle snacks
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January 16
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Two Eastern Lubber grasshoppers (Romalea guttata) mating. Native to the southeastern and south central portion of the United States, it is well known both for its size and its unique coloration. During reproduction, the male grasshopper introduces sperm into the ovipositor through its aedeagus (reproductive organ), and inserts its spermatophore, a package containing the sperm, into the female's ovipositor. Photo credit: Tom Friedel
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January 17
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The front view of the Nymphenburg Palace, a Baroque palace in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, that served as the summer residence of the rulers of Bavaria. The palace, together with its 200-hectare (494-acre) park, is now one of the most famous sights of Munich. Photo credit: Richard Bartz
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January 18
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The Oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) is a widespread flowering plant native to Europe and the temperate regions of Asia. It is one of a number of plants to be called by the common name daisy. It is also sometimes called "marguerite", "moon daisy" or "dog daisy". It is a typical meadow flower, growing in a variety of plant communities such as dry fields, meadows, but also in scrubland, open-canopy forests and waste places. Photo credit: Derek Ramsey
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January 19
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An 1811 lithograph (with stipple engraving) of Sophie Blanchard, the first professional female balloonist, based upon a flight she made in Milan to celebrate Napoleon Bonaparte's 42nd birthday. Blanchard was "Aeronaut of the Official Festivals" under Napoleon and became "Official Aeronaut of the Restoration" for Louis XVIII of France until 1819, when she became the first woman to be killed in an aviation accident. Her husband Jean-Pierre Blanchard was also a ballooning pioneer. Artist: Luigi Rados
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January 20
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Barack Obama, giving a speech at the University of Southern California in support of California Proposition 87 in 2006. The proposition would have established a $4 billion program with a goal of reducing petroleum consumption by 25%, with research and production incentives for alternative energy, but it did not pass. In terms of Obama's energy policy, he has consistently argued for a reduction in the usage of fossil fuels, having voted for the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and opposed drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Photo credit: Ari Levinson
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January 21
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A newsreel briefly summarizing the end of the Adolf Eichmann trial, noting that the Israeli court found him guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes and that he was to be hanged. Eichmann, a former Nazi SS officer, was apprehended by Israeli agents from Argentina in 1960 and flown to Israel to stand trial for his role. The trial is widely credited for establishing the Holocaust as an independent event that occurred concurrently with World War II. Film credit: Universal International News
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January 22
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A scene from Richard Wagner's opera Lohengrin, as performed at its London première in 1875. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romances, including a secondary plot in Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival and the main plot of its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, and the epic of Garin le Loherain which inspired it. It is part of the Knight of the Swan tradition. Several excerpts have become famous, most notably "Treulich geführt" from Act III, Scene 1, commonly known as "Here Comes the Bride". Image credit: Arthur Thiele, Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News
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January 23
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A panorama from the Ziegler Polar Expedition of 1903–05, an unsuccessful attempt to reach the North Pole. The party remained stranded north of the Arctic Circle for two years before being rescued, yet all but one of its members survived. Photo credit: Anthony Fiala
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January 24
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A snipe fly (Rhagio scolopaceus) in the early morning. Rhagionidae are medium-to-large–sized flies with slender bodies and stilt-like legs. The mouthparts are adapted for piercing and many species are haematophagous as adults, while others are predatory on other insects. Photo credit: Richard Bartz
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January 25
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The Staten Island Ferry arriving at South Ferry at the southern tip of Manhattan in New York City. The no-fee ferry carries over 19 million passengers annually on a 5.2-mile (8.4 km) run to Staten Island that takes approximately 25 minutes each way. Service is provided 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Photo credit: Daniel Schwen
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January 26
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The Australian Wood Duck (Chenonetta jubata) is a dabbling duck found throughout much of Australia. Its habitat is lightly wooded swamps and marshes. This abundant duck nests in a tree hole laying 8–12 eggs. They are usually 45 to 51 centimetres (17.7 to 20.1 in) in length and look like a small goose. It rarely swims, feeding mostly by grazing. The male is grey with a dark brown head and mottled breast. The female has white stripes above and below the eye and mottled underparts. Both sexes have grey wings with black primaries and a white speculum. Photo credit: Fir0002
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January 27
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An 1806 design for a submarine by Robert Fulton, who also designed the Nautilus. This was to be built for the British Royal Navy, but their victory at the Battle of Trafalgar rendered his work moot, and this model was never constructed. In the history of submarines, Fulton's work had been preceded by numerous people, but Nautilus is usually considered the first practical submarine. Image credit: Robert Fulton
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January 28
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A 1942 view of Bingham Canyon Mine, an open-pit mining operation southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah, in the United States. The mine has been in production since 1906 and has resulted in the creation of a pit over 0.75 mile (1.2 km) deep, 2.5 miles (4 km) wide, and covering 1,900 acres (7.7 km²), which is the world's largest man-made excavation. Bingham Canyon has proven to be one of the world's most productive mines. The value of the resources extracted, including copper, gold, silver and molybdenum, is greater than the Comstock Lode, Klondike, and California Gold Rush combined. Photo credit: Andreas Feininger
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January 29
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The Red-eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas) is a small-sized tree frog, reaching lengths of about 5 to 7 centimeters (3 inches), native to Neotropical rainforests in Central America. They are not poisonous and rely on camouflage to protect them. During the day, they remain motionless with their colorful parts hidden. Thus, they appear almost completely green, and well hidden among the foliage. Photo credit: Carey James Balboa
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January 30
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Two F-22 Raptor fighter aircraft in closed tail formation. It is a fifth generation fighter that is considered a fourth-generation stealth aircraft by the U.S. Air Force. Maximum speed, without external weapons, is estimated to be Mach 1.82 in supercruise mode. With afterburners, it is greater than Mach 2.0, according to the manufacturer Lockheed-Martin. Intended to be the leading American advanced tactical fighter, the F-22 costs about US$138 million per unit. Photo credit: TSgt Ben Bloker, USAF
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January 31
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A map of Boston, Massachusetts, in 1775 showing tactical positions from the perspective of the British Army. The caption in the upper left reads, "A plan of the town of Boston with the intrenchments [sic] &ca. of His Majesty's forces in 1775, from the observations of Lieut. Page of His Majesty's Corps of Engineers, and from those of other gentlemen." Boston in the early 1770s played a major role in sparking the American Revolution. The Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and several of the early battles of the Revolution (such as the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston) occurred near or in the city. Map credit: Sir Thomas Hyde Page
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