German astronomer Gottfried Kirch discovered the Great Comet of 1680, the first comet sighted using a telescope.
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Nellie Bly, a pioneering female journalist, embarked on a trip to travel around the world in less than 80 days.
Dr. Fritz Derom performed a successful single-lung transplantation on patient Aloïs Vereecken at the University Hospital in Ghent, Belgium.
A 19-mile crater was found under the Greenland Glacier.
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Kaikōura, New Zealand.
The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) began its radio service in the United Kingdom.
