March 9
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Featured Event
© New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries—Handout/Getty Images
Colossal squid captured on camera in the deep sea for the first time
On this day in 2025, a colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) was filmed swimming in its natural habitat for the first time. When scientists at the Schmidt Ocean Institute spotted the squid using a remotely operated submersible, they initially did not know what they were looking at. After reaching out to other institutions, they confirmed that they had captured the first footage of this elusive deep-sea dweller in its natural habitat (others had been seen either dead or ensnared by fishing boats). [Read today’s edition of Today in History > >]
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
Courtesy of the League of Women Voters of Illinois
American feminist leader Carrie Chapman Catt, born this day in 1859, led the women’s rights movement for more than 25 years, culminating in the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment (for woman suffrage) in 1920.
Famous Birthdays
More on March 9
Jimmy Sime—Hulton Archive/Getty Images
2006
John Profumo died at age 91. While serving as secretary of state for war, he was involved in a major scandal in 1963 when it was revealed that he had an affair with Christine Keeler, a dancer who was also involved with the Soviet military attaché in London. [Test your knowledge of British culture and politics.]
CBS Television
1996
George Burns—whose career in show business spanned 93 years, the highlights of which included a popular comedy act with his wife, Gracie Allen—died at age 100. [Discover how much you know about actors and acting.]
© 2000 Miramax Films/David Brown Productions/Fat Free Limited
1964
Juliette Binoche, who is noted for the intelligence she brings to her complex and varied roles, was born in Paris. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about A-list actors.]
Courtesy of Attic Dolls and Toys, Oklahoma City, Okla.; photograph, © Joel DeGrand
1959
Barbie, a toy doll that became an international sensation despite criticism (mainly from mothers who criticized the doll for having “too much of a figure”), was introduced by Mattel, Inc. [Discover six interesting facts about Barbie.]
NARA
1945
The U.S. Army Air Forces firebombed Tokyo, destroying a quarter of the city, killing at least 80,000 civilians, and leaving a million people homeless. [Sort fact from fiction in our World War II quiz.]
AP
1943
Chess master Bobby Fischer was born in Chicago. [Test your knowledge of chess.]
NASA
1934
Yuri Gagarin, who in 1961 became the first man to travel in space, was born in Russia. [Take our astronauts quiz.]
Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
1930
Jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader Ornette Coleman was born in Fort Worth, Texas. [Test your knowledge of musicians.]
Bain Collection/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (LC-DIG-ggbain-09255)
1916
Pancho Villa’s men killed more than a dozen in a raid on Columbus, New Mexico. Though U.S. Pres. Woodrow Wilson sent an expedition to the area, Villa evaded capture. [Take our quiz about plots and revolutions.]
© Photos.com/Getty Images
1862
During the American Civil War, the ironclads Monitor and Virginia (formerly Merrimack) battled in the harbor at Hampton Roads, Virginia, marking the beginning of a new era of naval warfare.
H. Roger-Viollet
1831
The French Foreign Legion was founded by King Louis-Philippe to support the conquest of Algeria, which the French had invaded the previous year. [How much do you know about French history?]
© Art Images/Getty Images
1796
Napoleon Bonaparte, future emperor of France, married Marie-Josèphe-Rose Tascher de La Pagerie, better known today as Empress Joséphine. (He had the marriage annulled in 1810 so that he could marry the Austrian archduchess Marie-Louise.) [Explore the Bonaparte family tree.]
Scala/Art Resource, New York
1765
Following a vigorous press campaign by French philosopher Voltaire, a court acquitted the Huguenot merchant Jean Calas, who had been executed for allegedly murdering his son. The case greatly strengthened the movement for criminal law reform and religious toleration in France. [Take another quiz about French history.]
Scala/Art Resource, New York
1734
Francisco Bayeu, who was considered by his contemporaries to be the finest Spanish painter of their period and was greatly influenced by Anton Raphael Mengs and Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, was born. [Take our famous artist quiz.]
© Leemage—Corbis/Getty Images
1661
Jules, Cardinal Mazarin, a disciple of Richelieu and an architect of France’s ascent to European supremacy, died in Vincennes, France.
© Corbis
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