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◆ On this day

February 24

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5 sourced moments from February 24 in history: Why Pope Gregory XIII reformed the calendar in 1582; The first impeachment of a U.S. president (1868); The first nylon-bristle toothbrush goes on sale (1938), plus 2 more.

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5 things happened on February 24

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2015 Earth & Climate · Ecosystems

Saharan dust fertilizes the Amazon rainforest

Each year a dust cloud the size of millions of trucks drifts across the Atlantic, replacing the exact nutrient the rainforest washes away.

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1981 Culture & Arts · Film & TV

Buckingham Palace Announces the Charles-Diana Engagement

On a February morning in 1981, the Palace confirmed the rumours and turned a 19-year-old kindergarten assistant into the world's most photographed woman.

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1938 Technology · Inventions

The first nylon-bristle toothbrush goes on sale

On February 24, 1938, a toothbrush traded boar hair for DuPont nylon, quietly launching the synthetic-fiber age.

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1868 Society & Economy · Politics & Law

The first impeachment of a U.S. president

On February 24, 1868, the House impeached Andrew Johnson over a fired cabinet member, a first in American history.

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1582 Science · Mathematics

Why Pope Gregory XIII reformed the calendar in 1582

The 1582 bull Inter gravissimas fixed an 11-minute-a-year error that had pushed Easter's equinox ten days off — and its leap-year rule still holds.

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