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Almanac - Thursday 1/2/20

Signage 55 speed limit, bly flickr user David Lofink

It's 55 MPH Speed Limit Day!

Today is Thursday, the 2nd of January of 2020...

It is the second day of the year. 364 days remain until the end of the year

77 days until spring begins

61 days until primaries Tuesday March 3, 2020

(2 months and 1 day from today)

306 days until presidential elections Tuesday November 3, 2020

(10 months and 1 day from today)

The sun rises at 7:25 am 

and sunset will be at 5:03 pm.

We will have 9 hours and 38 minutes of daylight.

The solar transit will be at 12:14 pm.

The first high tide will be at 5:07 am 

and the next high tide at 4:27 pm.

The first low tide will be at 11:19 am 

and the next low tide at 10:35 pm.

The Moon is 44.0% visible; a Waxing Crescent

Moon Direction: 345.10° NNW↑

Moon Altitude:-54.88°

Moon Distance: 251297 mi

Next Moonrise: Today at 12:05 pm

First Quarter Moon is later today at 8:45 pm

Full Moon in 8 days on Wednesday the 10th of January of 2020 at 11:21 am; also a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

Last Quarter Moon in 15 days on Friday the 17th of January of 2020 at 4:58 am

New Moon in 22 days on Friday the 24th of January of 2020 at 1:42 pm

Today is…

55 MPH Speed Limit Day

as it was on this day in 1974 – President Richard Nixon signs a bill lowering the maximum U.S. speed limit to 55 MPH in order to conserve gasoline during an OPEC embargo.

Happy Mew Year for Cats Day

International Jewish Book Day

National Buffet Day

National Cream Puff Day

National Motivation and Inspiration Day

National Personal Trainer Awareness Day

National Run it Up the Flagpole and See if Anybody Salutes It Day

National Science Fiction Day

Swiss Cheese Day

World Introvert Day

Today is also…

Ancestry Day in Haiti

Berchtold's Day in Switzerland and Liechtenstein

Carnival Day in Saint Kitts and Nevis

Nyinlong in Bhutan

The first day of Blacks and Whites' Carnival, celebrated until January 7 in southern Colombia

The ninth of the Twelve Days of Christmas

The second day of New Year

a holiday in KazakhstanNorth MacedoniaMauritiusMontenegroNew ZealandRomaniaRussiaSloveniaSwitzerlandUkraine

New Year Holiday in Scotland

Kaapse Klopse in Cape TownSouth Africa

Victory of Armed Forces Day in Cuba

On this day in history…

1788 – Georgia becomes the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution.

1920 – The second Palmer Raid, ordered by the US Department of Justice, results in 6,000 suspected communists and anarchists being arrested and held without trial.

1942 – The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) obtains the conviction of 33 members of a German spy ring headed by Fritz Joubert Duquesne in the largest espionage case in United States history—the Duquesne Spy Ring.

1967 – Ronald Reagan, past movie actor and future President of the United States, is sworn in as Governor of California.

1991 – Sharon Pratt Kelly becomes the first African American woman mayor of a major city and first woman Mayor of the District of Columbia

And if today is your birthday, Happy Birthday To You!  You share this special day with…

1909 – Barry Goldwater, American politician, businessman, and author (d. 1998)

1918 – Willi Graf, German physician and activist (d. 1943)

1928 – Dan Rostenkowski, American politician (d. 2010)

1936 – Roger Miller, American singer-songwriter, musician, and actor (d. 1992)

1940 – Jim Bakker, American televangelist

1942 – Dennis Hastert, American educator and politician, 59th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

1967 – Tia Carrere, American actress

1968 – Cuba Gooding, Jr., American actor and producer