Welcome to Wikipedia

,

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

117,922 active editors
6,998,582 articles in English

From today's featured article

An RATP Group electric Heuliez Bus shuttles athletes from the Olympic Village.

Transportation during the 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics constituted a major challenge for the organisers due to the scale of the event. Over €500 million was invested in improvements to transportation infrastructure for the games. A mobile app was developed to facilitate travel by offering a route calculator, and 5,000 agents were deployed at stations and bus stops to assist travellers. A goal of Paris 2024 was to halve the average carbon footprint of the London 2012 and Rio 2016 games. The organisers estimated that more than a third of the greenhouse gas emissions would be from the transport of athletes and spectators. All venues were made accessible by public transport and bicycle, with 415 kilometres (258 mi) of cycle paths created to link the venues and 27,000 bicycle racks installed. Public transport was extended and services increased. The goal was met, with an estimated 54.6% reduction, representing 1.59 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

Taraxacum mongolicum flower in bloom

... that Taraxacum mongolicum (pictured) was first mentioned in writing in the Xinxiu bencao as a medicinal plant in 659 AD?
... that the Oslo study withheld treatment from 2,000 patients with syphilis?
... that just after the 1945 liberation of Korea, the remnants of the Japanese colonial government used armed guards to prevent Koreans from seizing the printing equipment of the newspaper Keijō nippō?
... that Sheffield Wednesday required a "miracle" to qualify for the 2023 EFL League One play-off final?
... that Pope Leo XIV descends from Creole people of color?
... that the Theban general Pelopidas set out for the Battle of Cynoscephalae even after his army was disbanded?
... that Hannah Fry once compared Elizabeth II's Christmas messages with the lyrics of Snoop Dogg using mathematics?
... that Stray Kids is the first act to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with their first six chart entries?
... that an Indiana TV station promised to begin broadcasting New Year's Eve — but only made it in time for Chinese New Year's Eve?

In the news

Nicușor Dan

Author Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi win the International Booker Prize for Heart Lamp: Selected Stories.
Nicușor Dan (pictured) is elected as president of Romania.
In the Portuguese legislative election, the Democratic Alliance wins the most seats in parliament.
Austria, represented by JJ with the song "Wasted Love", wins the Eurovision Song Contest.
A tornado outbreak leaves at least 27 people dead in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States.

On this day

May 26: Memorial Day (2025) in the United States; National Sorry Day in Australia; Independence Day in Georgia (1918), Lag BaOmer (Judaism, 2024)

Damage to the Interstate 40 bridge

1644 – Portuguese Restoration War: Portuguese and Spanish forces both claimed victory at the Battle of Montijo.
1894 – Germany's Emanuel Lasker defeated Wilhelm Steinitz to become the world chess champion, beginning a record 27-year reign.
1999 – Manchester United won the UEFA Champions League final to become the first English football club to win three major championships in the same season.
2002 – Barges being towed destroyed part of a bridge (aftermath pictured) near Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, causing vehicles to fall into the Robert S. Kerr Reservoir on the Arkansas River.

Augustine of Canterbury (d. 604)
Isaac Franklin (b. 1789)
Jeremy Corbyn (b. 1949)
Elizabeth Peer (d. 1984)

More anniversaries:

From today's featured list

Tom Cruise

Top Gun: Maverick, a 2022 American action drama film directed by Joseph Kosinski, garnered accolades in a variety of categories, with particular recognition for Tom Cruise's (pictured) performance as well as its sound and visual effects, cinematography, and film editing. It received six nominations at the 95th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won Best Sound. At the 76th British Academy Film Awards, The film was nominated for Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Sound, and Best Special Visual Effects. Maverick received six nominations at the 28th Critics' Choice Awards and won Best Cinematography. It garnered two nominations at the 80th Golden Globe Awards. In addition to two National Board of Review Awards, Maverick was named one of the ten-best films of 2022 by the American Film Institute. (Full list...)

Recently featured:

Today's featured picture

The bluespotted ribbontail ray (Taeniura lymma) is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae. Found from the intertidal zone to a depth of 30 m (100 ft), this species is common throughout the tropical Indian and western Pacific Oceans in nearshore, coral reef-associated habitats. It is a fairly small ray, not exceeding 35 cm (14 in) in width, with a mostly smooth, oval pectoral fin disc, large protruding eyes, and a relatively short and thick tail with a deep fin fold underneath. It can be easily identified by its striking color pattern of many electric blue spots on a yellowish background, with a pair of blue stripes on the tail. This bluespotted ribbontail ray was photographed in the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt.

Photograph credit: Diego Delso

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – The central hub for editors, with resources, links, tasks, and announcements.
Village pump – Forum for discussions about Wikipedia itself, including policies and technical issues.
Site news – Sources of news about Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement.
Teahouse – Ask basic questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Help desk – Ask questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Reference desk – Ask research questions about encyclopedic topics.
Content portals – A unique way to navigate the encyclopedia.

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects: