Welcome to Wikipedia

,

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

126,761 active editors
6,963,041 articles in English

From today's featured article

Les Holden (6 March 1895 – 18 September 1932) was a fighter ace of World War I. He joined the Australian Light Horse in May 1915, serving in Egypt and France. In December 1916, he volunteered for the Australian Flying Corps and qualified as a pilot. As a member of No. 2 Squadron, he gained the sobriquets "Lucky Les" and "the homing pigeon" after a series of incidents where he limped back to base in bullet-riddled aircraft. Holden was awarded the Military Cross, achieved five aerial victories, finishing the war as an instructor with No. 6 (Training) Squadron in England, earning the Air Force Cross. After leaving the Australian Flying Corps in 1919, he became a manager at Holden's Motor Body Builders. He joined the part-time Citizen Air Force before starting an air service as a commercial pilot. In 1929, he located Charles Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm in the north-west Australian desert after the pair were reported missing. Holden died while a passenger in a plane that crashed in Australia. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

Grain Belt Brewery

... that the Grain Belt Brewery (pictured) was built with four distinct architectural sections, in homage to the four companies that combined to form it?
... that Madmuin Hasibuan's father punished him for not fasting in Ramadan by not giving him food for three days?
... that SZA named a song after a well-known film director, but was shocked to get his blessing days after release?
... that a former French secret-service agent was responsible for seven out of the 26 Formula One drivers qualifying for the 1980 South African Grand Prix being French?
... that Josaphat Park, according to tradition, was named for its valley's striking resemblance to the Valley of Josaphat in the Holy Land?
... that Deborah D. Rogers used Ann Radcliffe's commonplace book to show that Radcliffe was not driven mad by her Gothic novels, but that she just had asthma?
... that Mammillaria luethyi was not seen for 44 years after being discovered growing in a coffee can on the windowsill of Mrs Crosby's?
... that Zulu prince Hayseed Stephens played in the American Football League?
... that syncing zombie cookies can create a cookie that is almost impossible to delete?

In the news

Ōfunato wildfire

A wildfire (pictured) in Japan's Iwate Prefecture becomes the largest in the country in at least five decades.
Chinese architect Liu Jiakun is awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize.
The United States imposes tariffs on Canada and Mexico and increases tariffs on China, incurring retaliatory tariffs from Canada and China.
Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost soft-lands on the Moon as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.

On this day

March 6

William Speirs Bruce

845 – The Abbasid Caliphate executed 42 Byzantine officials who had been captured in the sack of Amorium of 838 for refusing to convert to Islam.
1447 – Tommaso Parentucelli was elected as Pope Nicholas V in Rome.
1904 – Scottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs Bruce (pictured), the Antarctic region of Coats Land was discovered by the Scotia.
1988 – The Troubles: In Operation Flavius, the Special Air Service killed three volunteers of the Provisional Irish Republican Army conspiring to bomb a parade of British military bands in Gibraltar.
2000 – The Marine Parade Community Building, the mural cladding of which is the largest installation art in Singapore, was opened.

Clark Shaughnessy (b. 1892)
Joseph Berchtold (b. 1897)
Shaukat Aziz (b. 1949)
Cyprien Ntaryamira (b. 1955)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

Philippe Chaperon (1823–1906) was a French painter and scenic designer, particularly known for his work at the Paris Opera. He produced stage designs for the premieres of numerous 19th-century operas, including Verdi's Don Carlos and Aida, Massenet's Le Cid, Saint-Saëns's Henry VIII, part two of Berlioz's Les Troyens, and the first performances in France of Verdi's Otello and Rigoletto and Wagner's Tannhäuser. His painting style was influenced by his architecture studies, such as his debut work exhibited at the Paris Salon, Ruines d'un Temple dans l'Inde. This photographic portrait of Chaperon, taken around 1900, was produced by the studio (a.k.a. atelier) of the French photographer Nadar.

Photograph credit: Atelier Nadar; restored by Adam Cuerden

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: