February 21
February 21 is the 52nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 314 days remain until the year's end. It falls in winter (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Pisces.
Day of year
52
Days remaining
314
ISO week
8
Zodiac
Pisces
Season
Winter
Sun declination
-11.2°
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Wikipedia: this day →Britannica: this day →LoC: Today in History →History.com: this day →On-This-Day.com →BBC: On This Day →NYT: this day →Time and Date →NASA APOD archive →U.S. Naval Observatory →Wolfram|Alpha →Wikidata →Google Books →JSTOR →Internet Archive →
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Astronomy
Computed via Cooper's formula. Positive declination = Sun north of the celestial equator (Northern Hemisphere summer).
On February 21 the Sun's declination is approximately -11.2°. At this latitude the Sun is south of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere shorter days than nights.
For specific rise/set times at your location, see the U.S. Naval Observatory, or the NASA APOD archive for any imagery published on a February 21.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- International Mother Language Day (UN)
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
- 1804 — The first self-propelling steam locomotive made its outing at the Penydarren Ironworks in Wales. ↗(222 years ago)
- 1848 — Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The Communist Manifesto in London. ↗(178 years ago)
- 1885 — The Washington Monument was dedicated. ↗(141 years ago)
- 1965 — Civil-rights leader Malcolm X was assassinated in New York City. ↗(61 years ago)
Notable births
Notable deaths
- 1965 — Malcolm X. ↗(61 years ago)
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (52) | 2^2 × 13 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (314) | 2 × 157 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 21022026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | -11.22° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 63 days |