May 4
May 4 is the 125th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 241 days remain until the year's end. It falls in spring (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Taurus.
Day of year
125
Days remaining
241
ISO week
18
Zodiac
Taurus
Season
Spring
Sun declination
+16.1°
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 May 4 the Sun's declination is approximately +16.1°. At this latitude the Sun is north of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere longer 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 May 4.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- Star Wars Day ("May the 4th be with you")
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
- 1494 — Christopher Columbus first sighted the island of Jamaica. ↗(532 years ago)
- 1626 — Dutch settlers founded New Amsterdam (later New York City). ↗(400 years ago)
- 1886 — The Haymarket affair: a bomb killed seven police officers at a Chicago labour rally. ↗(140 years ago)
- 1970 — Kent State shootings: Ohio National Guardsmen killed four anti-war protesters. ↗(56 years ago)
- 1979 — Margaret Thatcher became the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ↗(47 years ago)
Notable births
Notable deaths
- 1980 — Josip Broz Tito, Yugoslav leader. ↗(46 years ago)
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (125) | 5^3 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (241) | 241 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 04052026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | +16.10° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 47 days |