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Today's featured article Cyclone Elita was an unusual tropical cyclone that made landfall on Madagascar three times. Elita developed in the Mozambique Channel on January 24, 2004. It strengthened to become a tropical cyclone before striking northwestern Madagascar on January 28. Elita weakened to tropical depression status while crossing the island, and after exiting into the southwest Indian Ocean it turned to the west and moved ashore for a second time on January 31 in eastern Madagascar. After crossing the island, the cyclone intensified again after reaching the Mozambique Channel, and Elita turned to the southeast to make its final landfall on February 3 along southwestern Madagascar. Elita dropped heavy rainfall of over 200 mm (8 inches), which damaged or destroyed thousands of houses in Madagascar. Over 50,000 people were left homeless, primarily in Mahajanga and Toliara provinces. Flooding from the storm damaged or destroyed more than 450 km2 (170 sq mi) of agricultural land, including important crops for food. Across the island, the cyclone caused at least 33 deaths. Elsewhere, the cyclone brought rainfall and damage to Mozambique and Malawi, while its outer circulation produced rough seas and strong winds in Seychelles, Mauritius, and Réunion. (more...) Recently featured: Banksia cuneata – Battle of Barrosa – Rutherford B. Hayes Did you know... From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that the Gilles who was long identified as the subject of Watteau's poignant portrait (pictured) was a lewd and credulous clown who starred in The Shit Merchant? ... that the St. James' Infant School building in Dudley was built on two completely different sites? ... that Vyjayanthimala, who played Chandramukhi in the 1955 film Devdas, declined the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress because she thought that her role was not a supporting one? ... that the parents of Australian national team water polo player Victoria Brown believed that she would be an Olympian in an equestrian event? ... that to gain permission to demolish the Pevely Dairy Company Plant, Saint Louis University threatened to move its medical school out of St. Louis? ... that Polish mathematician Stefan Banach and poet Zbigniew Herbert survived the Holocaust working as feeders of lice?

In the news Vladimir Putin (pictured) is elected President of Russia for a third term. A series of explosions at an arms dump in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, kills at least 246 people and injures hundreds more. A train crash near Szczekociny, Poland, kills 16 people. A tornado outbreak in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States causes at least 39 fatalities. BP agrees to pay US$7.8 billion to plaintiffs affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. English musician Davy Jones, a member of The Monkees, dies at the age of 66. On this day... March 7: Fast of Esther, followed by the beginning of Purim at sunset (Judaism, 2012); Teachers' Day in Albania 1277 – Étienne Tempier, Bishop of Paris, promulgated a Condemnation of 219 philosophical and theological propositions that were being discussed at the University of Paris. 1887 – The North Carolina General Assembly established North Carolina State University (Holladay Hall pictured), today the largest university in North Carolina, as a land grant institution. 1968 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam began Operation Truong Cong Dinh to sweep the area surrounding the Mekong Delta town of My Tho to root out Viet Cong forces in the area. 1985 – The charity single "We Are the World" by the supergroup USA for Africa was released, and would go on to sell over 20 million copies. 2009 – Two off-duty soldiers of the British Army's 38 Engineer Regiment were shot dead by the Real IRA in Antrim town, Northern Ireland. More anniversaries: March 6 – March 7 – March 8 It is now March 7, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture The Laughing Kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae) is a carnivorous bird in the kingfisher family. Native to eastern Australia, it has also been introduced to parts of New Zealand, Tasmania and Western Australia. Male and female adults are similar in plumage, which is predominantly brown and white. A common and familiar bird, this species of kookaburra is well known for its laughing call. Photo: JJ Harrison Recently featured: The Alamo, San Antonio, Texas – Tungsten – Chicago skyline

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