May 15
May 15 is the 136th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 230 days remain until the year's end. It falls in spring (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Taurus.
Day of year
136
Days remaining
230
ISO week
20
Zodiac
Taurus
Season
Spring
Sun declination
+19.0°
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 →
— ad slot (replace with AdSense ins tag) —
Astronomy
Computed via Cooper's formula. Positive declination = Sun north of the celestial equator (Northern Hemisphere summer).
On May 15 the Sun's declination is approximately +19.0°. 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 15.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- International Day of Families (UN)
- Nakba Day (Palestinian remembrance)
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
- 1602 — English navigator Bartholomew Gosnold became the first European to land on Cape Cod. ↗(424 years ago)
- 1718 — James Puckle, a London lawyer, patented the world's first automatic gun. ↗(308 years ago)
- 1940 — Nylon stockings went on sale for the first time across the United States. ↗(86 years ago)
- 1955 — The Austrian State Treaty was signed, restoring Austrian sovereignty. ↗(71 years ago)
Notable births
Notable deaths
- 1886 — Emily Dickinson, American poet. ↗(140 years ago)
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (136) | 2^3 × 17 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (230) | 2 × 5 × 23 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 15052026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | +19.02° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 36 days |