November 13

On the night of November 12–13, 1833, the Great Meteor Storm inundated the skies with an estimated 240,000 meteors per hour at its peak. Reports described the event as meteors falling like snowflakes, startling and enchanting witnesses from Canada to the Gulf Coast. The storm belongs to the Leonid meteor shower and rekindled scientific interest in meteoric phenomena. Contemporary newspapers and journals recorded vivid eyewitness accounts, inspiring further astronomical studies. It remains one of the most spectacular meteor events ever documented.

On November 13, 2002, a fierce storm breached the hull of the oil tanker MV Prestige off the coast of Galicia, Spain.\nThe damaged vessel, denied port entry, drifted for days before sinking on November 19.\nAn estimated 63,000 metric tons of heavy fuel oil were released into the Atlantic Ocean.\nThe spill contaminated over 1,000 kilometers of shoreline, imperiling marine life and coastal communities.\nCleanup efforts involved thousands of volunteers, military personnel, and environmental agencies.\nLegal battles and policy reforms followed to improve maritime safety and spill response.\nThe Prestige disaster remains a landmark case in environmental protection and corporate accountability.

On November 13, 2012, observers in parts of northern Australia and the South Pacific witnessed a total solar eclipse.\nThe Moon completely obscured the Sun along a narrow path of totality, creating a dramatic daytime darkening.\nSkywatchers on islands such as New Caledonia and Queensland experienced the event in clear weather.\nThe eclipse offered scientists opportunities to study the Sun’s corona and solar wind.\nLocal communities hosted viewing parties and scientific outreach programs.\nAmateur astronomers and photographers captured striking images of the eclipse phases.\nThis celestial event attracted international attention and inspired renewed interest in astronomy.