November 30

A woman in Alabama is hit by a meteorite, and Exxon and Mobil merge.

Fri, Nov 30 2012 at 5:00 AM

Nov. 30, 1980: The U.S. Congress passes the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, protecting over 100 million acres of Federal land in Alaska and doubling the acreage included in the National Parks System. President Jimmy Carter signs the bill into law two days later.

Nov. 30, 1954: The old song “Stars Fell on Alabama” comes to life as a meteorite crashes through the roof of a home in Sylacauga, Alabama. The eight-pound space rock enters Ann Elizabeth Hodges’s living room and caroms into her hip and hand, leaving major bruises in the only case of a human being getting smacked with a rock from space.

Nov. 30, 1999: Undoing a major part of the breakup of Standard Oil 88 years earlier, the U.S. Justice Department approves the merger of two of Standard’s largest surviving components, Exxon and Mobil.

Nov. 30, 2006: New Zealand outlaws the killing of great white sharks in its waters, effective in April 2007. There have been no fatal shark attacks in New Zealand waters in four decades, but sharks species are in rapid decline due to overfishing and “finning” for shark fin soup.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

This feature is compiled by Peter Dykstra, an MNN contributor and publisher of Environmental Health News and The Daily Climate.

The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.

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