Friday, April 10, 2026

Connor Forbes
Connor Forbes
4 Min Read
President Richard Nixon Visits Beijing for a ping pong exhibition game in 1972, a year after the first American delegation of any kind had set foot in Beijing since 1949. Nixon was the first president ever to visit China. U.S. National Archives

April 10

By The Associated Press

Today is Friday, April 10, the 100th day of 2026. There are 265 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On April 10, 1971, the U.S. table tennis team arrived in China at the invitation of the communist government for a goodwill visit that came to be known as “ping-pong diplomacy.”

Also on this date:

In 1815, Indonesia’s Mount Tambora exploded in the biggest known volcanic eruption in 1,000 years, one that altered global weather. About 92,000 people are thought to have died, including 82,000 who perished of starvation and disease and 10,000 killed by its direct impact.

In 1866, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was founded in New York by Henry Bergh.

In 1912, the British liner RMS Titanic set sail from Southampton, England, bound for New York on its ill-fated maiden voyage.

In 1919, Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata was assassinated by forces loyal to President Venustiano Carranza.

In 1963, the nuclear submarine USS Thresher (SSN-593) sank during deep-diving tests east of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, killing all 129 aboard.

In 1998, the Northern Ireland peace talks concluded as negotiators signed the Good Friday Agreement, a landmark settlement to end 30 years of bitter rivalries and bloody attacks.

In 2010, a plane crashed on approach in dense fog to the Smolensk airport in Russia, killing Polish President Lech Kaczynski, the first lady and 94 other government and armed forces figures as well as many prominent Poles.

In 2019, scientists released the first image ever made of a black hole, revealing a fiery, doughnut-shape object in a galaxy 55 million light-years from earth.

In 2023, a Louisville bank employee armed with a rifle opened fire at his workplace, killing five people while livestreaming the attack on Instagram. Police arrived as shots were still being fired inside Old National Bank and killed the shooter in an exchange of gunfire.

Today’s Birthdays: Labor leader-activist Dolores Huerta is 96. Football Hall of Famer Mel Blount is 78. Author Anne Lamott is 72. Singer-producer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds is 67. Musician Brian Setzer is 67. Singer Kenny Lattimore is 56. Rapper-producer Q-Tip (A Tribe Called Quest) is 56. Singer Shemekia Copeland is 47. Actor Charlie Hunnam is 46. Actor-singer Mandy Moore is 42. Actor Haley Joel Osment is 38. Country singer Maren Morris is 36. Actor-singer AJ Michalka (mish-AL’-kah) is 35. Actor Daisy Ridley is 34. Singer-actor Sofia Carson is 33.

For More This Date in History Visit www.zapinin.com

April 10. President Richard Nixon Visits Beijing for a ping pong exhibition game in 1972, a year after the first American delegation of any kind had set foot in Beijing since 1949. Nixon was the first president ever to visit China.  Credit: U.S. National Archives
President Richard Nixon Visits Beijing for a ping pong exhibition game in 1972, a year after the first American delegation of any kind had set foot in Beijing since 1949. Nixon was the first president ever to visit China. U.S. National Archives
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