October 5
October 5 is the 279th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 87 days remain until the year's end. It falls in autumn (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Libra.
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Astronomy
On October 5 the Sun's declination is approximately -6.2°. At this latitude the Sun is south of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere shorter 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 October 5.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- World Space Week (October 4–10)
- Armed Forces Day (Indonesia)
- Christian feast day: Anna Schäffer
- Christian feast day: Faustina Kowalska
- Christian feast day: Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos (Roman Catholic Church)
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
2021 — Windows 11 is released to the general public. ↗(5 years ago)more
Windows 11 is the current major release of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system, released on October 5, 2021, as the successor to Windows 10 (2015). It is available as a free upgrade for devices running Windows 10 that meet its system requirements. The Windows Server counterpart, Windows Server 2025, was released in 2024.
2011 — In the Mekong River massacre, two Chinese cargo boats are hijacked and 13 crew members murdered. ↗(15 years ago)more
The Mekong River massacre occurred on the morning of 5 October 2011, when two Chinese cargo ships were attacked on a stretch of the Mekong River in the Golden Triangle region on the borders of Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand. All 13 crew members on both ships were killed and dumped in the river.
2000 — Mass demonstrations in Serbia force the resignation of Slobodan Milošević. ↗(26 years ago)more
The overthrow of Slobodan Milošević, president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, began after the general election on 24 September 2000 and culminated on 5 October 2000. It is commonly referred to as the 5 October Revolution or as the Bulldozer Revolution, after an event during the day-long protest in which a heavy equipment operator charged the Radio...
1999 — The Ladbroke Grove rail crash in West London kills 31 people. ↗(27 years ago)more
The Ladbroke Grove rail crash occurred on 5 October 1999 at Ladbroke Grove in London, England, when a Thames Trains passenger train passed a signal at danger, colliding almost head-on with a First Great Western passenger train. With 31 people killed and 417 injured, it was one of the worst rail accidents in 20th-century British history.
1994 — Swiss police find the bodies of 48 members of the Order of the Solar Temple, who had died in a cult mass murder-suicide. ↗(32 years ago)more
The Order of the Solar Temple, or simply the Solar Temple, was a new religious movement and secret society, often described as a cult, notorious for the mass deaths of many of its members in several mass murders and suicides throughout the 1990s.
1991 — An Indonesian Air Force C-130 crash kills 135 people. ↗(35 years ago)more
On 5 October 1991, an Indonesian Air Force Lockheed C-130H-30 Hercules crashed shortly after takeoff from Jakarta-Halim Perdana Kusuma Airport due to an engine fire. It killed all but 1 of the 134 people onboard with an additional 2 people on the ground.
- 1990 — After 150 years The Herald newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, is published for the last time as a separate newspaper. ↗(36 years ago)
more
The Herald was a morning – and later – evening broadsheet newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia, from 3 January 1840 to 5 October 1990. It later merged with its sister morning newspaper The Sun News-Pictorial to form the Herald-Sun.
1988 — A Chilean opposition coalition defeats Augusto Pinochet in his re-election attempt. ↗(38 years ago)more
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte was a Chilean army officer and military dictator who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990. He led the military junta that overthrew President Salvador Allende in 1973 and established a dictatorship. He was proclaimed President of Chile in 1974 and served until 1990, when he stepped down to pave the way for democratic elections.
1985 — Seven Israeli vacationers, including four children, are killed in a mass shooting at Ras Burqa in the Sinai Peninsula by an Egyptian soldier. ↗(41 years ago)more
The Ras Burqa massacre was a mass shooting on 5 October 1985 on Israeli vacationers in Ras Burqa, a beach resort area in the Sinai peninsula, in which seven people, including four children, were killed by Egyptian soldier Suleiman Khater.
1984 — Marc Garneau becomes the first Canadian in space. ↗(42 years ago)more
Joseph Jean-Pierre Marc Garneau was a Canadian Armed Forces officer, astronaut and politician. Garneau served as a naval officer before being selected as an astronaut as part of the 1983 NRC Group. He became the first Canadian in space on October 5, 1984, and flew on three Space Shuttle missions.
1982 — Tylenol products are recalled after bottles in Chicago laced with cyanide cause seven deaths. ↗(44 years ago)more
Tylenol is a brand of medication, advertised for reducing pain, reducing fever, and relieving the symptoms of allergies, cold, cough, headache, and influenza. An active ingredient in these medications is acetaminophen (paracetamol), an analgesic and antipyretic, although other ingredients with significant effects are included in some variants.
1974 — Bombs planted by the PIRA in pubs in Guildford kill four British soldiers and one civilian. ↗(52 years ago)more
The Provisional Irish Republican Army, officially known as the Irish Republican Army and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reunification and bring about an independent socialist republic encompassing all of Ireland.
Notable births
2006 — Jacob Tremblay, Canadian actor ↗(20 years ago)more
Jacob Tremblay is a Canadian actor. He became known for his role as a child born in captivity in Room (2015), for which he won the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer and became the youngest nominee for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
1999 — Washington Sundar, Indian cricketer ↗(27 years ago)more
Washington Sundar is an Indian international cricketer. He plays for the India national team as an all-rounder, who bats left-handed and bowls right-arm off-spin. He represents Tamil Nadu in domestic cricket and Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League.
1998 — Exequiel Palacios, Argentine footballer ↗(28 years ago)more
Exequiel Alejandro Palacios is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and the Argentina national team.
- 1997 — Michael Hoecht, Canadian American football player ↗(29 years ago)
more
Michael Hoecht is a Canadian professional football defensive end for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Brown Bears.
1993 — Jewell Loyd, American basketball player ↗(33 years ago)more
Jewell Loyd is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Nicknamed the "Gold Mamba", she played college basketball at Notre Dame and was selected first overall by the Seattle Storm in the 2015 WNBA draft.
1993 — Wakamotoharu Minato, Japanese sumo wrestler ↗(33 years ago)more
Wakamotoharu Minato is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima. He wrestles for the Arashio stable, where he is a stable mate of his brothers Wakatakakage and Wakatakamoto. His highest rank to date has been sekiwake.
Notable deaths
2024 — Robert Coover, American novelist (born 1932) ↗(2 years ago)more
Robert Lowell Coover was an American novelist, short story writer, and T. B. Stowell Professor Emeritus in Literary Arts at Brown University. He is generally considered a writer of fabulation and metafiction. He became a proponent of electronic literature and was a founder of the Electronic Literature Organization.
2017 — Eberhard van der Laan, Dutch politician, mayor of Amsterdam (born 1955) ↗(9 years ago)more
Eberhard Edzard van der Laan was a Dutch politician who served as Minister for Housing, Communities and Integration from 2008 to 2010 and Mayor of Amsterdam from 2010 until his death in 2017. He was a member of the Labour Party (PvdA).
- 2016 — Brock Yates, American journalist and author (born 1933) ↗(10 years ago)
more
Brock Yates was a prominent American journalist, TV commentator, TV reporter, screenwriter, and author. He was the longtime executive editor at Car and Driver magazine—and contributed to The Washington Post, Playboy, The American Spectator, Boating, Vintage Motorsports, as well as other publications.
2015 — Chantal Akerman, Belgian-French actress, director, and producer (born 1950) ↗(11 years ago)more
Chantal Anne Akerman was a Belgian filmmaker, artist, and film professor at the City College of New York (2011–2015).
2015 — Joker Arroyo, Filipino lawyer and politician (born 1927) ↗(11 years ago)more
Ceferino "Joker" Paz Arroyo Jr. was a Filipino statesman and key figure in the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos. He was a Congressman for Makati from 1992 to 2001 and Senator from 2001 to 2013. Arroyo received various awards and commendations for his significant contributions to the law profession and public service.
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (279) | 3^2 × 31 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (87) | 3 × 29 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 05102026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | -6.18° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 76 days |