Construction begins on the Very Large Array in New Mexico
The Very Large Array is the most versatile, widely-used radio telescope in the world.
Engineers
The Panama Canal officially opens
France began work on the canal in 1881, but stopped due to engineering problems and a high worker mortality rate. The United States took over the project in 1904 and opened the canal on August 15, 1914.
The Transcaucasus Railway is completed
The Transcaucasus Railway was the first railway in South Caucasus. It was funded by the Russian Empire as a strategic railway connecting the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea.
The world’s first underground railway, the London Underground, opens
The world’s first underground railway, it opened in January 1863 between Paddington and Farringdon in London using gas-lit wooden carriages hauled by steam locomotives.
Shah Jahan completes construction of the Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal complex is believed to have been completed in its entirety in 1653 at a cost estimated at the time to be around 32 million rupees, which in 2015 would be approximately 52.8 billion rupees (U.S. $827 million).
The Thiên Mụ Pagoda (or Pagoda of the Celestial Lady) is built in Huế, Vietnam
The Pagoda is a historic temple in the city of Huế in Vietnam. Its iconic seven-story pagoda is regarded as the unofficial symbol of the city,[1] and the temple has often been the subject of folk rhymes and ca dao about Huế
The A-Ma Temple is completed in Macau
The A-Ma Temple is a temple to the Chinese sea-goddess Mazu located in São Lourenço, Macau, China. Built in 1488, the temple is one of the oldest in Macau and thought to be the settlement’s namesake.
Construction begins at Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey is a large, mainly Gothic abbey church in London. It is one of the United Kingdom’s most notable religious buildings and the traditional place of coronation and burial site for monarchs.
Construction begins at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris
The cathedral is widely considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture.
Construction of Angkor Wat, massive Hindu temple in modern-day Cambodia, begins
Built between roughly C.E. 1113 and 1150, and encompassing an area of about 500 acres (200 hectares), Angkor Wat is one of the largest religious monuments ever constructed. Its name means “temple city.”