On 12 November 1981 Space Shuttle Columbia launched on STS-2, the first time a crewed spacecraft went into space twice. Every earlier crewed capsule, from Mercury and Gemini to Apollo, was discarded or put in a museum after one flight. The Shuttle was designed differently: an orbiter launched with two reusable solid rocket boosters and a disposable external fuel tank, and it landed like a glider on a runway. Over 30 years it flew 135 missions and carried 355 astronauts from 16 countries.

Israeli reports also say the cabinet directed the military to prepare for a possible new attack on Iran.

Angkor, near Siem Reap in northern Cambodia, was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of mainland Southeast Asia between roughly the 9th and 15th centuries. At its height the city spread across about 3,000 square kilometres, making it the largest pre-industrial city on Earth by area. Its growth depended on water: huge reservoirs called barays, along with canals and embankments, stored monsoon rain and carried it to rice fields. That system let farmers harvest more than once a year and fed a very large population through the dry season. The temple complex of Angkor Wat, built in the early 12th century, is the best-known monument and still stands at the heart of the park.