

The Terrifying Mount St. Helens Eruption is Captured by the Robert Landsburg Photographs
May 18, 1980 Proved To Be A Fateful Day
Freelance photographer Robert Landsburg perished while capturing images of Mount St. Helens on the day it erupted.
Robert Landsberg was within four miles from the summit when the huge volcano erupted. He had been going to the mountain since April and was there particularly to record the incident. He had made several successful travels during that period by going above and beyond and ascending to various vantage spots.
The outcome? He eventually managed to capture the evolving volcano that had been erupting for several weeks. However, on that crucial day, this did not shield him.
Who Was Robert Landsburg?

November 1931 saw Robert Landsburg’s birth, and he died on May 18, 1980. He was born in Seattle, Washington, and at the time of his death, he was a resident of Portland, Oregon.
There isn’t much information available about him save his great contributions to photography and study. Ironically, there are not many images of him online.
Documenting A Natural Disaster

The dedicated photographer produced a journal post on May 17 while setting up camp close to the volcano. The volcano “Feels just on the verge of anything,” he observed. He had no supporting scientific proof for this remark, though. His stomach sensed it. Volcanologists were monitoring everything from emissions to ground temperature to the speed of “bulge movement.”
Their tools could not compete with Landsburg’s intuition.
It was fateful on May 18. He could make out the distant boom. Unfortunately, it wasn’t “far” enough. He was aware that he would not be able to flee the explosion in time to rescue himself.
He continued to take pictures up until the very end as a result. He then removed the roll of film from his camera, put it in a case, and stowed it away in his bag. Then, in order to help preserve things as much as possible, he placed his body down on his backpack as his last act of self-sacrifice.
17 days later, his body was discovered. His film was unharmed, but he was covered in ash. The National Geographic magazine’s January issue included some of his amazing photographs.
Landsburg Wasn’t The Only Photographer There To Capture The Day

On May 18, Reid Blackburn, a photojournalist, also passed dead. He was employed by both National Geographic magazine and a nearby newspaper.
He has till May 17 to remain atop the mountain. Sadly, he chose to stay an extra few days. The landslide and pyroclastic flow that resulted from the eruption completely wrecked the area where he was shooting.
The day after the explosion, they found Blackburn’s body. He had no chance of surviving because the windows of his car were covered in ash. The car was facing away from the mountain, and he was still sat at the wheel. This suggests that he was attempting to escape his demise but was unable to do so.
It seemed for years that none of his photographs could be saved. Nevertheless, several of his photographs were found in an undeveloped roll in 2013 by a photo assistant at The Columbian, where he worked.
40 Years Later, A Legacy Remembered

40 years after his passing, Robert Landsburg’s legacy is still very much alive. Of course, they’ve been able to restore his photos a lot thanks to the development of digital processing and media over the previous 40 years.
What some people will do for their trade is amazing. Robert Landsburg was a true adventurer since he was aware that he might perish at any time.
Mount St. Helens’ cataclysmic eruption claimed the lives of 57 people. I pray for their eternal peace.

The beauty and uniqueness of Fukang Meteorite
This Fukang meteorite is around 4.5 billion years old and weighs more than 2,000 pounds. It was discovered in China in 2014 and is assumed to have formed when our solar system initially formed.

Frank Lentini, The Three-Legged Sideshow Performer
Francesco Lentini was a man with three legs, four feet, sixteen toes, and two sets of functional male genitals. He worked for the circus and lived to be 78 years old.

Morgan’s Wonderland, the world’s first ultra-accessible amusement park
Gordon Hartman was heartbroken when his special needs daughter, Morgan, was rejected by a group of children playing by the hotel poolside. He then set out to build a place where all children can play together. This led to the development of the world’s first ultra-accessible amusement park, Morgan’s Wonderland

Troy Leon Gregg: the death row inmate murdered the same night he escaped
In July 1980, Troy Leon Gregg escaped from Georgia State Prison the night before his execution. However, he was killed in a fight in a bar just a few hours later.

A man who was saved from committing suicide 16 years ago now assists people dealing with mental health issues
Kevin Berthia traveled to the Golden Gate Bridge in 2005 to commit suicide. He ended up spending 92 minutes on the edge of the bridge talking to officer Kevin Briggs about his life. In much better circumstances, they cross paths at the same bridge ten years later.

Drive-Thru Weddings in Las Vegas: The Ultimate Fast, Fun, and Legal Way to Say “I Do”
Inspired by fast food convenience, Las Vegas offers drive-thru weddings where couples can legally marry in under 5 minutes—without leaving their car. Some chapels even offer curbside Elvis impersonators and 24/7 ceremonies, complete with “to-go” marriage licenses.

Photos: This man sold everything 45 years ago to buy a bike and travel 6,000 miles from India to Sweden to see his love.
An Indian man traveled from India to Sweden on a bicycle to meet his Swedish wife in 1978. The journey took him 4 months and through eight countries.

Man's Blood Helped Save Millions of Babies
Australian blood donor James Harrison has been one of our most impressive and valued donors, having donated for 60 years. Know his story, how he was a pioneer of our Anti-D program, and why this matters.

People are freaked out because they keep finding 'help me' messages under the cap of Sobe bottles
With their bottle caps that said, "Help me, I'm trapped in SoBe factory," SoBe Beverage discovered the hard way that forced labor is serious business. This is an example of when humor can be overdone.

Australian man dies, comes back to life, and wins the lottery twice
Bill Morgan, an Australian, is a man who has beat the odds. He escaped death by surviving a horrific automobile accident and heart attack before collapsing into a coma and going on to win the lotto twice. He went from losing virtually everything to winning far more than he could have imagined.

The Inspiring Journey of Francis Tsai, Marvel Comics artist diagnosed with ALS
Francis Tsai, an American illustrator and conceptual artist who worked for Marvel Comics, was diagnosed with ALS in 2010. After he lost the ability to move his hands and arms, he started painting digitally on his cellphone with his right big toe. After he could not move his feet anymore, he began using eye-gaze technology to keep drawing.

'Press Your Luck' Was Hacked in 1984 by an Ice Cream Man
in 1984 an contestant made it onto the game show Press Your Luck. He discovered using his stop-motion VCR that the presumed random patterns of the game board were not random and memorized the sequences. On the game he was on, he won 45 consecutive spins. winning $110,237 in cash & prizes.

The fearless Annie Lee Cooper
Annie Lee Cooper was fired in 1963 after attempting to register to vote. She attempted it once more in 1965, but the sheriff ordered her to leave after prodding her in the neck with a club. She then punched him, causing him to fall to the ground. She was imprisoned before ultimately registering to vote. Following the passage of the Voting Rights Act, the sheriff was ousted and subsequently imprisoned for collaborating to transport drugs, but Annie Lee Cooper lived to reach 100 years old and bears her name to this day.

How Magic Johnson Missed Out On $7 Billion Nike deal
Magic Johnson turned down a deal with Nike in 1979 that offered him 100,000 shares of stock and $1 for every pair of shoes sold. Instead, he chose Converse, which offered him $100,000 per year. Johnson lost about $5 billion by declining the Nike deal.

A man joins a search operation without realizing he is the missing person
Beyhan Mutlu, a Turkish national, was reported missing by local media and unintentionally joined search teams looking for himself in a forest. He was drunk and lost in the woods when he ended up in a group with others looking for himself.

How Being Bugs Bunny Helped This Voice Actor Out of Coma
Mel Blanc; the voice of Bugs Bunny, had been in a serious car accident that put him in a coma. After many unsuccessful attempts to get him to talk, a doctor asked “Bugs, can you hear me” Mel responded in the voice of bugs bunny, “Whats up, Doc? The doctors used this to lead him out of his coma.

Lafayette pizza delivery driver who saved 5 from burning house
Nicholas Bostic a 25-year-old pizza delivery man from Lafayette, Indiana, ran into a burning house to rescue four children, who told him there is one more inside. He ran back inside, he found the six-year-old girl, jumped out of a window, carried her to a cop who captured the moment on his bodycam.

Mom hears son's heartbeat 3 years after his death when she meets organ recipient
She agreed to donate her son's organs after his sudden death in June 2013 at the age of 7 months. The grieving mother was able to listen to her late son’s heart beating inside the little girl who received the organ after his death.

The accidentally discovery of Riace bronzes
Stefano Mariottini was snorkeling off the coast of Monasterace near Riace in 1972 when he noticed a human hand sticking out of the sand and called the police, thinking it was a corpse. It was actually two statues of "Warriors from Riace" - 5th century BC Greek bronze statues.

World's largest iceberg breaks off Antarctica
In 1986, the iceberg known as A23a broke away from the Antarctic coast. However, it quickly grounded in the Weddell Sea, effectively turning into an ice island.

Missing Masterpiece Discovered in the Background of ‘Stuart Little’
In 2009, Gergely Barki, an art historian, was watching the film Stuart Little (1999) when he spotted an original long-lost painting used as a prop. Called Sleeping Lady with Black Vase, this painting was the work of Hungarian avant-garde painter Róbert Berény. The painting had been considered lost after World War II.

Billy Ray Harris: A Story of Kindness and Honesty
In 2013, a homeless man named Billy Ray Harris discovered a $4,000 engagement ring in this cup. A woman had dropped while giving him some change. He returned the ring to her two days later. To thank him for his honesty, she set up a fund with the goal of raising $4,000 for him. It earned more than $185,000.

The actions of a 7-year-old girl protected her mother from bullets
A 7-year-old girl jumped in front of her mother to save her from a man who was attempting to kill her in 2007. She was shot six times and survived, as well as saving her mother.

From Ocean Trash to Trendy Kicks: Adidas Sells 1 Million Eco-Friendly Shoes Made from Plastic Bottles
Adidas has sold over 1 million eco-friendly shoes made from ocean plastic. Each pair reuses the equivalent of 11 plastic bottles

Hyperinflation of the Zimbabwe dollar turning phasing out their local money in 2015
Hyperinflation of the Zimbabwe dollar made it one of the lowest valued currencies in the world. So the country abandoned it in 2009, and switched to using foreign money. In 2015, to complete the process of phasing out their local money, the government offered to exchange it at a rate of one US dollar for 35 quadrillion Zimbabwean dollars.