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Constellation, ship

(Encyclopedia)Constellation kŏnstĭlāˈshən [key], U.S. frigate, launched in 1797. It was named by President Washington for the constellation of 15 stars in the U.S. flag of that time. The frigate was built to s...

torpedo boat

(Encyclopedia)torpedo boat, small fast warship built specially for using the torpedo as a means of attack. The first modern torpedo boat was the Lightning, built for the British navy in 1877 by the shipyards of Sir...

Vance, Cyrus Roberts

(Encyclopedia)Vance, Cyrus Roberts, 1917–2002, U.S. secretary of state (1977–80), b. Clarksburg, W.Va., grad. Yale (B.A., 1939, LL.B., 1942). After seeing action in the Navy during World War II, Vance practiced...

Bigelow, John

(Encyclopedia)Bigelow, John bĭgˈəlō [key], 1817–1911, American editor, author, and diplomat, b. Malden, N.Y. In 1838 he was admitted to the New York bar. From 1848 to 1861 he shared with William Cullen Bryant...

White Sea

(Encyclopedia)White Sea, Rus. Beloye More, c.36,680 sq mi (95,000 sq km), NW European Russia, an inlet of the Barents Sea. Its northern section, opening into the Barents Sea between the Kola and Kanin peninsulas, i...

Vane, Sir Henry, 1613–62, English statesman

(Encyclopedia)Vane, Sir Henry, 1613–62, English statesman; son of Sir Henry Vane (1589–1655). Early converted to Puritanism, he went to New England in 1635 and became governor of Massachusetts in 1636. His reli...

airship

(Encyclopedia)airship, an aircraft that consists of a cigar-shaped gas bag, or envelope, filled with a lighter-than-air gas to provide lift, a propulsion system, a steering mechanism, and a gondola accommodating pa...

Mahan, Alfred Thayer

(Encyclopedia)Mahan, Alfred Thayer məhănˈ [key], 1840–1914, U.S. naval officer and historian, b. West Point, N.Y. A Union naval officer in the Civil War, he later lectured on naval history and strategy at the ...

Johnston Atoll

(Encyclopedia)Johnston Atoll, atoll, 2.8 sq mi (7.25 sq km), central Pacific, c.700 nautical mi (1,300 km) SW of Honolulu, central Pacific, an uninc. territory of the United States. It consists of four islands and ...

Attenborough, Sir David Frederick

(Encyclopedia)Attenborough, Sir David Frederick, 1926–, British naturalist and television personality. After serving in the Royal Navy (1947–49), he worked as an editor, then joined the BBC (1952) as a producer...