JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
March 13, 1959 - Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory took the first ultraviolet pictures of the sun.
March 14, 1863 - Rear Adm. Farragut's squadron of seven ships forced their way up the Mississippi River to support Union troops at Vicksburg and Baton Rouge.
March 15, 1947 - Ensign John Lee became the first African American officer commissioned in the regular Navy. He was assigned to USS Kearsage.
March 16, 1966 - Former naval aviator Neil Armstrong flew on Gemini 8 which completed seven orbits in 10 hours and 41 minutes at an altitude of 161.3 nautical miles. The capsule was recovered by the USS Leonard F. Mason (DD-852).
March 17, 1959 - USS Skate (SSN-578) surfaced at the North Pole.
March 18, 1974 - Navy sent to sweep mines from the Suez Canal.
March 19, 2003 - Operation Iraqi Freedom began with Tomahawk strikes from Navy ships and submarines.