August 3 1452 – 18 Av 5212
Birth date of Abraham Zacuto, a Sephardic Jewish astronomer, astrologer, mathematician, mystic, and historian. His first book, describing the solar system, was written between 1473 and 1478. Zacuto was among those appointed by King John II of Portugal to invent astronomic instruments for his mariners and explorers, including Vasco de Gama, discoverer of the sea route to India. The Zagut on the Moon crater is named after Zacuto. One of the few Jews who escaped Portugal as King Manuel I forcibly baptized all his Jewish subjects, Zacuto passed away in Jerusalem after many years of wandering. The Zagut moon crater is named after him.