Five Things to Know Today, Jan. 19

What? It's Thursday already? Well, welcome to it. Let's get started before Friday gets here. Here are some things to know today.

The weather: Sunshine for most of the day, with a high of about 55 degrees, the National Weather Service says. The low tonight will be around 38.

Gas prices: The lowest price in Lilburn reported to www.georgiagasprices.com on Wednesday was 6 cents higher than a day earlier. Prices started at $3.35 Wednesday (at Kroger, 4155 Lawrenceville Hwy at Beaver Ruin Road; at Citgo, 1218 Turner Road at Five Forks Trickum; and at Murphy USA, 3950 Lawrenceville Hwy near Lester Road). The highest price was $3.39 (at Texaco, 4090 Five Forks Trickum at Killian Hill Road).

The edge of our solar system. NASA launched its New Horizons spacecraft on this day in 2006 on a nine-year flight to Pluto and its moons. New Horizons is packed with instruments meant to probe the icy outermost reaches of our planetary system. NASA says the 1,054-pound, piano-sized spacecraft is on track to reach Pluto in July 2015, more than 3 billion miles away. Once it examines Pluto, the craft’s mission may be extended to the Kuiper Belt of objects beyond Pluto that also orbit the sun.

Nevermore. One of America’s most famous and haunting authors, Gothic writer Edgar Allen Poe was born on this day in 1809. His works are still in print and widely read, including “The Raven,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and the 1841 short story “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” considered the first modern detective tale. Poe died under shady circumstances at age 40
in Baltimore, where his museum stands and his gravesite attracts visitors around this time of year.

Dance time. Want to get out on the floor? There’ll be a Line and Swing Dance Marathon on Saturday night hosted by the Gwinnett Parks Department at the Best Friend Park gym on Jimmy Carter Blvd. in Norcross. There’ll be country, hip-hop, and pop music for all levels of dancing in line and swing, for ages 15 and up. The parks department provides beverages and asks that you bring a dish to share. The cost is $4 per person for county residents and you can call 770.417.2212.for registration info.