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December 14

Conrad by Surveyor 3 on the lunar surface

Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the second crewed landing on the Moon. The sixth crewed mission in the U.S. Apollo program, it was launched by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commander Charles "Pete" Conrad and Lunar Module Pilot Alan L. Bean walked on the Moon while Command Module Pilot Richard Gordon remained in orbit. Launched on a rainy day, Apollo 12 was twice struck by lightning; the outward journey otherwise saw few problems. On November 19, Conrad and Bean landed close to the Surveyor 3 probe. This meant NASA could plan future missions expecting a landing close to target. Conrad and Bean carried a group of nuclear-powered instruments, and the first color television camera taken by an Apollo mission to the surface, but the picture was lost after Bean accidentally pointed the camera at the Sun and its sensor burned out. They visited Surveyor 3 and removed parts for return to Earth. The Apollo 12 mission safely returned to Earth on November 24. (Full article...)

December 14: Martyred Intellectuals Day in Bangladesh (1971), Monkey Day

Japanese battlecruiser Haruna

• 1650 – English domestic servant Anne Greene survived being hanged for infanticide.
• 1836 – The Toledo War, a mostly bloodless territorial dispute between Ohio and the Michigan Territory, was unofficially ended with a resolution passed by the controversial "Frostbitten Convention".
• 1913 – Haruna (pictured), the fourth and last Japanese battlecruiser of the Kongō class, was launched and went on to serve in both world wars.
• 2008 – During a press conference in Baghdad, Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw his shoes at U.S. president George W. Bush and Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, yelling "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq".

December 14

Stephanolepis hispidus, commonly known as the planehead filefish, is a species in the filefish family, Monacanthidae. It is found in the Atlantic Ocean at depths of up to 300 metres (980 ft), with its range extending from the Canadian province of Nova Scotia to Uruguay in the west and from the Canary Islands to Angola in the east. It lives near the seabed on reefs and over sandy and muddy sea floors, often being found among Sargassum seaweed. Stephanolepis hispidus grows to a maximum length of 27 centimetres (11 in) but is more typically about 17 centimetres (6.7 in) long. The colour is cryptic, being a more or less mottled pale brown, olive or green on a light coloured background, sometimes with darker brown splotches and streaks. This S. hispidus individual was photographed off the Spanish island of Tenerife. Photograph credit: Diego Delso Recently featured: Stuben am Arlberg Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa Dusky grasswren Archive More featured pictures

December 15

Obverse of the Texas Centennial half dollar

The Texas Centennial half dollar was struck by the U.S. Bureau of the Mint from 1934 to 1938. It features an eagle and the Lone Star of Texas on the obverse (pictured), while the reverse is a complex scene with the winged goddess Victory. Proposed by the American Legion as a fundraiser for the 100th anniversary of Texas independence from Mexico, the coin was approved by Congress in 1933. It was designed by sculptor Pompeo Coppini, and, after initial rejection by the Commission of Fine Arts, the designs were approved and the coins entered production at the Philadelphia Mint in October 1934. The first coins to reach the public were sold by auction in Austin, Texas, on December 15, 1934. Profits from the coins helped finance the Texas Memorial Museum in Austin. Most 1934-dated coins went unsold and were sent back to the Mint. Smaller issues took place each year through 1938. Despite the relative lack of sales, the issue is popular with collectors, with the coins gradually gaining in value. (Full article...)

December 15

American forces at the Battle of Arawe

• 1796 – War of the First Coalition: The French navy launched an expedition to Ireland to assist the Society of United Irishmen in a rebellion against the British.
• 1871 – Sixteen-year-old Ella Stewart sent the first telegraphed message from Arizona Territory.
• 1943 – World War II: Australian and American forces (pictured) began the Battle of Arawe against Japanese forces on New Britain as a diversion before a larger landing at Cape Gloucester.
• 1970 – The Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 touched down on the surface of Venus, making the first successful landing of a spacecraft on another planet.
• 2013 – The South Sudanese Civil War began when three opposition leaders voted to boycott the meeting of the National Liberation Council in Juba.

December 15

Ornge is a Canadian registered charity that provides air ambulance and associated ground transportation services for the province of Ontario, under the direction of the province's Ministry of Health. The name Ornge (pronounced orange) is based on the orange colour of the organization's aircraft and land ambulances. In 2012, the charity and its associated companies employed more than 400 people, including paramedics, pilots and aviation specialists. Ornge has its own aircraft and land ambulances, with 12 bases across Ontario. It also contracts some operations out to independent service providers. This photograph shows an Ornge AgustaWestland AW139 departing from the Grand River Hospital helipad in Kitchener–Waterloo. Photograph credit: The Cosmonaut Recently featured: Stephanolepis hispidus Stuben am Arlberg Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa Archive More featured pictures

December 16

Greek fragment of the Apocalypse of Peter

The Apocalypse of Peter is an apocryphal text of the 2nd century. It is the earliest-written extant work depicting a Christian account of heaven and of hell in detail. The work describes a divine vision experienced by Peter through Jesus Christ. It delves into a vision of the afterlife (katabasis), and details both heavenly bliss for the righteous and infernal punishments for the damned. The punishments are graphically described and loosely correspond to "an eye for an eye": blasphemers are hung by their tongues; liars have their lips cut off; callous rich people are pierced by stones and are dressed in filthy rags; and so on. While the Apocalypse of Peter influenced other early Christian works, it eventually came to be considered inauthentic and was not included in the standard canon of the New Testament. It influenced later works in which the protagonist takes a tour of the realms of the afterlife, including the Apocalypse of Paul, and the Divine Comedy of Dante. (Full article...)

December 16: Day of Reconciliation in South Africa

Boston Tea Party

• 1598 – Led by Admiral Yi Sun-sin, the Korean navy defeated a Japanese fleet at the Battle of Noryang, ending their invasions of the Korean peninsula.
• 1773 – American Revolution: A group of colonists threw chests of tea into Boston Harbor (pictured) to protest British taxation without representation.
• 1938 – Adolf Hitler instituted the Cross of Honour of the German Mother as an order of merit for German mothers with at least four children.
• 1997 – Amid an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the British government banned the sale of beef on the bone for human consumption.
• 2012 – A woman was gang-raped and fatally assaulted on a bus in Delhi, generating protests across India against inadequate security for women.

December 16

Victoria, the capital city of British Columbia

As of 2024, British Columbia has 53 cities out of its 161 municipalities. According to the 2021 Canadian census, British Columbia is the third most populous province in Canada, with 5,000,879 inhabitants, and the fourth largest province by land area, covering 920,686.55 square kilometres (355,479.06 square miles). In order for a municipality in British Columbia to be categorized as a city, it must have a minimum population of 5,000. The largest city by population in British Columbia is Vancouver, with 662,248 residents, and the smallest is Greenwood, with 702 residents. The largest city by land area is Abbotsford, which spans 375.55 square kilometres (145.00 square miles), while the smallest is Duncan, at 2.07 square kilometres (0.80 square miles). Victoria (pictured) is the capital city of British Columbia. (Full list...)

December 16

Caroline Hill was an English actress. She began acting as a child in the company of Samuel Phelps and soon joined the company of J. B. Buckstone at the Haymarket Theatre. There she created roles in several new plays, including some by W. S. Gilbert, in whose plays she continued to act later in her career. She played at various London and provincial theatres in the 1870s. Hill married actor Herbert Kelcey in 1883, with whom she had begun to appear on stage. The couple played mostly in New York City in the 1880s, and Hill continued to act through the 1890s, mostly in England. This 1870 photograph shows Hill as Mirza in a production of W.S. Gilbert's The Palace of Truth. Photograph credit: London Stereoscopic and Photographic Company; restored by Adam Cuerden Recently featured: Ornge Stephanolepis hispidus Stuben am Arlberg Archive More featured pictures

December 17

1271 Avenue of the Americas is a 48-story skyscraper on Sixth Avenue, between 50th Street and 51st Street, in Midtown Manhattan, a neighborhood of New York City. Designed by Wallace Harrison of Harrison, Abramovitz, and Harris, the building was developed between 1956 and 1960 as part of Rockefeller Center. The building's eight-story base partially wraps around its 48-story main shaft. The facade comprises glass panels between limestone columns. The lobby has walls of white marble and stainless steel walls, and red-burgundy glass ceilings, with artwork by Josef Albers, Fritz Glarner, and Francis Brennan. The ground floor also includes storefronts. Each of the upper floors covers 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m²), with the offices arranged around the core. Construction started in May 1957, the building was topped out during November 1958, and the occupants took possession in late 1959. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the lobby as a city landmark in 2002. (Full article...)

December 17: Pan American Aviation Day and Wright Brothers Day in the United States; International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers

Memorial to victims killed during the 1970 Polish protests

• 942 – William Longsword of Normandy was ambushed and assassinated by supporters of Arnulf I, Count of Flanders, while the two were at a peace conference to settle their differences.
• 1948 – The Finnish Security Police was established to remove communist leadership from its predecessor, the State Police.
• 1967 – Harold Holt, Prime Minister of Australia, disappeared while swimming near Portsea, Victoria; his body was never recovered.
• 1970 – Polish soldiers fired at workers (memorial pictured) emerging from trains in Gdynia, beginning the government's crackdown on mass anti-communist protests across the country.
• 2010 – Arab Spring: Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian street vendor, set himself on fire in protest against police harassment, triggering the Tunisian revolution.

December 17

The Mauritius fody (Foudia rubra) is a rare and endangered species of bird in the weaver family, Ploceidae. It is endemic to the island of Mauritius, where it resides in several types of forest, including degraded areas, as well as plantations. The Mauritius fody has a length of around 14 cm, with breeding males having olive brown colouration with a red head, breast and rump patch and black lores. Females, non-breeding males and juveniles are olive brown with white wing bars and a brown bill. The bird feeds on insects like grasshoppers, beetle larvae, caterpillars, and also spiders. Berries are eaten regularly by some individuals, and it feeds on nectar regularly, using its specialised brush-tipped tongue. This male Mauritius fody was photographed on the Île aux Aigrettes, an island off Mauritius's south-eastern coast. Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp Recently featured: Caroline Hill Ornge Stephanolepis hispidus Archive More featured pictures

December 18

John Neal

American Writers is an 1824–25 work of literary criticism by American writer and critic John Neal (pictured). Published by Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, it is the first history of American literature and the first substantial work of criticism concerning US authors. Using no reference materials, Neal made multiple factually inaccurate claims about many of the more than 120 authors covered. Scholars nevertheless praise the staying power of his opinions, many of which are reflected by other critics decades later. Neal also argued American literature relied too much on British precedent and had failed to develop its own voice. Neal wrote the series in London under an English pseudonym, which convinced few readers. American Writers was well received in the UK but drew considerable ire in the US, particularly from William Lloyd Garrison. Neal was met with hostility and a fistfight on an 1827 visit to his hometown of Portland, Maine; he relocated there and remained until his death forty-nine years later. (Full article...)

December 18: National Day in Qatar (1878)

Atlas rocket carrying SCORE

• 1622 – Portuguese forces and their Imbangala allies defeated the Kongo army at the Battle of Mbumbi.
• 1932 – Playing indoors at Chicago Stadium on a modified American football field, the Chicago Bears defeated the Portsmouth Spartans in the first playoff game of the National Football League.
• 1958 – The United States launched SCORE (rocket pictured), the world's first communications satellite.
• 1963 – Ghanaian and other African students organized a protest in Moscow's Red Square in response to the alleged murder of medical student Edmund Assare-Addo.
• 2017 – An Amtrak Cascades passenger train derailed near DuPont, Washington, killing three people and injuring sixty-five others.

December 18

Since 18 December 2023, a series of volcanic eruptions has been ongoing in the Reykjanes Peninsula, near the town of Grindavík, Iceland. The eruptions, of which there have been seven so far, began after an intense series of earthquakes in November 2023. Although localised, the seismic and volcanic activity have caused significant disruption across the western part of the peninsula, especially for the town of Grindavík. This 18 December 2023 Icelandic Meteorological Office photograph shows the first eruption, in the Sundhnúksgígar crater chain. Photograph credit: Icelandic Meteorological Office Recently featured: Mauritius fody Caroline Hill Ornge Archive More featured pictures

December 19

SMS Niobe was a light cruiser of the Gazelle class, built for the Imperial German Navy. Launched in 1899, Niobe was armed with ten 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns and had a top speed of 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph). The ship served as a flotilla leader for torpedo boats, a scout for the fleet, and a station ship with the East Asia Squadron. In World War I, Niobe helped defend Germany's North Sea coast. One of the cruisers permitted Germany by the Treaty of Versailles, Niobe was modernized, but was sold in 1925 to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia). Renamed Dalmacija the vessel served until April 1941, when she was captured by the Italians. Renamed again as Cattaro, she served until the Italian surrender in September 1943. Seized by the Germans, she was used in the Adriatic Sea until 19 December 1943, when she ran aground on the island of Silba, and was destroyed by British motor torpedo boats. (This article is part of a featured topic: Ships of the Royal Yugoslav Navy.)

December 19

Frontispiece to A Christmas Carol

• 1828 – Nullification crisis: American vice president John C. Calhoun's South Carolina Exposition and Protest, written to protest the Tariff of Abominations, was presented to the South Carolina House of Representatives.
• 1843 – A Christmas Carol (illustration pictured), a novella by Charles Dickens about the miser Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation after being visited by ghosts, was published.
• 1983 – The Jules Rimet Trophy, awarded to the winner of the FIFA World Cup, was stolen from the offices of the Brazilian Football Confederation.
• 1997 – SilkAir Flight 185 crashed into the Musi River in Indonesia, killing 104 people.
• 2013 – The European Space Agency's spacecraft Gaia was launched with the goal of constructing the largest and most precise star catalogue ever made.

December 19

The papaya (Carica papaya), also known as pawpaw, is a plant species in the family Caricaceae, and also the name of the plant's fruit. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and Central America and is now grown in several countries in regions with a tropical climate. The papaya fruit is a large berry about 15–45 cm long and 10–30 cm in diameter. The fruit is cultivated for food , being typically consumed when ripe and eaten raw without skin or seeds. The black seeds are also edible and have a sharp, spicy taste. This photograph shows the longitudinal section of a papaya fruit, with orange flesh and numerous black seeds. Photograph credit: Ivar Leidus Recently featured: 2023–2024 Sundhnúkur eruptions Mauritius fody Caroline Hill Archive More featured pictures

December 20

Carthaginian war elephants, depicted by Bussière

The Battle of the Bagradas River was fought in 240 BC, in present-day north-east Tunisia, between a Carthaginian army led by Hamilcar Barca and a rebel force led by Spendius. Carthage was fighting a coalition of mutinous soldiers and rebellious African cities in the Mercenary War, which had started late the previous year in the wake of the First Punic War. Hamilcar left Carthage and evaded a rebel blockade by crossing the Bagradas River (the modern Medjerda River) at its mouth. Two rebel armies marched towards the Carthaginians. When they came into sight Hamilcar ordered a feigned retreat. The rebels broke ranks to chase the Carthaginians and this impetuous pursuit caused them to fall into disorder. Once the rebels had closed, the Carthaginians turned and charged them. The rebels broke and were routed. The Carthaginians pursued, killing or capturing many of the rebels and taking a bridge over the Bagradas. This victory gave Hamilcar freedom to manoeuvre and the operational initiative. (This article is part of a featured topic: Mercenary War.)

December 20

Russian and U.S. Implementation Force troops

• 1852 – Led by George Cathcart, British troops defeated Basuto and Taung forces at the Battle of Berea in present-day Lesotho, leading to an offer of peace from King Moshoeshoe I.
• 1940 – The superhero Captain America made his first published appearance in the comic book Captain America Comics #1.
• 1980 – NBC aired the American football match between the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins without announcers.
• 1995 – Mandated by the Dayton Agreement that ended the Bosnian War, the NATO-led Implementation Force (troops pictured) began peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
• 1999 – Portugal transferred the sovereignty over Macau, which it had administered since the mid–16th century, to China.

December 20

Talking Heads performing in 1978.

Talking Heads were an American new wave band who, between 1975 and 1991, recorded 96 songs, 12 of which were not officially released until after their break-up. After leaving art school, Talking Heads released their debut single, "Love → Building on Fire", in early 1977, followed by their debut album, Talking Heads: 77, later that year. While initially not a big hit, the album was aided by the single "Psycho Killer". In 1983, the band parted ways with producer Brian Eno and released their fifth album, Speaking in Tongues. The album contained the band's first and only top ten hit, "Burning Down the House". After 1985's Little Creatures, the band released True Stories (1986), an album containing songs from Byrne's film of the same name. Notable songs from the album include one of the group's biggest hits, "Wild Wild Life", and "Radio Head", a song from which the English rock band of the same name took their name. (Full list...)

December 20

Marie Antoinette and Her Children is an oil painting by the French artist Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, painted in 1787. It shows Marie Antoinette, the consort of King Louis XVI, wearing a red velvet gown with sable lining. Her younger son, the future Louis XVII, sits on her lap while her daughter, Marie-Thérèse, leans on her arm. Marie Antoinette's elder son, Louis-Joseph, the Dauphin at the time, is near the empty cradle, intended for her younger daughter, Sophie, who died before the painting's completion. The painting was commissioned by the king in an effort to improve public perception of Marie Antoinette, after her reputation had been tarnished by the Affair of the Diamond Necklace. The goal was to focus was on Marie Antoinette as a queen and a mother and she is depicted with little jewellery. The painting was first shown at the Salon in Paris, to a mixed reaction, and is now displayed at the Palace of Versailles. Painting credit: Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun Recently featured: Papaya 2023–2024 Sundhnúkur eruptions Mauritius fody Archive More featured pictures

December 21

"Chitty Bang Bang 1", a model for the car in the book

Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang: The Magical Car is a children's story written by Ian Fleming and illustrated by John Burningham. It was initially published in three volumes, the first of which was released on 22 October 1964, before being published as one book. The story concerns the exploits of Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, a car with hidden powers and abilities, and its owners, the Pott family. Fleming, better known as the creator of James Bond, took his inspiration for the subject from a series of aero-engined racing cars called "Chitty Bang Bang" (example pictured), built by Louis Zborowski in the early 1920s. Fleming wrote the book while convalescing after having had a major heart attack; he had created the story as a bedtime story for his son, Caspar. Fleming did not live to see Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang published; he died of a heart attack on 11 August 1964. The story was loosely adapted as the 1968 film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which in turn was later adapted as a stage musical. (Full article...)

December 21

Crew of Apollo 8

• 1620 – The Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower landed at present-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, to establish the Plymouth Colony.
• 1963 – An attempt by Greek Cypriot police to search certain Turkish Cypriot women in Nicosia escalated into island-wide violence, leading to 538 deaths and the displacement of nearly 27,000 people.
• 1968 – Apollo 8 launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a trajectory to the Moon; its crew (pictured) became the first humans to visit another celestial body.
• 1988 – A bomb on board Pan Am Flight 103 detonated over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people.
• 2018 – Operatives of the British Special Boat Service boarded the container ship Grande Tema in the Thames Estuary to detain four stowaways who had threatened the crew.

December 21

Cholatse is a mountain in the Khumbu region of the Nepalese Himalayas. It has an elevation of 6,440 m (21,130 ft) above sea level. Cholatse is connected to the slightly higher Taboche by a long ridge. The Chola glacier descends off the east face. A lake is located to the east, which gave the mountain its name - in Tibetan cho means lake, la is pass, and tse is peak, hence Cholatse means "lake pass peak". Cholatse was first climbed via the southwest ridge in 1982. The north and east faces of Cholatse can be seen from Dughla, on the trail to Mount Everest base camp. This view of Cholatse was taken from the east close to Dughla, with a small section of the lake visible in the foreground. Photograph credit: Vyacheslav Argenberg Recently featured: Marie Antoinette and Her Children Papaya 2023–2024 Sundhnúkur eruptions Archive More featured pictures