December is the twelfth and last month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars. It is one of seven months with the length of 31 days. December is the first month of meteorological winter in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, December is the seasonal equivalent to June in the Northern hemisphere, which is the first month of summer. December is the month with the shortest daylight hours of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest daylight hours of the year in the Southern Hemisphere.
December symbols: Its birth flower is the narcissus. The birthstones of December are the turquoise, zircon, and tanzanite. The zodiac signs for the month of December are Sagittarius (until December 21) and Capricorn (December 22 onwards).
Historical Events for December, 1972
Day of Week 7th » Imelda Marcos survives an assassination attempt using a bolo knife against her.
7th » 'Apollo 17', the last Apollo program or Apollo moon mission, is launched. The crew takes the photograph known as 'The Blue Marble' as they leave the Earth.
Day of Week 8th » United Airlines Flight 553, a Boeing 737, crashes after aborting its landing attempt at Chicago Midway International Airport, killing 45. The crash is the first-ever loss of a Boeing 737.
Day of Week 11th » 'Apollo 17' becomes the sixth and last Apollo program e.g Apollo mission to land on the Moon.
Day of Week 13th » Apollo program: Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt begin the third and final extra-vehicular activity (EVA) or "Moonwalk" of 'Apollo 17'. To date they are the last humans to set foot on the Moon.
Day of Week 14th » Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the moon, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of the 'Apollo 17' mission.
Day of Week 18th » Vietnam War: President of the United States or President Richard Nixon announces that the United States will engage North Vietnam in Operation Linebacker II, a series of Christmas bombings, after peace talks collapsed with North Vietnam on the 13th.
Day of Week 19th » Apollo program: The last manned lunar flight, Apollo 17, crewed by Eugene Cernan, Ron Evans and Harrison Schmitt, returns to Earth.
Day of Week 23rd » A 1972 Nicaragua earthquake called 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes the Nicaraguan capital of Managua killing more than 10,000.
23rd » The 16 survivors of the 1972 Andes flight disaster named Andes flight disaster are rescued after 73 days, having survived by cannibalism.
Day of Week 26th » Vietnam War: As part of Operation Linebacker II, 120 American Boeing B-52 Stratofortress named B-52 Stratofortress bombers attacked Hanoi, including 78 launched from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, the largest single combat launch in Strategic Air Comman
Day of Week 29th » An Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar) crashes on approach to Miami International Airport, Florida, killing 101.
Day of Week 30th » Vietnam War: The United States halts heavy bombing of North Vietnam.
Famous Birthdays on December in 1972
1st » Bart Millard, American singer-songwriter (MercyMe)
2nd » Sergejs Žoltoks, Latvian ice hockey player (d. 2004)