What are the important events that happened on December 15? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
December 15: Facts & Myths About This Day
December 15 is the 350th day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 16 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is December 2, 2024 – a Sunday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 481,728 hours has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘trihectapentacontagon’ day.
Sagittarius is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Turquoise is the modern birthstone for this month. Onyx is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 45 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,377 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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December 15 Historical Events
- 533 –Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Ticameron.
- 1167 –Sicilian chancellor Stephen du Perche moves the royal court to Messina to prevent a rebellion.
- 1905 –The Pushkin House is established in St. Petersburg to preserve the cultural heritage of Alexander Pushkin
- 1917 –World War I: An armistice is reached between the new Bolshevik government and the Central Powers.
- 1941 –Holocaust: German troops murder over 15,000 Jews at Drobitsky Yar, a ravine southeast of the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine.
- 1965 –Gemini program: Gemini 6A, crewed by Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford, is launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida. Four orbits later, it achieves the first space rendezvous, with Gemini 7.
- 1967 –The Silver Bridge collapses, killing 46 people.
- 1976 –The oil tanker MV Argo Merchant runs aground near Nantucket, Massachusetts, causing one of the worst marine oil spills in history.
- 2001 –The Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after 11 years and $27,000,000 to fortify it, without fixing its famous lean.
- 2005 –Introduction of the F-22 Raptor into USAF active service.
Who were born on December 15?
- 1892 –J. Paul Getty, American oil tycoon (d. 1976)
- 1919 –Max Yasgur, owner of the Woodstock Festival site (d. 1973)
- 1929 –Barry Harris, American bebop jazz pianist
- 1942 –Dave Clark, English musician (The Dave Clark Five)
- 1946 –Art Howe, American baseball player and manager
- 1957 –Laura Molina, American artist, musician and actress
- 1961 –Karin Resetarits, Austrian journalist
- 1966 –Manos Papayiannis, Greek fashion model and actor
- 1967 –Elix Skipper, American professional wrestler
- 1981 –Andy González, Puerto Rican baseball player
Who died on December 15?
- 1025 –Basil II, Byzantine Emperor (b. 958)
- 1230 –King Otakar I of Bohemia (b. 1155)
- 1598 –Philips van Marnix, lord of Sint-Aldegonde, Dutch writer and statesman (b. 1538)
- 1683 –Izaak Walton, English writer (b. 1593)
- 1890 –Sitting Bull, American Indian tribal chief (b. c. 1831)
- 1950 –Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Indian politician (b. 1875)
- 1971 –Paul Pierre Lévy, French mathematician (b. 1886)
- 1989 –Edward Underdown, English actor (b. 1908)
- 1991 –Vasily Grigoryevich Zaitsev, Soviet sniper (b. 1915)
- 2004 –Vassal Gadoengin, Nauruan politician (b. 1943)
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