Editing 1972 (section)

===December===
{{Main|December 1972}}
* [[December 2]] – [[1972 Australian federal election]]: The [[Australian Labor Party|Labor Party]] led by [[Gough Whitlam]] defeats the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal]]/[[National Party of Australia|Country]] [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] [[McMahon government|government]] led by [[Prime Minister of Australia|Prime Minister]] [[William McMahon]]. Consequently, Whitlam becomes the first Labor [[Prime Minister of Australia]] since the defeat of [[Ben Chifley]] in [[1949 Australian federal election|1949]]. Whitlam will be sworn in on [[December 5]]; his first action using executive power is to withdraw all Australian personnel from the [[Vietnam War]]. McMahon resigns from the Liberal leadership almost immediately; he will be [[1972 Liberal Party of Australia leadership election|replaced]] by outgoing [[Treasurer of Australia|Treasurer]] [[Billy Snedden]].
* [[December 7]]
** [[Apollo 17]] ([[Gene Cernan]], [[Ronald Evans (astronaut)|Ronald Evans]], [[Harrison Schmitt]]), the last crewed [[Moon]] mission for more than 50 years, is launched and ''[[The Blue Marble]]'' photograph of the [[Earth]] is taken. The mission also includes [[Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum, and Phooey|five mice]].
** [[Imelda Marcos]], First Lady of the Philippines, is stabbed and seriously wounded by an assailant; her bodyguards shoot the assailant.
* [[December 8]]
** [[United Airlines Flight 553]] crashes short of a runway in Chicago, killing 43 of 61 passengers and two people on the ground. A day later, over $10,000 cash is found in the purse of [[Watergate scandal|Watergate]] conspirator [[Howard Hunt]]'s wife, who was on board.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=New York Magazine|date=July 1, 1974|title=A secret is discovered in a plane crash|page=40}}</ref>
** [[International Human Rights Day]] is proclaimed by the [[United Nations]].
* [[December 11]] – [[Apollo 17]] lands on the [[Moon]].
* [[December 14]] – [[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 [[Apollo 17]]. The next person to set foot on the Moon will not do so before 2026.<ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Marcia|url=https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/nasa-delays-next-artemis-missions-to-2025-and-2026/|title=NASA Delays Next Artemis Missions to 2025 and 2026|work=SpacePolicyOnline|date=January 9, 2024|access-date=2024-09-22}}</ref>
* [[December 15]]
** The Commonwealth of Australia ordains equal pay for women.
** The [[United Nations Environment Programme]] is established as a specialized agency of the [[United Nations]].
* [[December 16]]
** The [[Constitution of Bangladesh]] comes into effect.
** The Portuguese army kills 400 Africans in [[Tete, Mozambique|Tete]], [[Portuguese Mozambique|Mozambique]].
* [[December 19]] – [[Apollo program]]: [[Apollo 17]] returns to [[Earth]], concluding the program of lunar exploration.
* [[December 21]] – [[ZANLA]] troopers attack Altera Farm in north-east [[Rhodesia]].
* [[December 22]]
** Australia establishes diplomatic relations with China and East Germany.
** A peace delegation that includes singer-activist [[Joan Baez]] and human rights attorney [[Telford Taylor]] visit [[Hanoi]] to deliver Christmas mail to American [[prisoners of war]] (they will be caught in the [[Operation Linebacker II|Christmas bombing of North Vietnam]]).
* [[December 23]]
** The 6.2 {{m|w|link=y}} [[1972 Nicaragua earthquake|Nicaragua earthquake]] kills 5,000–11,000 people in the capital [[Managua]]. President [[Anastasio Somoza Debayle]] is later accused of not distributing millions of dollars worth of [[foreign aid]].
** Swedish [[Prime minister of Sweden|Prime minister]] [[Olof Palme]] compares the American bombings of North [[Vietnam]] to [[Nazism|Nazi]] massacres. The U.S. breaks [[Sweden–United States relations|diplomatic contact]] with Sweden.
** Asker accident: [[Braathens SAFE Flight 239]] crashes during approach to Oslo Airport, Fornebu, Norway; forty people on board are killed.
* [[December 28]] – The bones of Nazi Party official [[Martin Bormann]] are discovered in Berlin during construction work.<ref>{{cite book|last=Whiting|first=Charles|author-link=Charles Whiting|title=The Hunt for Martin Bormann: The Truth|year=1996|orig-year=1973|publisher=Pen & Sword|location=London|isbn=0-85052-527-6|pages=217–218}}</ref>
* [[December 29]] – [[Eastern Air Lines Flight 401]] crashes into the [[Everglades]] in Florida, killing 101 of 176 on board. It is the first [[hull loss]] of a [[wide-body aircraft]].
* [[December 31]] – For the first and last time, a 2nd [[leap second]] is added (23:59:60) to a year, making 1972 366 days and two seconds long, the longest year ever within the context of [[UTC]].