Editing December 18 (section)

===1901–present===
*[[1916]] &ndash; [[World War I]]: The [[Battle of Verdun]] ends when the second French offensive pushes the Germans back two or three kilometres, causing them to cease their attacks.
*[[1917]] &ndash; The resolution containing the language of the [[Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighteenth Amendment]] to enact [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] is passed by the [[United States Congress]].
*[[1932]] &ndash; The [[Chicago Bears]] defeat the [[Portsmouth Spartans]] in the [[1932 NFL Playoff Game|first NFL playoff game]] to win the NFL Championship.
*[[1935]] &ndash; The [[Lanka Sama Samaja Party]] is founded in [[Sri Lanka|Ceylon]].
*[[1939]] &ndash; [[World War II]]: The [[Battle of the Heligoland Bight (1939)|Battle of the Heligoland Bight]], the first major air battle of the war, takes place.
*[[1944]] &ndash; World War II: [[XX Bomber Command]] responds to the Japanese [[Operation Ichi-Go]] offensive by dropping five hundred tons of incendiary bombs on a supply base in [[Hankou|Hankow, China]].
*  1944   &ndash; The [[Supreme Court of the United States]] issued its decision in [[Korematsu v. United States]] supporting [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s [[Executive Order 9066]] which cleared the way for the incarceration of nearly all 120,000 Japanese Americans, two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens, born and raised in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/facts-and-case-summary-korematsu-v-us|title=Facts and Case Summary — Korematsu v. U.S.|website=United States Courts |access-date=2022-12-18}}</ref>
*[[1957]] &ndash; A [[1957 Sunfield tornado|violent F5 tornado]] wipes out the entire community of Sunfield, Illinois.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=United States Weather Bureau |author1-link=United States Weather Bureau |author2=F. W. Reichelderfer |author3=Sinclair Weeks |author3-link=Sinclair Weeks |title=Climatological Data National Summary December 1957 |journal=Climatological Data |date=1958 |volume=8 |issue=12 |page=527 |url=https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-F34FBD0F-1D12-4032-8E41-3AF6B975E0EB.pdf |access-date=13 September 2023 |publisher=[[United States Department of Commerce]] |archive-date=13 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230913171056/https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-F34FBD0F-1D12-4032-8E41-3AF6B975E0EB.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*[[1958]] &ndash; [[SCORE (satellite)|Project SCORE]], the world's first [[communications satellite]], is launched.
*[[1966]] &ndash; [[Saturn]]'s moon [[Epimetheus (moon)|Epimetheus]] is discovered by astronomer Richard Walker.
*[[1972]] &ndash; [[Vietnam War]]: [[President of the United States|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.
*[[1973]] &ndash; [[Soyuz programme|Soviet Soyuz Programme]]: ''[[Soyuz 13]]'', crewed by [[List of cosmonauts|cosmonauts]] [[Valentin Lebedev]] and [[Pyotr Klimuk]], is launched from [[Baikonur]] in the [[Soviet Union]].
*[[1977]] &ndash; [[United Airlines Flight 2860]] crashes near [[Kaysville, Utah]], killing all three crew members on board.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19771218-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Douglas DC-8-54F N8047U Kaysville, UT|last=Ranter|first=Harro|website=Aviation Safety Network|access-date=2019-08-08}}</ref>
*  1977   &ndash; [[SA de Transport Aérien Flight 730]] crashes near [[Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport|Madeira Airport]] in [[Funchal]], [[Madeira]], [[Portugal]], killing 36.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle 10R HB-ICK Funchal Airport (FNC)|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19771218-1|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-17|website=Aviation Safety Network |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202142425/http://aviation-safety.net:80/database/record.php?id=19771218-1 |archive-date=2008-12-02 }}</ref>
*[[1981]] &ndash; First flight of the Russian [[Heavy bomber|heavy]] [[strategic bomber]] [[Tupolev Tu-160|Tu-160]], the world's largest [[combat aircraft]], largest [[supersonic aircraft]] and largest [[variable-sweep wing]] aircraft built.
*[[1995]] &ndash;  A [[Lockheed L-188 Electra]] [[1995 Trans Service Airlift Electra crash|crashes]] in [[Jamba, Cuando Cubango]], [[Angola]], killing 141 people.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Lockheed L-188C Electra 9Q-CRR Cahungula, Lunda Norte|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19951218-0|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-17 |publisher=[[Aviation Safety Network]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050414111852/http://aviation-safety.net:80/database/record.php?id=19951218-0 |archive-date=2005-04-14 }}</ref>
*[[1999]] &ndash; [[NASA]] launches into orbit the [[Terra (satellite)|Terra]] platform carrying five Earth Observation instruments, including [[Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer|ASTER]], [[Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System|CERES]], [[Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer|MISR]], [[Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer|MODIS]] and [[MOPITT]].
*[[2002]] &ndash; [[2003 California gubernatorial recall election|California gubernatorial recall]]: Then [[Governor of California]] [[Gray Davis]] announces that the [[California|state]] would face a record [[Government budget balance|budget deficit]] of [[United States dollar|$]]35 billion, roughly double the figure reported during his reelection campaign one month earlier.
*[[2005]] &ndash; The [[Chadian Civil War (2005–10)|Chadian Civil War]] begins when rebel groups, allegedly backed by neighbouring [[Sudan]], launch an [[Battle of Adré|attack in Adré]].
*[[2006]] &ndash; The first of a [[2006–07 Malaysian floods|series of floods]] strikes [[Malaysia]]. The death toll of all flooding is at least 118, with over 400,000 people displaced.
*  2006   &ndash; [[United Arab Emirates]] holds its [[United Arab Emirates parliamentary election, 2006|first-ever elections]].
*[[2015]] &ndash; [[Kellingley Colliery]], the last deep [[coal mine]] in [[Great Britain]], closes.
*[[2017]] &ndash; [[Amtrak Cascades]] passenger train 501, [[2017 Washington train derailment|derailed]] near [[DuPont, Washington]], a city in United States near [[Olympia, Washington]] killing six people, and injuring 70 others.
*[[2018]] &ndash; [[List of bolides]]: A meteor exploded over the Bering Sea with a force over 10 times greater than the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in 1945.
*[[2019]] &ndash; The United States House of Representatives [[First impeachment of Donald Trump|impeaches Donald Trump for the first time]].<ref>{{citation|website=NBC News |title=Live Blog / Live updates: Trump impeached by the House on both articles|date=Dec 18, 2019|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/live-blog/live-updates-house-votes-impeachment-president-trump-n1103576}} {{citation|website=Fox News|date=Dec 18, 2019 |title=House impeaches Trump over Ukraine dealings, as Pelosi floats holding up Senate trial|author1=Gregg Re|author2=Marisa Schultz |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/impeachment-debate-floor}}</ref>
*[[2022]] &ndash; [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]] win the [[2022 FIFA World Cup final]], defeating title holders [[France national football team|France]] 4–2 on penalties following a 3–3 draw after extra time.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nicas |first=Jack |date=2022-12-18 |title=Argentina Hits the Streets for Long-Awaited Celebration |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/18/sports/soccer/argentina-celebration-win.html |access-date=2023-02-06 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>