Photo of the Day: December 2020

Twenty tons of fireworks explode over Sydney Harbour at midnight, ringing in the year 2000. The cover story for the August 2000 issue celebrated the city as it hosted the Summer Olympics.

Dressed up like Santa, three young men sell Coca-Cola at a New Year's Day celebration in the streets near Moscow's Red Square. This photo appeared in the November 2001 issue, commemorating the 10-year anniversary of the U.S.S.R.'s break-up.

A man rides through the Rattlesnake Hills in Yakima County, Washington. The rich Yakima Valley is an agricultural hub, and produces 70 percent of the apples in the United States.

Scott's Hut was erected in 1911 as a base for an expedition in Antarctica led by Captain Robert Scott, who later died on an attempted trek to the South Pole. Today, it is preserved as a museum.

In Telfs, Austria, men dress up in suits of tree lichen during Schleicherlaufen, a festival held every five years that celebrates winter's end. The origins of the festival are unclear, but can be traced back to the 16th century.

A lone bison stands in snow-covered Yellowstone National Park. The bison's skin, fat reserves, and fur coat make it especially suited to survive temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit and winds as wild as 50 miles an hour.

A group of department store Santas wait for the subway in New York City. Getting a photo with Santa is a cherished tradition for many families.

In this picture from the May 1969 issue, children watch the Christmas Eve broadcast from Apollo 8 astronauts in space. The crew was the first to successfully orbit the moon and return to Earth.

Skiers take flight in Zermatt, Switzerland, as the iconic Matterhorn looms in the background.

At a Tibetan monastery in Bamei, China, bowls of black tea keep visitors awake for meditations. Behind them are candles made of yak butter.

A summer snowstorm swirls around evergreen trees in Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, a partnership between Glacier National Park in the United States and Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada.

In this picture from the January 1938 issue, young boys dress as wise men, prophets, and shepherds to sing Christmas carols across the countryside in northern Hungary.

Men attend a service at a synagogue in Kiev, Ukraine. When this photo was published in 1987, it was the only remaining synagogue in the city and did not have a rabbi. Now, there are some 20,000 Jews in Kiev, and two synagogues.

The December 1955 issue featured a personal essay by Louise Parker La Gorce, detailing her Christmas tradition of baking dozens of cookies with which to decorate the family's tree. Here, she uses hairpins to create whiskers on a cookie cat.

The Wright brothers made the first powered flight on this day in 1903. Orville mans the plane, lying on his stomach to reduce wind resistance, while Wilbur runs alongside. The flight lasted 12 seconds and covered about 120 feet.

In this picture from the April 1954 issue, the owner of a sugarbush grove in New Hampshire demonstrates an antique yoke once used for hauling buckets of sap. The red building behind him is the sugarhouse, where the sap will be made into maple syrup.

The April 1964 issue featured a 34-page spread on the beloved pet cat. Today, approximately a quarter of U.S. households are home to a cat.

In Jigokudani, Japan, a couple of snow monkeys, also known as Japanese macaques, enjoy a dip in a hot spring. Their special coats keep them warm in subzero temperatures.

When Sudan achieved independence in 1956, 96 percent of women were illiterate. This picture from the March 1982 issue shows a classroom full of women eager to learn. And the efforts for equality continue—in 2019, the Sudanese government repealed a restrictive law that governed how women were to look and act in public.

In this picture from the October 1973 issue, young boys play the violin and tambourine along Istanbul's Flower Passage—a street lined with bars and restaurants—in an effort to earn some money.

A woman prays at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Millions of pilgrims visit the holy site each year, and some leave little notes of prayer in the crevices of the wall.

Civil rights leader Albert A. Raby sits for a portrait in the offices of the Coordinating Council of Community Organizations in Chicago in 1967. Chief among the CCCO's goals was the desegregation of Chicago schools.

The November 1984 issue told the worldwide story of chocolate. Here, a famous bakery in Vienna, Austria, displays its scrumptious sweets for customers.

Residents of Cooperstown, New York, decorate Main Street for Christmas. Cooperstown, home to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, welcomes more than 300,000 tourists annually.

December 7 marks the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941. Dick Fiske, pictured, was on the U.S.S. West Virginia during the attack. Here, he plays "Taps" in remembrance.

A story in the February 2006 issue examined the ways climate change threatened tourism and the ecosystem in the Alps. Here, synthetic blankets lie on Austria's Pitztal Glacier, reflecting solar radiation in an attempt to slow down summer melt.

A full moon rises over Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Australia. The 512-square-mile park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is home to—and named after—two of Australia's most famous landmarks.

During the day, the view from the top of Mount Fuji in Japan goes on forever. But at night, many climbers need a break. Here, a rest stop worker airs out futons used by climbers to catch some sleep before descending the mountain.

Chinstrap penguins nest with their chicks on Thule Island. This uninhabited island is part of the chain of the South Sandwich Islands, which lie in between South America and Antarctica.

Storm clouds gather over "the Wall" in Badlands National Park, South Dakota. Three river systems eroded these claystone formations over half a million years.

In a remote Afghan village, women attend health and hygiene classes taught by a travelling midwife, pictured here in the white hijab and glasses.