Photo of the Day: December 2020

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