The world's first scientific pocket calculator, HP-35, is introduced by Hewlett-Packard.
Super Bowl VI: The Dallas Cowboys defeat the Miami Dolphins 24–3.
The Pioneer 10 spacecraft is launched from Cape Kennedy, to be the first man-made satellite to leave the solar system.
The Godfather is released in cinemas in the United States.
The U.S. and the Soviet Union join 70 nations in signing the Biological Weapons Convention, an agreement to ban biological warfare.
A fire in the Sunshine Mine in northern Idaho kills 91.
Okinawa is returned to Japan after 27 years of United States Military occupation.
The Black Hills flood kills 238 in South Dakota.
Hurricane Agnes kills 117 on the U.S. east coast.
Main Street Electrical Parade debuts at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.
President Nixon signs Title IX into law as part of the Education Amendments of 1972, prohibiting gender discrimination in any educational program receiving federal funds.
Furman v. Georgia: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the death penalty is unconstitutional, converting all death sentences to life imprisonment.
The United States launches Landsat 1, the first Earth-resources satellite.
The first female FBI agents are hired.
U.S. presidential election, 1972: Republican incumbent Richard Nixon defeats Democratic Senator George McGovern in a landslide.
The Pittsburgh Steelers win their first ever postseason NFL game, defeating the Oakland Raiders 13–7, on a last-second play that becomes known as the Immaculate Reception.
Former President Harry S. Truman dies in Kansas City, Missouri.
Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the Moon. This is the last manned mission to the Moon of the 20th century.
45 Years Ago (1977)
ONGOING:
1970s energy crisis (1973–1980)
The world's first personal computer, the Commodore PET, is demonstrated at the winter Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago.
Apple Computer is incorporated.
Super Bowl XI: The Oakland Raiders defeat the Minnesota Vikings 32–14 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
Snow falls in Miami, Florida (despite its ordinarily tropical climate) for the only time in its history.
Jimmy Carter is sworn in as the 39th President of the United States, and Walter F. Mondale is sworn in as Vice President of the United States.
United States lifts its ban on travel by U.S. citizens to Cambodia, Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam.
Grundy, Virginia, experiences a major flood that causes around $15 million in damages to 228 residential and commercial structures.
The Toronto Blue Jays play their first game of baseball against the Chicago White Sox.
The Seattle Mariners play their first-ever game of baseball against the California Angels.
The movie Star Wars is released as the first film in the Star Wars Saga and the first in the Original Trilogy.
The Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Kentucky is engulfed in fire, killing 165 inside.
The New York City blackout of 1977 lasts for 25 hours, resulting in looting and disorder.
The NASA Space Shuttle, named Enterprise, makes its first test free-flight from the back of a Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA).
U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs legislation creating the United States Department of Energy.
Elvis Presley, the king of rock and roll, dies in his home in Graceland at age 42.
The U.S. agrees to transfer control of the canal to Panama at the end of the 20th century.
The modern Food Stamp Program begins when the Food Stamp Act of 1977 is enacted.
After losing 26 games, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the US National Football League record their very first win.
The Great Bakersfield Dust Storm hits the Southern San Joaquin Valley, in California; resulting in three deaths and $40 million in damages.
40 Years Ago (1982)
ONGOING
Early 1980s recession (1981–1982)
A brutal cold snap sends temperatures to all-time record lows in dozens of cities throughout the Midwestern United States.
Shortly after takeoff, Air Florida Flight 90 crashes into Washington, D.C.'s 14th Street Bridge and falls into the Potomac River, killing 78 (five survive)
Adobe Systems is founded in the United States.
A blizzard unprecedented in size for April dumps 1–2 feet of snow on the northeastern United States, closing schools and businesses, snarling traffic, and canceling several major league baseball games.
Queen Beatrix becomes the first Dutch monarch to address the United States Congress.
The United States Air Force Space Command is founded.
The first edition of USA Today is published.
World Series: The St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Milwaukee Brewers, 4 games to 3, to win their 9th World Series Title.
The unemployment rate peaks at 10.8%.
United States elections, 1982. The Republican Party loses 27 seats to the majority Democratic Party in the House.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C., after a march to its site by thousands of Vietnam War veterans.
The Minneapolis Thanksgiving Day fire destroys an entire city block of downtown Minneapolis, including the headquarters of Northwestern National Bank.
The 1982 Chicago Tylenol murders occur when seven people in the Chicago area die after ingesting capsules laced with potassium cyanide.
Michael Jackson releases Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.
The first U.S. execution by lethal injection is carried out in Texas.
The "Christmas Eve Blizzard of '82" hits Denver.
35 Years Ago (1987)
ONGOING
Iran–Contra affair (1985–1987)
The U.S. State Department invalidates US passports for travel to or through Lebanon due to security concerns. The ban was lifted in 1997.
Brownsville, Texas, receives 7 inches of rain in just two hours; flooding in some parts of the city is worse than that caused by Hurricane Beulah in 1967.
The United States military detonates an atomic weapon at the Nevada Test Site.
NASCAR driver Bill Elliott sets the record for the all-time fastest lap at Talladega Superspeedway at 212.8 miles per hour.
The USS Stark is hit by two Iraqi owned Exocet AM39 air-to-surface missiles, killing 37 sailors.
Approximately 800,000 people gather for a walk to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California.
Edwards v. Aguillard: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that a Louisiana law requiring that creation science be taught in public schools whenever evolution is taught is unconstitutional.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above the 2,500 mark for the first time, at 2,510.04.
The unemployment rate drops below 6% for the first time since 1979.
The first National Coming Out Day is held in celebration of the second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights.
The 5.9 Mw Whittier Narrows earthquake affected the Los Angeles Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), killing eight and injuring 200.
Black Monday: Stock market levels fall sharply on Wall Street and around the world.
1987 World Series: The Minnesota Twins defeat the St. Louis Cardinals despite having the worst regular season win–loss ratio for a winner, a record they hold until 2006.
Florida rapist Tommy Lee Andrews is the first person to be convicted as a result of DNA fingerprinting: he is sentenced to 22 years in prison.
Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771 crashes near Paso Robles, California, killing all 43 on board, after a disgruntled passenger shoots his ex-supervisor on the flight, then shoots both pilots and himself.
A squirrel closes down the Nasdaq Stock Exchange when it burrows through a telephone line.
30 Years Ago (1992)
ONGOING
Iraqi no-fly zones (1991–2003)
George H. W. Bush becomes the first U.S. President to address the Australian Parliament.
Super Bowl XXVI: The Washington Redskins defeat the Buffalo Bills 37–24 at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The United States Coast Guard begins deporting the first of some 14,000 refugees from Haiti.
Approximately 500,000 people march on Washington, D.C. in support of abortion rights in advance of oral arguments in the case Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
Barney & Friends debuts on PBS.
The Chicago Flood occurs, causing approximately $2 billion in damages to the city (equivalent to $4.12 billion in 2022).
The 7.2 Mw Cape Mendocino earthquake shakes the north coast of California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing $48.3–75 million in losses and 98–356 injuries.
In Miami, Florida, former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations.
Operation Julin is the last nuclear test conducted by the United States at the Nevada Test Site.
The largest shopping mall in the U.S., Minnesota's Mall of America, constructed on 78 acres, opens in Bloomington.
The 7.3 Mw Landers earthquake shakes the Mojave Desert region of Southern California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing $92 million in losses, three deaths and 400+ injuries. The 6.5 Mw Big Bear earthquake shakes the San Bernardino Mountains region of Southern California about three hours later.
Hurricane Andrew hits south Florida and dissipates over the Tennessee valley, killing 65 and causing US$26.5 billion in damage.
Dry Tortugas National Park is established.
Hurricane Iniki hits the Hawaiian Islands, Kauai and Oahu.
Walt Disney Pictures' 31st feature film, Aladdin, is released to critical and commercial success. It goes on to become the highest-grossing film of the year and (at the time) the highest-grossing animated film of all time, earning over $504 million worldwide.
25 Years Ago (1997)
A Delta II rocket carrying a military GPS payload explodes shortly after liftoff from Cape Canaveral.
President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore begin their second term.
Super Bowl XXXI: The Green Bay Packers win the NFL Championship for the first time since 1967, defeating the New England Patriots 35–21 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Motorcycle stunt rider Corey Scott is killed in front of a crowd of around 30,000 spectators at the Orange Bowl stadium in Miami, Florida, after a stunt goes terribly wrong.
A Santa Monica jury finds former football legend O. J. Simpson liable for the deaths of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman.
The Phoenix Lights are seen over Phoenix, Arizona.
24-year-old Brooklyn rapper The Notorious B.I.G. is killed in a drive-by shooting shortly after leaving a Vibe magazine party at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles before the release of his second album Life After Death.
Strom Thurmond becomes the longest-serving member in the history of the United States Senate (41 years and 10 months).
The second-deadliest tornado of the 1990s hits in Jarrell, Texas, killing 27 people.
The Detroit Red Wings win their first Stanley Cup championship in 42 years, defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4 games to 0.
June 25 – The NHL announces the addition of four new franchises to be added to the league by the 2000-01 NHL season.
NASA's Pathfinder space probe lands on the surface of Mars.
www.google.com is registered by Google.
The Forced Abortion Condemnation Act is introduced in the U.S. Congress.
U.S. President Bill Clinton bars federal funding for any research on human cloning.
20 Years Ago (2002)
ONGOING
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
The No Child Left Behind Act is signed into law by U.S. President George W. Bush.
Super Bowl XXXVI: The New England Patriots beat the St. Louis Rams 20–17 in New Orleans.
The Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City, Utah. The U.S. wins 10 gold, 13 silver and 11 bronze medals.
NASA's Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of Mars using its thermal emission imaging system.
125 vehicles are involved in a massive pile up on Interstate 75 in Ringgold, Georgia.
Ice Age is released in theaters.
US war in Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda ends after killing 500 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters, with 11 allied troop fatalities.
Maryland defeats Indiana 64–52 to win the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia.
Spider-Man is released in theaters as the first film in the Spider-Man trilogy.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter arrives in Cuba for a five-day visit with Fidel Castro, becoming the first U.S. president, in or out of office, to visit the island since Castro's 1959 revolution.
Antonio Meucci is recognized as the first inventor of the telephone by the United States Congress.
Walt Disney Pictures' 42nd feature film, Lilo & Stitch, is released to positive reviews and box-office success.
A lightning strike sets off the Sour Biscuit Fire in Oregon and northern California, which burns 499,570 acres (2,022 km2).
Kelly Clarkson wins the first American Idol competition.
Congress passes the Iraq Resolution authorizing the Iraq War.
The Anaheim Angels defeat the San Francisco Giants in Game 7 of the 2002 World Series to win the title.
The 7.9 Mw Denali earthquake shakes the Alaska Interior with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing one injury and $20–56 million in losses.
U.S. President George W. Bush signs the Homeland Security Act into law, establishing the Department of Homeland Security. It was the largest U.S. government reorganization since the creation of the Department of Defense in 1947.
15 Years Ago (2007)
ONGOING
Late-2000s recession (2007–2009)
William J. Fallon succeeds Gen. John Abizaid as the head of Central Command in Iraq.
Nancy Pelosi becomes the first female Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
War in Somalia: U.S. warplanes conduct air strikes in Somalia against suspected terrorists.
Steve Jobs publicly announces the release of the first iPhone.
An unseasonal tornado in central Florida kills 21 people.
Senator Barack Obama of Illinois declares his candidacy for President of the United States of America.
2007 Bagram Air Base bombing: A Taliban suicide attack at Bagram Air Base while Vice President of the United States Dick Cheney is visiting kills 23, but he is not injured.
Mega Millions sets a new world record for the highest lottery jackpot of $370 million.
U.S. and allied air forces conduct massive exercises over South Korea with over 500 planes.
The Burj Khalifa in Dubai reaches the height of the Sears Tower on its way to becoming the tallest building in the world.
Tornadoes strike Greensburg, Kansas, killing at least 12 people and destroying about 90% of the town.
WWE wrestler Chris Benoit, his wife Nancy Benoit, and son Daniel, are found dead as the result of a murder-suicide.
The Hawaii Superferry arrives in Honolulu after a 7,600-mile journey from Mobile, Alabama.
In Tacoma, Washington, the second span of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge opens to traffic, making it the longest twin suspension bridge in the world.
The Texas Rangers score thirty runs in one game, setting the modern (post–1900) MLB record for most runs by one team in a single game, in a 30–3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average hits an all-time high of 14,164 before beginning to decline ahead of the start of the late–2000s recession.
10 Years Ago (2012)
CERN announces the discovery of a new particle with properties consistent with the Higgs boson after experiments at the Large Hadron Collider.
San Francisco raises the minimum wage within its jurisdiction to over $10 per hour, making it the highest minimum wage in the country.
Microsoft releases Windows 8
Super Bowl XLVI: The National Football Conference champion New York Giants defeat the American Football Conference champion New England Patriots 21 to 17. It was officially the most watched program in the history of United States television with 111.3 million viewers in the US.
Legendary singer Whitney Houston is laid to rest in a private televised funeral in her hometown of Newark, New Jersey at the New Hope Baptist Church in which she was raised.
2012 Leap Day tornado outbreak: Tornados hit the midwestern United States with 14 people killed, six in Harrisburg, Illinois.
Maryland becomes the eighth state to legalize gay marriage.
The Walt Disney Company purchases Lucasfilm Ltd. from George Lucas for US$4.05 billion. Included in the deal are the rights to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises.
After 246 years since its first publication, the Encyclopædia Britannica discontinues its print edition.
The USDA announces that bovine spongiform encephalopathy ("mad cow disease") was found in a dairy cow in California.
The sale for Guggenheim Partners to purchase the Los Angeles Dodgers is finalized for US$2.1 billion, the most ever for a professional sports franchise.
The first licenses for autonomous cars in the U.S. are granted in Nevada to Google.
Barack Obama becomes the first sitting U.S. president to announce support for gay marriage.
Aurora, Colorado shooting: Twelve people die and 70 are injured in a mass shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. The shooter claimed to be “The Joker” and opened fire on a crowd during a screening of The Dark Knight Rises.
The United States compete at the Summer Olympics in London, England and win 46 gold, 29 silver, and 29 bronze medals. In swimming, Michael Phelps of the United States wins a record 19th Olympic medal.
Neil Armstrong, an American astronaut and the first person to walk upon the Moon, dies at age 82.
The San Francisco Giants sweep The Detroit Tigers in 4 games during the 2012 World Series to win their 2nd championship in the last 3 years.
5 Years Ago (2017)
A Long Island Railroad passenger train collides with buffer stops at Atlantic Terminal in New York City, injuring 103 people.
Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th President of the United States and Mike Pence is sworn in as Vice President of the United States.
SeaWorld San Diego hosts its final orca performance after years of criticism of their keeping killer whales in captivity.
President Barack Obama delivers his farewell speech at McCormick Place in his hometown of Chicago.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches 20,000 points for the first time ever.
In Super Bowl LI, the New England Patriots defeat the Atlanta Falcons 34–28 in the first overtime game in the game's history.
A tornado impacts New Orleans, Louisiana, leaving approximately 10,000 homes without electricity.
Hurricane Harvey, a category 4 tropical cyclone, makes landfall in Texas. The hurricane is predicted to be the worst to strike Texas in 12 years.
Nearly 200,000 people are evacuated around Oroville, California, and surrounding areas due to an emergency spillway failure at Oroville Dam.
In Virginia, Danica Roem becomes the first openly transgender person to win an election to a state legislature and serve her term, beating Republican Bob Marshall.
SpaceX conducts the world's first reflight of an orbital class rocket.
Trump makes his first foreign visit as president, to Saudi Arabia, where he signs deals worth more than $350 billion. This includes a $110 billion arms deal – the single biggest in U.S. history.
A total solar eclipse takes place. It is the first total solar eclipse of the 21st century for the United States, the first visible from the continental U.S. since February 26, 1979, and the first to span the entire continental U.S. since June 8, 1918.
The Houston Astros defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers after seven games to become the World Series champions.
A state of emergency is declared in California as the worst wildfires on record devastate homes and businesses in the region, forcing the evacuation of 200,000 people.
In American football, the Cleveland Browns finish their season with an 0–16 record, becoming the second team in history to do so after the 2008 Lions.
The FDA approves "Abilify MyCite", the first drug in the U.S. with a digital ingestion tracking system that records when the medication was taken, via a sensor embedded in the pill.
3 Years Ago (2019)
Government data reveals that the U.S. economy added 312,000 jobs in December, far ahead of predictions of 177,000, and that manufacturing ended 2018 with the most jobs added in one year since 1997.
A severe tornado outbreak hits the southern states of Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina, leaving at least 23 people dead and leaving 10,000 homes and businesses without electricity.
The 2019 college admissions bribery scandal becomes public; around 50 people are accused of bribery and fraud to secure admission to elite colleges, including actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin.
The New Mexico legislature votes to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day.
Floods across the Midwest kill at least three people and inflict hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
Jimmy Carter becomes the longest-living U.S. president at 94 years, 172 days old.
Two airports in New York join San Antonio International Airport in banning concessions to Chick-fil-A restaurants due to the company's anti-LGBTQ record.
Arson is suspected as the cause of three fires in historically black churches since in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana. The culprit in the case of the three black churches was arrested and charged.
Former Vice President Joe Biden announces his candidacy for the 2020 presidential election, expanding the field to a record 20 candidates, the largest field of presidential candidates in U.S. history.
Avengers: Endgame is released by Marvel and eventually becomes the second highest-grossing film of all time, grossing $2.798 billion.
San Francisco becomes the first U.S. city to ban the use of facial recognition technology and the sale of e-cigarettes.
2019 measles outbreak: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that, thus far in 2019, there have been 971 cases of measles in the U.S., the highest level in more than 25 years.
NASA announces that, beginning in 2020, the International Space Station will be commercialized, allowing private companies to use the station to conduct for-profit activities, including marketing, advertising and space manufacturing.
During a meeting at the Korean Demilitarized Zone with South and North Korean leaders, President Trump becomes the first sitting U.S. president to set foot on North Korean territory.
Southern California is hit by a 6.4 magnitude earthquake, the largest in the region since 1994.
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