Today is Wednesday, December 18: day 353 of the Gregorian year. The year ends in 13 days.
The sun will rise at 8:57 Moscow time, and at 15:57 it will set. At 12:27 the luminary will be at its zenith.
Daylight hours will last 7 hours, and darkness will last 17 hours.
Church holidays
Week 26 after Pentecost. Nativity Fast. Memorial Day of St. Sava the Sanctified.
Name days: Gennady, Sergey, Zakhar, Ilya.
Secular holidays
Today in Russia we celebrate the Day of Internal Security Units of the Internal Affairs Bodies and the Day of Civil Registry Office Workers.
On December 18, the world celebrates International Arabic Language Day and Migrants Day.
Events of December 18
In 1892, the premiere of the ballet The Nutcracker by Pyotr Tchaikovsky took place.
In 1916, the Battle of Verdun, or the "Verdun Meat Grinder", ended, in which up to 430 thousand people died.
In 1945, officer Kim Il Sung was appointed head of the Korean Communist Party.
In 1970, the Soviet nuclear submarine K-162 set a world record among other submarines, reaching a speed of 44.7 knots (82.78 km/h).
Who was born on December 18
In 1863, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination led to World War I, was born.
In 1878, Joseph Stalin was born.
In 1921, People's Artist of the USSR, actor Yuri Nikulin was born.
In 1943, rock musician and member of The Rolling Stones, Keith Richards, was born.
In 1946, director Steven Spielberg was born.
In 1963, actor Brad Pitt was born.
In 1973, figure skater Ilya Averbukh was born.
In 1980, singer Christina Aguilera was born.
Folk omens
If the day is sunny and frosty, then the New Year will be clear.
The wind blower promises snow storms in the coming days.
If it's warm outside, the winter will be long.
