- June 19
- Iraqi security forces shoot dead 3 gunmen who attacked the British Embassy in Baghdad. The unknown attackers are killed in the embassy gardens by Iraqi security men, sent at the urgent request of the British ambassador, Alex Stirling. [120]
- June 25
- A Muslim Brotherhood assassination attempt against Syrian president Hafez al-Assad fails. [120]
- June 26
- A McDonnell Douglas DC-9 belonging to the Italian Airline Itavia crashes into the sea near Palermo after an explosion occurs in the air; 81 people die. [120]
- June 27
- U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs Proclamation 4771 requiring 19- and 20-year-old males to register for a peacetime military draft, in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. [120]
- June 29
- Vigdis Finnbogadottir is elected president of Iceland. [120]
- July 7
- First solar-powered aircraft crosses English Channel. [1]
- July 9
- Pope John Paul II visits Brazil; seven people are crushed to death in a crowd meeting him. [1] [120]
- July 10
- Alexandra Palace in London destroyed by fire. [120]
- Ayatollah Khomeini releases Iran hostage Richard I Queen. [1]
- July 18
- Rohini 1, first Indian satellite, launches into orbit. [1]
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- July 19
- Former Turkish Prime Minister Nihat Erim is killed by two gunmen in Istanbul, Turkey. [120]
- July 21
- Jean-Claude Droyer climbs the Eiffel Tower in 2 hours 18 minutes. [1]
- July 23
- Soyuz 37 ferries two cosmonauts (one Vietnamese) to Salyut 6. [1]
- July 27
- In Northeast Kentucky, a magnitude 5.2 earthquake occurs. Felt in 15 states and in parts of southern Ontario, Canada. [53]
- July 28
- Fernando Belaúnde Terry becomes president of Peru. [1]
- July 29
- In Nepal, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake occurs. 100-200 people killed, many injured and extensive damage in western Nepal. [53]
- July 30
- British New Hebrides becomes independent and takes name Vanuatu. [120] [285.900]
- July 31
- Soyuz 37 crew returns to Earth aboard Soyuz 36. [1]
- August 2
- A terrorist bombing at the railway station in Bologna, Italy kills 85 people and wounds more than 200. [120]
- August 7
- (to August 14) Lech Walesa leads the first of many strikes at the Gdansk shipyard. [120]
- August 8
- The 17th century Swedish warship Kronan is discovered by an archealogical team lead by Anders Franzén. The ship lies scattered in mud four miles east of Öland, where it sunk in 1676. [7]
- August 9
- In Guatemala, a magnitude 6.7 earthquake occurs. [53]
- August 18
- Near the coast of Ecuador, a magnitude 5.6 earthquake occurs. Eight people killed, 100 injured and extensive damage in the Guayaquil area. [53]
- August 19
- Saudi Arabian Lockheed Tristar crashes on landing at Riyadh, 301 die. [1] [897.46]
- August 20
- Reinhold Messner of Italy is first to make solo ascent of Mount Everest. [1]
- United Nations Security Council condemns (14-0, US abstains) Israeli declaration that all of Jersualem is its capital. [1]
- August 23
- In the Kashmir - India border region, a magnitude 5.2 earthquake occurs. [53]
- September 2
- Ford Europe launches the Escort MK3, which ditches the traditional rear-wheel drive saloon in favour of a more practical and modern front-wheel drive hatchback. [120]
- September 5
- The Saint Gotthard Tunnel opens in Switzerland as the world's longest highway tunnel at 10.14 miles (16.32 km) stretching from Goschenen to Airolo. [1] [5] [37] [120]
- September 12
- Kenan Evren stages a military coup in Turkey. [1] [120]
- September
- Spink & Son in England sells an England 1642 Charles I Triple Unite gold coin of the Shrewsbury Mint, one of two known, for US$104,400. [667.116]
- Jonathon Coins of Los Angeles, California sells a Series 1890 $1000 US Treasury "Grand Watermelon" note for US$125,000, a world record for any bank note. [667.1]
- September 17
- Former Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza Debayle is assassinated in Asunción, Paraguay (born 1925). [1] [120]
- After weeks of strikes at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk, Poland, the nationwide independent trade union Solidarity is established. [1] [120]
- September 18
- Soyuz 38 carries two cosmonauts (one Cuban) to Salyut 6 space station. [1]
- September 22
- The command council of Iraq orders its army to "deliver its fatal blow on Iranian military targets," initiating the Iran-Iraq War. Iraqi troops seize part of Iran in a border dispute. [1] [120]
- Youth riots in the capital of the Soviet Republic of Estonia are quickly forced down. [120]
- September 26
- Cuban government closes Mariel Harbor ending "freedom flotilla". [1] [120]
- Soyuz 38 returns to Earth. [1]
- September 30
- Digital Equipment Corporation, Intel and Xerox introduce the DIX standard for Ethernet, which is the first implementation outside of Xerox, and the first to support 10 Mbit/s speeds. [120]
- Iran rejects a truce call from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. [1]
- October 1
- Cosmonauts Ryumin and Popov break space endurance record of 176 days. [1]
- October 5
- Parliamentary elections are held in Federal Republic of Germany. The CDU/CSU gets 44.5 percent of the votes, the SPD 42.9 percent and the FDP 10.6 percent. The SPD/FDP coalition continues. Helmut Schmidt (SPD) continues as chancellor. [37]
- British Leyland launches its new Metro automobile, a three-door entry-level hatchback which is designed as the eventual replacement for the Mini. [120]
- October 9
- First consumer use of home banking by computer, in Knoxville, Tennessee. [1] [442.91]
- October 10
- In El Asnam, Algeria, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurs. At least 5,000 people killed, 9,000 injured and extensive damage. [1] [53] [120]
- Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope network dedicated. [1]
- October 11
- Cosmonauts Popov and Ryumin set space endurance record of 184 days. [1]
- October 15
- James Callaghan announces his resignation as Leader of the British Labour Party. [120]
- October
- A record gold nugget weighing 875 troy ounces (61 pounds, 11 ounces) is found near Wedderburn, Victoria, Australia. [87.128]
- Numismatic Fine Arts of Beverly Hills, California, sells a Greek Agrigentum silver decadrachm, circa 411-410 B.C.E., one of seven known, for just under $1 million to Nelson Bunker Hunt. [596.33] [669.1]
- October 18
- The Fraser Government is re-elected for a third consecutive term in Australia with a reduced majority. [120]
- October 22
- New South Korean constitution comes into effect. [1]
- October 23
- Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin resigns, due to illness. [1]
- October 24
- In central Mexico, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurs. At least 300 people killed, many injured, approximately 150,000 homeless and extensive damage in central Mexico. [53]
- Polish government legalizes independent labor union Solidarity. [1]
- Paul McCartney is honored by the Guinness Book of World Records for being the best-selling songwriter and recording artist in music history. [457]
- October 27
- Six Provisional Irish Republican Army prisoners in Maze prison refuse food and demand status as political prisoners. (The hunger strike lasts until December.) [120]
- October 28
- U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan debate in Cleveland, Ohio. Reagan's genial, witty performance causes him to overtake Carter in the polls. [120]
- October 30
- El Salvador and Honduras sign a peace treaty to put the border dispute before the International Court of Justice. [1] [120]
- October 31
- The Polish government recognizes Solidarity. [120]
- Reza Pahlavi, eldest son of the shah of Iran, proclaims himself the rightful successor to the Peacock Throne. [120]
- November 4
- U.S. presidential election: Republican challenger and former California Governor Ronald Reagan defeats incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter in a landslide victory. [1] [120]
- November 8
- In Gorda Plate, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs. Most of the damage occurred east of Fields Landing, where two sections of an overpass on U.S. Highway 101 collapsed onto the railroad tracks below. [53]
- November 11
- Crew of Soyuz 35 returns to Earth aboard Soyuz 37. [1]
- November 12
- The NASA space probe Voyager I makes its closest approach to Saturn, when it flies within 77,000 miles of the planet's cloud-tops and sends the first high resolution images of the world back to scientists on Earth. [1] [120]
- November 15
- Pope John Paul II begins five-day visit to Federal Republic of Germany. [1]
- November 20
- Steve Ptacek in Solar Challenger makes first solar-powered flight. [1]
- November 21
- 350 million people around the world tune in to television's primetime drama Dallas to find out who shot J.R. Ewing (Kristin Shepard, J.R.'s wife's sister and his former mistress). [1] [120] (82 million [457])
- A fire at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada kills 85 people. The cause is determined to be faulty electrical system on the first floor. [1] [120] [187.421] [386.311]
- November 22
- Georgia tanker at Pilottown, Louisiana, spills 1.3 million gallons of oil after an anchor chain caused the ship to leak. [1]
- November 23
- In Southern Italy, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake occurs. Over 3,000 people killed, about 1,900 missing, 7,750 injured, 250,000 homeless and extensive damage. [53] [120]
- November 27
- Soyuz T-3 carries three cosmonauts to Salyut 6 space station, launched. [1]
- December 2
- Four American Maryknoll nuns killed by death squads in El Salvador. [1]
- December 4
- Portuguese Prime Minister Francisco Sá Carneiro dies in a plane crash in Camarate in the outskirts of Lisbon (born 1934). [120]
- December 5
- Bank of Canada's Canadian Currency Museum opens. [1]
- December 8
- Death of John Lennon at age 40, shot dead outside his New York City home by Mark David Chapman; singer/songwriter/guitarist ("(Just Like) Starting Over", The Beatles, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1988), Lifetime Achievement Grammy (1991)). [1] [120] [129] [457] [1096.145]
- December 10
- USSR performs underground nuclear test. [1]
- December 12
- Apple Computer becomes a publicly held company, selling 4.6 million shares at US$22 per share. More than 40 Apple employees and investors become instant millionaires. This is the largest initial public offering in the US since Ford's in 1956. [4]
- American oil tycoon Armand Hammer pays US$5.12 million at auction for a notebook containing writings by artist Leonardo da Vinci, written around 1508. The price is the highest paid for a manuscript to date. [129]
- USA's copyright law amended to include computer programs. [1]
- December 14
- At 2 PM EST there is ten minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon in the USA. [1]
- USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk. [1]
- December 15
- The Academia de la Llingua Asturiana (Academy of the Asturian Language) is created. [120]
- Premier Queddei's troops conquer Chad capital N'djamena. [1]
- ZBZ Sangha officially registered after five years of administrative hassles in Warsaw. [1]
- December 16
- During a summit on the island of Bali, OPEC decides to raise the price of petroleum by ten percent. [120]
- December 17
- Great Britain performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site. [1]
- Mauritania provisional constitution published. [1]
- December 18
- Alexei N Kosygin, Soviet Prime Minister (1964-80), suffers a fatal heart attack at age 76. [1]
- Dutch second Chamber accepts minister Van Agt's abortion laws. [1]
- Irish Republican Army's Sean McKenna becomes critically ill, ends hunger strike. [1]
- Vietnam adopts constitution. [1]
- December 19
- Anguilla becomes a British dependency separate from Saint Kitts. [1]
- Iran requests US$24 billion in US guarantees to free hostages. [1]
- December 20
- USSR formally announces death of Alexei Kosygin. [1]
- December 28
- Jersey calf that lived 222 days with an artificial heart, dies. [1]
- México terminates fishing agreements with US. [1]
- December 31
- A Jewish-owned hotel in Nairobi, Kenya is bombed, killing 18. [1]
- Senegal President Leopold Senghor resigns. [1]
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