July 15
July 15 is the 197th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 169 days remain until the year's end. It falls in summer (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Cancer.
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Astronomy
On July 15 the Sun's declination is approximately +21.3°. At this latitude the Sun is north of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere longer days than nights.
For specific rise/set times at your location, see the U.S. Naval Observatory, or the NASA APOD archive for any imagery published on a July 15.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- Christian feast day: Abhai (Syriac Orthodox Church)
- Christian feast day: Anne-Marie Javouhey
- Christian feast day: Bernhard II, Margrave of Baden-Baden
- Christian feast day: Bonaventure
- Christian feast day: Dispersion of the Apostles (formerly by the Catholic Church)
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
2018 — France win their second World Cup title, defeating Croatia 4–2. ↗(8 years ago)more
The France national football team represents France in men's international football. It is controlled by the French Football Federation, the governing body for football in France. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions.
2016 — Factions of the Turkish Armed Forces attempt a coup. ↗(10 years ago)more
The Turkish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. The TAF consist of the Land Forces, the Naval Forces and the Air Forces. The Chief of the General Staff is the Commander of the Armed Forces.
2014 — A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 24 and injuring more than 160 others. ↗(12 years ago)more
On 15 July 2014, at around 8:40 am MSK (UTC+03:00), an outbound Moscow Metro train derailed between Park Pobedy and Slavyansky Bulvar stations of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line. Casualties reported include 24 dead and 160 injured. Early reports suggested a power surge or a terrorist attack to be the cause of the derailment, but both were soon dismissed.
2012 — South Korean rapper Psy releases his hit single Gangnam Style. ↗(14 years ago)more
Park Jae-sang, better known as Psy, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has received numerous accolades, including an American Music Award, a World Music Award, 10 MAMA Awards. He is the founder of the talent agency P Nation.
2009 — Caspian Airlines Flight 7908 crashes near Jannatabad, Qazvin, Iran, killing 168. ↗(17 years ago)more
Caspian Airlines Flight 7908 was a scheduled commercial flight from Tehran, Iran, to Yerevan, Armenia, that crashed near the village of Jannatabad, outside the city of Qazvin in north-western Iran, on 15 July 2009. All 153 passengers and 15 crew members on board died.
2009 — Space Shuttle program: Endeavour is launched on STS-127 to complete assembly of the International Space Station's Kibō module. ↗(17 years ago)more
The Space Shuttle program was the fourth human spaceflight program carried out by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which accomplished routine transportation for Earth-to-orbit crew and cargo from 1981 to 2011.
2006 — Twitter, later one of the largest social media platforms in the world, is launched. ↗(20 years ago)more
X, formerly known as Twitter, is an American microblogging and social networking service, headquartered in Bastrop, Texas. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, images, and videos in short posts and like other users' content.
2003 — AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day. ↗(23 years ago)more
WarnerMedia, LLC, formerly Time Warner Inc., was an American multinational entertainment and mass media conglomerate. After being acquired by AT&T, the company became a wholly owned subsidiary in its last years of existence. WarnerMedia's headquarters were at 30 Hudson Yards in New York City.
2002 — 'American Taliban' John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. ↗(24 years ago)more
The Taliban, officially known as the Islamic Movement of Taliban, also referring to themselves by their state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is an Afghan political and militant organization with an ideology comprising elements of the Deobandi movement of Islamic fundamentalism and Pashtun nationalism.
- 2002 — The Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan sentences British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh to death, and three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl to life. ↗(24 years ago)
more
The Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan was established in Pakistan in 1997, under Nawaz Sharif's government, to deal with terrorism cases. It is a parallel legal system to the judicial system in Pakistan.
1998 — Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP S. Shanmuganathan is killed by a claymore mine. ↗(28 years ago)more
The Sri Lankan civil war was fought in Sri Lanka from 1983 to 2009. Beginning on 23 July 1983, it was an intermittent insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by Velupillai Prabhakaran.
1996 — A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport. ↗(30 years ago)more
The Belgian Air Force is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces. Between January 2002 and July 2024 it was known as Belgian Air Component. It was founded in 1909 and is one of the world's oldest air services.
Notable births
2008 — Iain Armitage, American actor ↗(18 years ago)more
Iain Armitage is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Sheldon Cooper in Young Sheldon, a spin-off prequel to The Big Bang Theory, from 2017 to 2024. He also played Ziggy Chapman in Big Little Lies (2017–2019) and voiced young Shaggy Rogers in Scoob! (2020) and Chase in Paw Patrol: The Movie (2021).
2005 — JuJu Watkins, American basketball player ↗(21 years ago)more
Judea Skies "JuJu" Watkins is an American college basketball player for the USC Trojans of the Big Ten Conference.
1999 — Mohamed Sobhy, Egyptian footballer ↗(27 years ago)more
Mohamed Sobhy Mohamed Daader is an Egyptian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Egyptian Premier League club Zamalek.
1998 — Noah Gragson, American racing driver ↗(28 years ago)more
Noah Quinn Gragson is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Front Row Motorsports.
1997 — Jil Teichmann, Swiss tennis player ↗(29 years ago)more
Jil Belén Teichmann is a Swiss professional tennis player. She has been ranked by the WTA as high as No. 21 in singles and No. 73 in doubles.
1996 — Vivianne Miedema, Dutch football player ↗(30 years ago)more
Anna Margaretha Marina Astrid "Vivianne" Miedema is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a striker or attacking midfielder for Women's Super League club Manchester City and the Netherlands national team. She previously played for Arsenal, Bayern Munich, and SC Heerenveen.
Notable deaths
2021 — Peter R. de Vries, Dutch investigative journalist and crime reporter (born 1956) ↗(5 years ago)more
Peter Rudolf de Vries was a Dutch investigative journalist and crime reporter. His television program Peter R. de Vries, misdaadverslaggever covered high-profile cases and set a Dutch television viewing record. For decades he was famous in the Netherlands for his works in unsolved crimes.
2017 — Martin Landau, American film and television actor (born 1928) ↗(9 years ago)more
Martin James Landau was an American actor. His career began in the late 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959). His career breakthrough came with leading roles in the television series Mission: Impossible (1966–1969) and Space: 1999 (1975–1977).
- 2015 — Masahiko Aoki, Japanese-American economist and academic (born 1938) ↗(11 years ago)
more
Masahiko Aoki was a Japanese economist, Tomoye and Henri Takahashi Professor Emeritus of Japanese Studies in the Economics Department, and Senior Fellow of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University.
2015 — Wan Li, Chinese politician, 4th Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China (born 1916) ↗(11 years ago)more
Wan Li was a Chinese Communist revolutionary and politician who served as First Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1983 to 1988 and the 5th Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 1988 to 1993.
2015 — Aubrey Morris, British actor (born 1926) ↗(11 years ago)more
Aubrey Morris was a British actor known for his appearances in the films A Clockwork Orange and The Wicker Man.
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (197) | 197 · prime |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (169) | 13^2 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 15072026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | +21.34° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 25 days |