Today is Wednesday, Nov. 15, the 319th day of 2017. There are 46 days left in the year.

Today’s highlight: On Nov. 15, 1942, the naval Battle of Guadalcanal ended during World War II with a decisive U.S. victory over Japanese forces.

On this date:

In 1777, the Second Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation.

In 1806, explorer Zebulon Pike sighted the mountaintop now known as Pikes Peak in present-day Colorado.

In 1864, during the Civil War, Union forces led by Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman began their “March to the Sea” from Atlanta; the campaign ended with the capture of Savannah on Dec. 21.

In 1889, Brazil was proclaimed a republic as its emperor, Dom Pedro II, was overthrown.

In 1926, the National Broadcasting Company began operating its radio network.

In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt laid the cornerstone of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.

In 1959, four members of the Clutter family of Holcomb, Kansas, were found murdered in their home. (Ex-convicts Richard Hickock and Perry Smith were later convicted of the killings and hanged in a case made famous by the Truman Capote book “In Cold Blood.”)

In 1966, the flight of Gemini 12, the final mission of the Gemini program, ended successfully as astronauts James A. Lovell and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. splashed down safely in the Atlantic after spending four days in orbit.

In 1979, the British government publicly identified Sir Anthony Blunt as the “fourth man” of a Soviet spy ring.

In 1986, a government tribunal in Nicaragua convicted American Eugene Hasenfus of charges related to his role in delivering arms to Contra rebels, and sentenced him to 30 years in prison. (Hasenfus was pardoned a month later.)

In 1987, 28 of 82 people aboard a Continental Airlines DC-9, including the pilots, were killed when the jetliner crashed seconds after taking off from Denver’s Stapleton International Airport.

In 1998, Kwame Ture, the civil rights activist formerly known as Stokely Carmichael, died in Guinea at age 57.

Ten years ago: During a feisty Democratic debate in Las Vegas, Hillary Rodham Clinton accused her closest rivals, Barack Obama and John Edwards, of slinging mud “right out of the Republican playbook” and sharply criticized their records. Cyclone Sidr struck Bangladesh, killing more than 3,200 people and leaving millions homeless. Baseball player Barry Bonds was indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice, charged with lying when he told a federal grand jury that he did not knowingly use performance-enhancing drugs. (Bonds was later convicted on the obstruction of justice count, which was overturned in 2015.) San Diego Padres ace Jake Peavy won the NL Cy Young Award in a unanimous vote. Actress Lindsay Lohan completed her jail sentence for drunken driving in a swift 84 minutes.

Five years ago: The Justice Department announced that BP had agreed to plead guilty to a raft of charges in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill and pay a record $4.5 billion, including nearly $1.3 billion in criminal fines. Four veterans were killed and 13 people injured when a freight train slammed into a parade float carrying wounded warriors and their spouses at a rail crossing in Midland, Texas. Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America; San Francisco’s Buster Posey was the National League MVP.

One year ago: President Barack Obama, opening his final overseas trip while in office, acknowledged in Athens, Greece, that he was surprised by Donald Trump’s victory, and said it stemmed from deep-seated anxieties among working-class Americans that the government needed to do better to address. Speaker Paul Ryan unanimously won his GOP colleagues’ votes for another term at the helm of the House. Jazz and blues singer, songwriter and musician Mose Allison died four days after his 89th birthday.

Today’s birthdays: Actor Ed Asner is 88. Singer Petula Clark is 85. Comedian Jack Burns is 84. Actress Joanna Barnes is 83. Actor Yaphet Kotto is 78. Actor Sam Waterston is 77. Classical conductor Daniel Barenboim is 75. Pop singer Frida (ABBA) is 72. Actor Bob Gunton is 72. Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is 70. Actress Beverly D’Angelo is 66. Director-actor James Widdoes is 64. Rock singer-producer Mitch Easter is 63. News correspondent John Roberts is 61. Former “Jay Leno Show” bandleader Kevin Eubanks is 60. Comedian Judy Gold is 55. Actress Rachel True is 51. Rapper E-40 is 50. Country singer Jack Ingram is 47. Actor Jay Harrington is 46. Actor Jonny Lee Miller is 45. Actress Sydney Tamiia Poitier is 44. Christian rock musician David Carr (Third Day) is 43. Rock singer-musician Chad Kroeger is 43. Rock musician Jesse Sandoval is 43. Actress Virginie Ledoyen is 41. Actor Sean Murray is 40. Pop singer Ace Young (TV: “American Idol”) is 37. Golfer Lorena Ochoa is 36. Hip-hop artist B.o.B is 29. Actress Shailene Woodley is 26. Actress-dancer Emma Dumont is 23.

Thought for today: “In seeking wisdom thou art wise; in imagining that thou has attained it thou art a fool.” — Simon Ben Azzai, 2nd century (A.D.) Jewish scholar.

Associated Press