PHOTOS: Year in Pictures 2020: Dramatic images from an unforgettable year

A harrowing global pandemic that upended life as we know it, a divisive U.S. election, and racial unrest made 2020 a year unlike any other. ABC News photo editors selected some of the most dramatic images from an unforgettable year. 
A protester carries a U.S. flag upside-down, a sign of distress, in front of a burning building, May 28, in Minneapolis. Protests over the death of George Floyd, a Black man who died in police custody, broke out in Minneapolis and spread across the country in solidarity against racial injustice.

Julio Cortez/AP

Migrants flee from a fire at the overcrowded Moria refugee camp on the island of Lesbos, Greece, Sept. 9. Fires consumed Europe’s largest refugee camp, leaving some 12,000 without shelter

Petros Giannakouris/AP

Dr. Joseph Varon comforts a crying patient missing his wife in the COVID-19 intensive care unit during Thanksgiving at the United Memorial Medical Center, Nov. 26, in Houston. Dr. Varon said he was on his 252nd consecutive day of work during the pandemic, which is taking a toll on medical staff and patients alike.

Go Nakamura/Getty Images

Lori Spencer visits her mom, Judie Shape, 81, who tested positive for coronavirus, at the Life Care Center of Kirkland, the Seattle-area nursing home at the epicenter of one the earliest coronavirus outbreaks in the U.S. in Kirkland, Wash., on March 11. Nursing homes have been particularly devastated by COVID-19, with elderly patients the most likely to succumb to the virus. Shape recovered and left the center a few weeks later.

Jason Redmond/Reuters

Vice President Mike Pence claps as Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi rips a copy of President Donald Trump’s speech after he delivered the State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Feb. 4. The gesture reflected the divisive speech and the state of politics in the country.

Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

A child in a Supergirl costume pays respects as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg lies in repose in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, Sept. 23, in Washington, D.C. Ginsburg, a pioneer and champion of equality and women’s rights, became the first woman to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol, following her death at age 87.

Alex Brandon/AP

Medics wearing personal protective equipment intubate a patient with COVID-19 symptoms at his home, April 6, in Yonkers, N.Y. The 92-year-old man was barely breathing when they arrived and was sent to the hospital by ambulance. Yonkers, located in the New York City suburbs, was part of the global coronavirus epicenter in the spring.

John Moore/Getty Images

Lightning illuminates the sky over Batangas Province in the Philippines as the Taal volcano erupts on Jan. 12. Tens of thousands were evacuated from the area as ash covered villages, crops and livestock.

Domcar C. Lagto/Pacific Press via Shutterstock

Protesters vent their frustrations over stay-at-home orders outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, April 13, as Gov. Mike DeWine gave his weekly update on the coronavirus response.

Joshua A. Bickel/Columbus Dispatch via USA Today Network

Democratic presidential nominee former Vice President Joe Biden concludes his remarks as a downpour begins during a drive-in campaign rally at the Florida State Fairgrounds, Oct. 29, in Tampa, Fla. The difference between the two candidates on the seriousness of the pandemic showed in their campaign events, with Biden holding drive-ins and small socially-distanced events while President Donald Trump held large rallies with people standing close together and mostly without face masks.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A protester and a police officer come together during a solidarity rally in New York, June 2, calling for justice over the death of George Floyd, who died in Minneapolis police custody.

Wong Maye-E/AP

A young child is lifted onto a boat by members of the Spanish NGO Maydayterraneo during the rescue of about 90 migrants in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast, Feb. 9. Refugees continued to make dangerous crossings.

Pablo Garcia/AFP via Getty Images

A capsized ship lies on its side on Aug. 8, after the massive Aug. 4 explosion in the port area in Beirut. At least 171 people were killed and more than 6,000 injured in the blast that devastated the city.

EPA via Shutterstock

Juliana cries in front of the body of her husband Davi Barboza, who was shot in Sao Carlos during a police operation after confrontations between drug gangs, in Rio de Janeiro, Aug. 27.

Ricardo Moraes/Reuters

People watch as Taal Volcano erupts on Jan. 12, in Talisay, Philippines. The volcano spewed ash up to a kilometer (.6 miles) high.

Ezra Acayan/Getty Images

The Oak Park Motel sign melts as the area is destroyed by the flames of the Beachie Creek Fire in Gates, east of Salem, Ore., on Sept. 13. The wildfire caused the evacuation of 40,000 residents, killing at least five people and scorching 200,000 acres.

Rob Schumacher/Pool via AFP/Getty Images

A child sits in the back seat of a car near a forest fire in Oliveira de Frades, northern Portugal, Sept. 7.

Nuno Andre Ferreira/EPA via Shutterstock

Black supporters of President Donald Trump, including Terrence Williams, Angela Stanton and Diamond and Silk, pray with the president in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, Feb. 27.

Leah Millis/Reuters

A protester cries during a demonstration against the visit of President Donald Trump on Sept. 1, in Kenosha, Wis. Trump called the anti-police demonstrations in the city acts of “domestic terror” committed by violent mobs.

Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images

An image of George Floyd is projected onto the defaced statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Va., by artist Dustin Klein on June 18.

Julia Rendleman/Reuters

A student picks up his diploma during a graduation ceremony at Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School on May 6, in Bradley, Ill. Because of social distancing mandates instituted by the state due to COVID-19, graduates received their diplomas in a nearly-empty auditorium with no friends, family or relatives allowed to attend.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Cecil Airport in Jacksonville, Fla., Sept. 24.

Tom Brenner/Reuters

Patients infected by COVID-19 wait under an awning to be transferred from Wuhan No.5 Hospital to the newly-built COVID-19 Leishenshan Hospital in Wuhan, China on March 3.

AFP via Getty Images

Pro-democracy activists flash three-fingered salutes, which have become a symbol of the movement, during a demonstration at Kaset intersection outside Bangkok, Oct. 19. Tens of thousands have taken part in the protests that began in February.

Sakchai Lalit/AP

Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Donald Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, and Vice President Mike Pence walk up the steps of the Capitol to meet with senators in Washington, on Sept. 29. Barrett was confirmed to the Supreme Court on Oct. 26 by the Senate. She was Trump’s choice to fill the vacancy left by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Erin Schaff/Pool via Reuters

Dr. Deborah Birx, White House coronavirus response coordinator, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, listen as President Donald Trump speaks during a coronavirus task force briefing at the White House on March 20. Trump had a roller-coaster relationship with Fauci, who publicly and repeatedly broke against Trump’s messaging that downplayed the pandemic. Birx was more careful not to directly rebuke the president and faced some criticism from Democrats for what they deemed her silence.

Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, with their spouses, Jill Biden and Douglas Emhoff, react as confetti falls in Wilmington, Del., after the media declared Biden the winner of the presidential election Nov. 7. After nearly 50 years in public life and three tries for the White House, former Vice President Joe Biden is the apparent winner of the election, defeating incumbent President Donald Trump in a victory delayed by vote counts and legal challenges.

Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

Laura Rodriguez and Ariana Lyons embrace as they watch President-elect Joe Biden give his victory speech on a television in Atlanta, Nov. 7. Biden thanked Black voters in his victory speech, saying, “You’ve always had my back, and I’ll have yours,” but some Black Americans are skeptical of whether he will usher in real change

Meridith Kohut/The New York Times via Redux

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, attend the Endeavour Fund Awards at Mansion House on March 5 in London. This was the first time the couple had been seen together in the U.K. since Jan. 7, just one day before they announced their plans to “step back” as senior members of the royal family.

Samir Hussein/WireImage via Getty Images

Agustina Canamero, 81, and Pascual Perez, 84, hug and kiss through a plastic screen to avoid contracting the coronavirus at a nursing home in Barcelona on June 22.

Emilio Morenatti/AP

Ole, a young orangutan, plays in his enclosure at the zoo on a rainy day in Kaliningrad, Russia, Sept. 17.

Vitaly Nevar/Reuters

Merlin Coles watches the Royal Ascot horse races on TV at his home while sitting on his horse, Mr. Glitter Sparkle, with his dog Mistress in Bere Regis, England, June 17.

Paul Childs/Reuters

Mike Kim and Jacob Zelaya cheer in their vehicle outside Dodger Stadium while watching the television broadcast of the first game of the 2020 World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Tampa Bay Rays in Los Angeles, Oct. 20. The Dodgers won the championship, marking their first World Series win since 1988.

Ashley Landis/AP

A kangaroo rushes past a burning house in Lake Conjola, Australia, on Dec. 31, 2019. This year, Australia suffered a devastating wildfire season, which many experts say was exacerbated by climate change.

Matthew Abbott/The New York Times via Redux

Shayanne Summers holds her dog Toph after several days of staying in a tent at an evacuation center at the Milwaukie-Portland Elks Lodge, Sept. 13, in Oak Grove, Ore. “It’s nice enough here you could almost think of this as camping and forget everything else, almost,” Summers said about staying at the center after evacuating from near Molalla, Oregon, which was threatened by the Riverside Fire.

John Locher/AP

Students stretch during rehearsals at the Leap of Dance Academy in Nigeria on July 3. Self-taught dancer Daniel Owoseni founded the ballet school with the goal of bringing classical dance to underprivileged children in Africa’s most populous nation.

Benson Ibeabuchi/AFP via Getty Images

A man scatters flower petals on the Edmund Pettus Bridge ahead of the casket carrying Rep. John Lewis’ remains during a memorial service July 26, in Selma, Ala.Lewis was a civil rights pioneer who helped lead demonstrations and sit-ins against segregation in the 1960s, while he was still in college. Elected to Congress in 1986, he served 17 terms as a representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District, eventually chairing the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight, and in 2011 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He died July 17 at the age of 80.

Brynn Anderson/AP

Patricia McCloskey and her husband, Mark McCloskey, draw firearms on protesters in their neighborhood during a protest against St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, June 28. The incident caused a further political divide in Missouri with gun advocates saying the couple had every right to defend themselves, while others accused them of being prejudiced, which they deny. Ultimately, the McCloskeys were charged with felony unlawful use of a weapon for displaying their guns in a threatening manner. The Missouri attorney general is seeking to drop the charge.

Lawrence Bryant/Reuters

Dana Clark and her 18-month-old son, Mason, wait in line at the New Orleans City Hall as early voting begins Oct. 16 for the presidential election. The U.S. saw record numbers in voter turnout, even amid the coronavirus pandemic, with many people finding creative ways to socially distance and protect themselves.

Kathleen Flynn/Reuters

The wreckage of the MV Wakashio bulk carrier leaks oil after the ship ran aground and broke into two parts near Blue Bay Marine Park, off the coast of Mauritius, Aug. 16. The ship dumped more than 1,000 tons of oil into the pristine waters off the coastline, putting several marine species at risk and impacting the local economy and food supply.

AFP via Getty Images

Recording artist Jennifer Lopez performs during the Super Bowl LIV halftime show at Hard Rock Stadium, Feb. 2, in Miami Gardens, Fla.

Kirby Lee/USA Today via Reuters

School teacher Marzio Toniolo, 35, takes a picture of his 2-year-old daughter, Bianca, painting his toenails as they follow stay-at-home orders in San Fiorano, Italy, one of the original “red zone” towns in the northern part of the country on March 20, while his wife, Chiara Zuddas, looks out from their balcony. As the coronavirus spread globally, many countries enacted lockdowns and instilled curfews in attempts to curb the rising number of cases.

Marzio Toniolo/Reuters

Jason Baird leaps while dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children who were homebound during the spread of the coronavirus in Stockport, England, April 1.

Phil Noble/Reuters

Kindergarteners wear face masks as they play inside areas marked with plastic barriers to enforce social distancing at the Wat Khlong Toey School in Bangkok, Aug. 10. Under the guidance of the World Health Organization, many countries put social distancing measures into place in schools or turned to remote learning.

Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images

Health workers wearing protective face masks react to a tribute for their co-worker Esteban, a nurse who died of COVID-19, outside the Severo Ochoa Hospital in Leganes, Spain, April 13.

Susana Vera/Reuters

Vivian Zayas holds onto a walker once belonging to her recently deceased mother, Ana Martinez, while her family prays before Thanksgiving dinner, Nov. 26, in Deer Park, N. Y. Martinez, 78, died from COVID-19 in April while recovering at a nursing home from a knee replacement.

John Minchillo/AP

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