1. The inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States of America on January 20, 2009, was one of the most observed events in history. It marked the commencement of Barack Obama’s four-year term as the first US president of African-American decent.
US celebrates Barack Obama's historic inauguration
2. An earthquake approximately 33km below the ocean floor triggered a devastating tsunami that hit the shores of the Samoan Island region on September 30, 2009. The catastrophe flattened villages, killing over 100 people and injuring umpteen more.
Death toll in Samoan tsunami climbs to 82 – hundreds missing
3. The period around Black Saturday saw vicious bushfires rip across the Australian state of Victoria. The area sweltered in a record breaking heat wave prior to the deadly fires in early February, 2009. The 173 related deaths amounted to Australia’s highest loss of life from a bushfire.
Victoria bushfires claim first New Zealand victim
4. Protests erupted in the wake of Iran’s election on June 12, 2009. While they were initially peaceful movements seeking to highlight the alleged irregularity of the vote’s outcome, they became increasingly violent. The government implemented tight censorship on both mainstream and social media. A remarkable feature of the protests was the use of Twitter - it stepped forward as the primary communication tool.
Iran puts curbs on media after disputed election
5. The Ürümqi riots in Xinjiang, China, began as a Uyghur protest escalated into clashes with Han Chinese people on July 6, 2009. It proved to be China’s worst ethnic violence in decades. Over the days that followed 197 people were killed and 1,721 people were injured, according to official figures. Eleven people have since been sentenced to death for crimes related to the riots.
China experiencing worst violence since Tiananmen Square
6. H1N1, or Swine Flu, was declared the first pandemic of the 21st century by the World Health Organisation on June 12, 2009. The concern surrounding the sub-type of the influenza A virus invoked a global response akin to panic – strict health policies were implemented in schools and work places and travel restrictions were recommended. The expected death toll is yet to amount.
Swine flu unstoppable as WHO declares pandemic
7. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi – a Libyan convicted of involvement in the December 21, 1988, ‘Lockerbie Bombing’ – was released from his life sentence in a Scottish prison on compassionate grounds on August 21, 2009. Despite the subsequent global diplomatic outcry, Al Megrahi was returned to Libya and greeted as a hero – much to the distress of many of the victim’s families. At the time of his release he had a life expectancy of three months due to terminal prostate cancer. He remains alive today.
Scotland frees terminally ill Lockerbie bomber
8. Michael Jackson died June 26, 2009. Jackson suffered from a cardiac arrest in his Los Angles home and was pronounced dead at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Centre. An outpouring of grief over his unexpected passing was seen and felt worldwide.
Michael Jackson suffers cardiac arrest
9. On January 15, 2009, US Airways flight 1549 successfully ditched into the Hudson River without harming any persons. The Airbus A320 struck a flock of Canada Geese and immediately lost thrust from both engines above New York. Unable to reach the nearby airfield, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger glided the aircraft down to safety in the river.
New York airplane crash hailed a miracle
10. Finally, in a year when we lost the coming stylings of US president George W Bush, other global leaders have been making some of the most popular headlines throughout 2009…
Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi:
French President Nikolas Sarkozy
Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd