2024 Finnish presidential election: Alexander Stubb is elected as the 13th president of Finland.
COVID-19 pandemic: The World Health Organization officially names the coronavirus outbreak as COVID-19, with the virus being designated SARS-CoV-2.
Saratov Airlines Flight 703 crashes near Moscow, Russia with 71 deaths and no survivors.
North Korea test fires a ballistic missile across the Sea of Japan.
A man shoots seven people dead at an education center in Jizan Province, Saudi Arabia.
A university student is murdered as she resists an attempted rape in Turkey, sparking nationwide protests and public outcry against harassment and violence against women.
The European Space Agency's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle is launched on a Vega rocket.
A military transport plane crashes in a mountainous area of Oum El Bouaghi Province in eastern Algeria, killing 77 people.
The Vatican confirms that Pope Benedict XVI will resign the papacy as a result of his advanced age.
Militants claiming to be from the Sultanate of Sulu invade Lahad Datu District, Sabah, Malaysia, beginning the Lahad Datu standoff.
Arab Spring: The first wave of the Egyptian revolution culminates in the resignation of Hosni Mubarak and the transfer of power to the Supreme Military Council after 17 days of protests.
Rebel East Timorese soldiers seriously wound President José Ramos-Horta. Rebel leader Alfredo Reinado is killed in the attack.
A Dutch programmer launches the Anna Kournikova virus infecting millions of emails via a trick photo of the tennis star.
Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on STS-99 to conduct the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission.
Pluto crosses Neptune's orbit, ending a nearly 20-year period when it was closer to the Sun than the gas giant; Pluto is not expected to interact with Neptune's orbit again until 2231.
Space Shuttle Discovery is launched on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
Nelson Mandela is released from Victor Verster Prison outside Cape Town, South Africa after 27 years as a political prisoner.
Buster Douglas, a 42:1 underdog, knocks out Mike Tyson in ten rounds at Tokyo to win boxing's world Heavyweight title.
The Iranian Revolution establishes an Islamic theocracy under the leadership of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Pacific Western Airlines Flight 314 crashes at the Cranbrook/Canadian Rockies International Airport in Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada with 42 deaths and seven survivors.