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This article is about the year 2002. For other uses, see 2002 (number). Year 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar.
The year 2002 was designated the:
See also: the almanac of events for this year.
The year number was a palindrome (next palindrome year will be 2112).
Events of 2002
January
- January 1 - The Open Skies mutual surveillance treaty, initially signed in 1992, officially enters into force.
- January 1 - Euro notes and coins issued in France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Finland, Luxembourg, Belgium, Austria, Ireland and in the Netherlands.
- January 3 - The University of Miami defeats Nebraska 37-14 in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to win college football\'s national championship.
- January 5 - Charles Bishop, a 15 year-old student pilot, crashes a light aircraft into a Tampa, Florida building, evoking fear of a copycat 9/11 terrorist attack.
- January 9 - The United States Department of Justice announces it will pursue a criminal investigation of Enron.
- January 10 - Enrique Bolaños begins his 5-year term as President of the Republic of Nicaragua.
- January 12 - The X (roller coaster) opened at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Santa Clarita, California
- January 14 - The asylum case of Adelaide Abankwah is heard in New York.
- January 16 - Appalachian School of Law shooting: A student shoots 6 people at the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Virginia, killing 3.
- January 16 - U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft announces that American Taliban member John Walker Lindh will be tried in the United States.
- January 16 - The UN Security Council unanimously establishes an arms embargo and freezes the assets of Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaida, and the Taliban.
- January 17 - The eruption of Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo displaces an estimated 400,000 people.
- January 18 - A Canadian Pacific Railway train carrying anhydrous ammonia derails outside of Minot, North Dakota, killing 1.
- January 19 - In the AFC Divisional Playoffs the New England Patriots defeated the Oakland Raiders 16-13 in overtime playoff game played in a driving snow storm. The game was remembered as The Snow Bowl when Raiders cornerback Charles Woodson stripped the ball from Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
- January 23 - Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl is kidnapped in Pakistan, accused of being a CIA agent by his captors.
- January 24 - Terrorist suspect John Walker Lindh\'s hearing begins.Confirmation needed
- January 25 - Thomas Junta kills junior coach Michael Costin during a fight at a junior hockey game in Massachusetts
- January 27 - Several explosions at a military dump in Lagos, Nigeria killing more than 1,000.Confirmation needed
- January 31 - A large section of the Antarctic Larsen Ice Shelf begins disintegrating, eventually consuming about 3,250 km² (1,254 miles²) over a 35-day period
February
 Artists concept of the 2001 Mars Odyssey Spacecraft - February 19 - NASA\'s Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of Mars using its thermal emission imaging system.
- February 20 - In Reqa Al-Gharbiya, Egypt, a fire on a train injures over 65 and kills at least 370.
- February 20 - In most of the world, at 20:02 (8:02 PM) the local time, date (written as day/month), time, and year are all 2002, making each of them alone, any 2 together, and the combination of all 3, all palindromes.
- February 22 - Angolan political and rebel leader Jonas Savimbi is killed in a military ambush.
- February 22 - A Norwegian-facilitated ceasefire begins in Sri Lanka.
- February 23 - FARC kidnaps Ingrid Betancourt in Colombia while she campaigns for the presidency.
- February 27 - A series of riots leaves hundreds dead, after 59 Hindu pilgrims die aboard a train burned by a Muslim mob in Godhra, India.
- February 27 - Rachel Thaler, 16, of Ginot Shomron died of wounds suffered in February 16 suicide bomb attack.
- February 28 - The ex-currencies of all euro members officially (at EU-level) cease to be legal tender.
March
 Hubble Space Telescope after servicing by the crew of STS-109 - March 1 - U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: In eastern Afghanistan, Operation Anaconda begins.
- March 1 - Continuing violence in Ahmedabad kills 28; police shoot and kill 5 rioters.
- March 1 - The Envisat environmental satellite successfully reaches an orbit 800 km above the Earth using an Ariane 5 on its 11th launch, carrying the heaviest payload to date at 8500kg.
- March 1 - STS-109: Space Shuttle Columbia flies the Hubble Space Telescope service mission, its last before STS-107.
- March 1 - The Peseta is discontinued as the official currency of Spain and is replaced with the euro (€).
- March 3 - São Tomé and PrÃncipe hold legislative elections.
- March 4 - Ansett Australia, One of the oldest airlines in the world and the second largest in Australia ceases operation after collapsing Financially. This day and event also marked the largest job loss in Australian history.
- March 6 - France agrees to return the remains of Saartjie Baartman to South Africa.
- March 10 - Colombia holds legislative elections.
- March 10 - Togo holds parliamentary elections.
- March 11 - BBC 6 Music, the first new BBC music radio station in decades, is launched.
- March 12 - In Houston, Texas, Andrea Yates is found guilty of drowning her 5 children on June 20, 2001. She is later sentenced to life in prison.
- March 14 - 125 vehicles are involved in a massive pile up on Interstate 75 in Ringgold, Georgia
- March 17 - Portugal holds parliamentary elections.
- March 17 - In Islamabad, Pakistan, the International Protestant Church attack occurs.
- March 19 - US Attack on Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda ends (started on March 1) after killing 500 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters, with 11 allied troop fatalities.
- March 22 - Ameer Khattab or Ibn al Khattab the Saudi rebel who fought in Chechnya and Afghanistan was poinoned and killed by a traitor paid by Russia.
- March 21 - In Pakistan, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh along with 3 other suspects are charged with murder in the kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.
- March 24 - The 74th Academy Awards, hosted by Whoopi Goldberg, are held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California with the film A Beautiful Mind winning Best Picture. Two African American actors Halle Berry and Denzel Washington win honors for their leading roles.
- March 27 - Netanya suicide attack: A suicide bomber kills 28 people in Netanya, Israel.
- March 30 - Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother dies in her sleep at the Royal lodge, aged 101
- March 31 - Ukraine holds parliamentary elections.
- March 31 - Earthquake in Taiwan.
April
- April 1 - Maryland defeats Indiana 64-52 to win the NCAA Men\'s Basketball Championship at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia.
- April 2 - Israeli forces besiege the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, when militants take shelter there.
- April 9 - The funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother takes place in Westminster Abbey, London.
- April 11 - April 14 - Failed military coup d\'état against the leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez.
- April 15 - An Air China Boeing 767-200 crashes into a hillside during heavy rain and fog near Pusan, South Korea, killing 128.
- April 15 - The Alameda Corridor transportation project in Los Angeles, California opens to rail traffic, ceasing operations of through freight trains on the 120-year-old BNSF Harbor Subdivision.
- April 16 - Dr. Bernd Pischetsrieder becomes the seventh CEO of the Volkswagen automobile company, succeeding Dr. Ferdinand Piech.
- April 17 - Four Canadian infantrymen are killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire from 2 US F-16s.
- April 18 - A new insect order, Mantophasmatodea, is announced.
- April 21 - French presidential election, 2002: The first round results in a runoff between Jacques Chirac and the leader of the main French far-right party, Jean-Marie Le Pen.
- April 22 - At a special session of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, Director-General Jose Bustani is fired.
- April 25 - Soyuz TM-34: South African Mark Shuttleworth blasts off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome; he had paid £15 million for the trip.
- April 26 - Robert Steinhäuser opens fire on his former teachers and other students in Erfurt, Germany and then kills himself; 16 are dead.
- April 27 - The Laughlin, Nevada River Run Riot leaves 3 dead.
- April 30 - Pakistan: Pakistani voters approve a referendum granting a 5-year term for Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf.
May
- May 4 - In Germany, BV Borussia Dortmund wins the Bundesliga title after a 2-1 victory over SV Werder Bremen.
- May 5 - In the second round of the French presidential election, Jacques Chirac is reelected.
- May 6 - In the Netherlands, politician Pim Fortuyn is killed by Volkert van der Graaf.
- May 7 - China Northern Airlines Flight 6136 crashed into the bay near Dalian, killing all 103 passengers and 9 crew members.
- May 7 - Gay Canadian teenager Marc Hall is granted a court injunction ordering that he be allowed to attend his high school prom with his boyfriend.
- May 9 - The 38-day stand-off in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem comes to an end when the Palestinians inside agree to have 13 suspected militants among them deported to several different countries.
- May 9 - In Kaspiysk, Russia, a remote-control bomb explodes during a holiday parade, killing 43 and injuring at least 130.
- May 10 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for selling American secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds.
- May 11 - Ray Charles takes part - with other musicians - in a peace concert in Rome, which was the first event to take place inside the city’s ancient Colosseum since 404 A.D. The event was organized in partnership with the Glocal Forum and the Quincy Jones Listen Up Foundation.
- May 12 - Former President Jimmy Carter arrives in Cuba for a 5-day visit with Fidel Castro, becoming the first U.S. President, in or out of office, to visit the island since Castro\'s 1959 revolution.
- May 12 - The Russian Shuttle Buran is destroyed when the roof of the hangar collapses, killing 8 workers.
- May 15 - The Netherlands holds elections for the Lower House.
- May 20 - East Timor regains its independence.
- May 21 - The US State Department releases a report naming 7 state sponsors of terrorism: Iran, Iraq, Cuba, Libya, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria.
- May 22 - In Washington, DC, Chandra Levy\'s remains are found in Rock Creek Park.
- May 22 - American civil rights movement: 16th Street Baptist Church bombing: A jury in Birmingham, Alabama convicts former Ku Klux Klan member Bobby Frank Cherry of the 1963 murders of 4 girls.
- May 23 - Irish Football Captain Roy Keane is sent home from the Training Camp in Saipan by Manager Mick McCarthy, after an argument over training arrangements.
- May 23 - Estonia hosts the first Eurovision Song Contest in a former Soviet republic.
- May 25 - The Boston Celtics come back from 26 points down to defeat the New Jersey Nets in Game 3 of the National Basketball Association\'s Eastern Conference Finals.
- May 25 - China Airlines Flight 611 breaks up near the Penghu Islands at Taiwan Strait, killing all 225 people on board.
- May 26 - The Mars Odyssey finds signs of huge water ice deposits on the planet Mars.
- May 26 - A barge collides with the Interstate 40 bridge across the Arkansas River in eastern Oklahoma, leaving 14 dead
- May 27 - The French-Canadian national television network TVA announces the nomination of Sophie Thibault as their solo news anchor, a North American first.
- May 28 - Washington DC\'s medical examiner declares that Chandra Levy\'s death was the result of homicide.
- May 30 - The final piece of debris from The World Trade Center is removed from Ground Zero.
- May 31 - The 2002 FIFA World Cup begins, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan.
June
- June 1 - The Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Sacramento Kings 112-106, to win Game 7 of the National Basketball Association\'s 2002 Western Conference Finals.
- June 3 - The "Party in the Palace" takes place at Buckingham Palace, London for Queen Elizabeth II\'s Golden Jubilee celebrations.
- June 4 - The planetoid Quaoar is discovered orbiting the Sun in the Kuiper belt.
- June 4 - Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh ride in the gold state coach from Buckingham Palace to St Paul\'s Cathedral for a special service marking the Queen\'s 50 years on the throne. In New York, the Empire State Building is lit in purple for her honor.
- June 6 - Eastern Mediterranean Event: An object with an estimated diameter of 10 metres collides with Earth. The collision occurs over the Mediterranean Sea, and the object detonates in mid-air.
- June 8 - Serena Williams defeats her sister Venus Williams in straight sets to win the 2002 French Open.
- June 10 - An annular solar eclipse occurs.
- June 10 - First direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom.
- June 11 - Antonio Meucci is recognized as the first inventor of the telephone by the United States Congress.
- June 12 - The Los Angeles Lakers defeat the New Jersey Nets 4 games to 0 to win the 2002 NBA Finals.
- June 13 - The Detroit Red Wings defeat the Carolina Hurricanes 4 games to 1 in the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals.
- June 14 - In Karachi, Pakistan, a car bomb in front of the U.S. Consulate kills 12 Pakistanis and injures 50.
- June 15 - Near Earth Asteroid 2002 MN misses our planet by 75,000 miles (120,000 km) about one third the distance to the moon.
- June 18 - Arizona experiences its worst forest fire, burning 462,606 acres (1,872 km²) near the Mogollon Rim.
- June 19 - Total Nonstop Action Wrestling makes its debut on Pay-Per-View (the first weekly wrestling show on PPV).
- June 22 - St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile is found dead of a heart attack in his Chicago hotel room.
- June 24 - The Igandu train disaster in Dodoma Region, Tanzania, kills 281 people in the worst rail accident in African history.
- June 29 - U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, serves as Acting President for two and a half hours, while President George W. Bush undergoes a colonoscopy procedure.
- June 30 - Brazil defeats Germany in the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
July
- July 1 - The International Criminal Court is established to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. Crimes committed on or after this date may be prosecuted by the court.
- July 1 - A Russian passenger jet and a cargo plane collide over the town of Uberlingen in Southern Germany; 72 are dead (see Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937).
- July 9 - The Organization of African Unity is officially disbanded and replaced by the African Union.
- July 10 - At a Sotheby\'s auction, Peter Paul Rubens\' painting "The Massacre of the Innocents" is sold for £49.5million (US$76.2 million) to Lord Thomson.
- July 13 - A lighting strike sets off the Sour Biscuit Fire in Oregon and northern California, which is left to burn 499,570 acres (2,022 km²).
- July 14 - During Bastille Day celebrations, Jacques Chirac escapes an assassination attempt unscathed.
- July 15 - In Washington, DC, "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to aiding the enemy and possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. Lindh agrees to serve 10 years in prison for each charge.
- July 19 - Henan Province, the People\'s Republic of China, 25 dead and hundreds injured due to hail.
- July 21 - Telecommunications giant WorldCom files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection (the largest such filing in United States history).
- July 25 - Queen Elizabeth II opens the XVII
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