Encyclopedia-Geography

Conversion of Universal Time

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 08:00:00 +0000

Conversion of Universal Time (UT) to Civil Time

UT	EDT¹	EST²	CST³	MST⁴	PST⁵
00	*8P	*7P	*6P	*5P	*4P
01	*9P	*8P	*7P	*6P	*5P
02	*10P	*9P	*8P	*7P	*6P
03	*11P	*10P	*9P	*8P	*7P
04	M	*11P	*10P	*9P	*8P
05	1A	M	*11P	*10P	*9P
06	2A	1A	M	*11P	*10P
07	3A	2A	1A	M	*11P
08	4A	3A	2A	1A	M
09	5A	4A	3A	2A	1A
10	6A	5A	4A	3A	2A
11	7A	6A	5A	4A	3A
12	8A	7A	6A	5A	4A
13	9A	8A	7A	6A	5A
14	10A	9A	8A	7A	6A
15	11A	10A	9A	8A	7A
16	N	11A	10A	9A	8A
17	1P	N	11A	10A	9A
18	2P	1P	N	11A	10A
19	3P	2P	1P	N	11A
20	4P	3P	2P	1P	N
21	5P	4P	3P	2P	1P
22	6P	5P	4P	3P	2P
23	7P	6P	5P	4P	3P

NOTES: * denotes previous day. N = noon. M = midnight.

1. Eastern Daylight Time.

2. Eastern Standard Time, same as Central Daylight Time.

3. Central Standard Time, same as Mountain Daylight Time.

4. Mountain Standard Time, same as Pacific Daylight Time.

5. Pacific Standard Time.

Astronomical Constants

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:59:00 +0000

Astronomical Constants

Light-year (distance traveled by light in one year)	5,880,000,000,000 mi
Parsec (parallax of one second, or stellar distances)	3.259 light-years
Velocity of light	c. 186,282.4 mi/sec
Astronomical unit (A.U.), or mean distance Earth to Sun	ca. 93,000,000 mi¹
Mean distance, Earth to Moon	238,860 mi
General precession	50',.26
Obliquity of the ecliptic	23° 27'8'.26-0'.4684(t-1900)²
Equatorial radius of Earth	3963.34 statute mi
Polar radius of Earth	3949.99 statute mi
Earth's mean radius	3958.89 statute mi
Oblateness of Earth	1/297
Equatorial horizontal parallax of the moon	57'2'.70
Earth's mean velocity in orbit	18.5 mi/sec
Sidereal year	365d.2564
Tropical year	365d.2422
Sidereal month	27d.3217
Synodic month	29d.5306
Mean sidereal day	23h56m4s.091 of mean solar time
Mean solar day	24h3m56s.555 of sidereal time

1. Actual mean distance derived from radar bounces: 92,935,700 mi. The value of 92,897,400 mi (based on parallax of 8".80) is used in calculations.

2. t refers to the year in question, for example, 2003.

Astronomical Terms

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:58:00 +0000

Astronomical Terms

The Milky Way, the galaxy containing our solar system, is about 100,000 light-years in diameter and about 10,000 light-years thick.

Aphelion: see Orbit.
Apogee: see Orbit.

Black hole: the theoretical end-product of the total gravitational collapse of a massive star or group of stars. Crushed even smaller than the incredibly dense neutron star, the black hole may become so dense that not even light can escape its gravitational field. In 1996, astronomers found strong evidence for a massive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. Recent evidence suggests that black holes are so common that they probably exist at the core of nearly all galaxies.
Conjunction: the alignment of two celestial objects at the same celestial longitude. Conjunction of the Moon and planets is often determined with reference to the Sun. For example, Saturn is said to be in conjunction with the Sun when Saturn and Earth are aligned on opposite sides of the Sun.
Mercury and Venus, the two planets with orbits within Earth's orbit, have two positions of conjunction. Mercury, for example, is said to be in inferior conjunction when the Sun and Earth are aligned on opposite sides of Mercury. Mercury is in superior conjunction when Mercury and Earth are aligned on opposite sides of the Sun.
Dwarf planet: see Planet.
Elongation: the angular distance between two points in the sky as measured from a third point. The elongation of Mercury, for example, is the angular distance between Mercury and the Sun as measured from Earth. Planets whose orbits are outside Earth's can have elongations between 0° and 180°. (When a planet's elongation is 0°, it is at conjunction; when it is 180°, it is at opposition.) Because Mercury and Venus are within Earth's orbit, their greatest elongations measured from Earth are 28° and 47°, respectively.
Galaxy: gas and millions of stars held together by gravity. All that you can see in the sky (with a very few exceptions) belongs to our galaxy—a system of roughly 200 billion stars. The exceptions you can see are other galaxies. Our own galaxy, the rim of which we see as the “Milky Way,” is about 100,000 light-years in diameter and about 10,000 light-years in thickness. Its shape is roughly that of a thick lens; more precisely, it is a spiral nebula, a term first used for other galaxies when they were discovered and before it was realized that these were separate and distinct galaxies. Astronomers have estimated that the universe could contain 40 to 50 billion galaxies. In 2004, the Hubble Space Telescope and observers at the Keck Observatory in Hawaii discovered a new galaxy 13 billion light-years from Earth.
Neutron star: an extremely dense star with a powerful gravitational pull. Some neutron stars pulse radio waves into space as they spin; these are known as pulsars.
Occultation: the eclipse of one celestial object by another. For example, a star is occulted when the Moon passes between it and Earth.
Opposition: the alignment of two celestial objects when their longitude differs by 180°. Opposition of the Moon and planets is often determined with reference to the Sun. For example, Saturn is said to be at opposition when Saturn and the Sun are aligned on opposite sides of Earth. Only the planets whose orbits lie outside Earth's can be in opposition to the Sun.
Orbit: the path traveled by an object in space. The term comes from the Latin orbis, which means “circle” or “disk,” and orbita, “orbit.” Theoretically, there are four mathematical figures, or models, of possible orbits: two are open (hyperbola and parabola) and two are closed (ellipse and circle), but in reality all closed orbits are ellipses. Ellipses can be nearly circular, as are the orbits of most planets, or very elongated, as are the orbits of most comets, but the orbit revolves around a fixed, or focal, point. In our solar system, the Sun's gravitational pull keeps the planets in their elliptical orbits; the planets hold their moons in place similarly. For planets, the point of the orbit closest to the Sun is the perihelion, and the point farthest from the Sun is the aphelion. For orbits around Earth, the point of closest proximity is the perigee; the farthest point is the apogee. See also Retrograde.
Perigee: see Orbit.
Perihelion: see Orbit.
Planet: the International Astronomical Union (IAU) issued the definition for planet (from the Greek planetes, “wanderers”) at their General Assembly in August 2006. A planet is a body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) is massive enough that its self-gravity gives it a nearly-spherical shape, and (c) has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit. A body that fulfills the first two criteria but not the third is a dwarf planet, provided that it (d) is not a satellite.
While the exact definition of “clearing the neighborhood” was not established at press time, the eight planets from Mercury through Neptune have either assimilated or repulsed most other objects in their orbits, and each has more mass than the combined total of everything else in its area. The same cannot be said for Pluto, which has now been reclassified as a dwarf planet. There are currently eight planets and three dwarf planets recognized in the solar system, and more dwarf planets are expected to be admitted.
In 1994, Dr. Alexander Wolszcan, an astronomer at Pennsylvania State University, presented convincing evidence of the first known planets to exist outside our solar system. These particular extrasolar planets circle a pulsar, or exploded star, in the constellation Virgo.
In 1995, several of these extrasolar planets were discovered orbiting stars similar to our Sun. Swiss astronomers found the first extrasolar planet (HD 209458b, nicknamed “Osiris”) to circle a normal Sun-like star. As of May 2006, 170 such planets have been discovered.
In Feb. 2004, using the Hubble Space Telescope, a team of scientists at the Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris announced that they had discovered oxygen and carbon in the atmosphere of “Osiris.”
In Aug. 2004, NASA and the National Science Foundation announced the discovery of two new planets, the smallest yet found, about the size of Neptune. The discovery opens up the possibility of smaller, Earth-sized extrasolar planets.
In April 2005, a team of American and European astronomers reported that the first image of an extrasolar planet had been made. The planet is orbiting a brown dwarf near the constellation Hydra, 230 million light-years from Earth.
Pulsar: a celestial object, believed to be a rapidly spinning neutron star, that emits intense bursts of radio waves at regular intervals.
Quasar: “quasi-stellar” object. Originally thought to be peculiar stars in our own galaxy, quasars are now believed to be the most remote objects in the universe.
Quasars emit tremendous amounts of light and microwave radiation. Although they are not much bigger than Earth's solar system, quasars pour out 100 to 1,000 times as much light as an entire galaxy containing a hundred billion stars. It is believed that quasars are powered by massive black holes that suck up billions of stars.
Retrograde: describes the clockwise orbit or rotation of a planet or other celestial object, which is in the direction opposite to Earth and most celestial bodies. As viewed from a position in space north of the solar system (from some great distance above Earth's North Pole), all the planets revolve counterclockwise around the Sun, and all but Venus, Uranus, and Pluto rotate counterclockwise on their own axes. These three planets have retrograde motion.
Sometimes retrograde is also used to describe apparent backward motion as viewed from Earth. This motion happens when two objects rotate at different speeds around another fixed object. For example, the planet Mars appears to be retrograde when Earth overtakes and passes by it as they both move around the Sun.
Satellite (or moon): an object in orbit around a planet. Until the discovery of Jupiter's four main moons by Galileo Galilei, celestial objects in orbit around a planet were called moons. However, upon Galilei's discovery, Johannes Kepler (in a letter to Galileo) suggested satellite (from the Latin satelles, which means “attendant”) as a general term for such objects. The word satellite is used interchangeably with moon, and astronomers speak and write about the moons of Neptune, Saturn, etc. The term satellite is also used to describe man-made devices of any size that are launched into orbit.
Small Solar System Objects: at the 2006 IAU General Assembly, solar system bodies not defined as planets, dwarf planets, or satellites were placed in this category. These include most asteroids, most Trans-Neptunian Objects, comets, and other small bodies.
Star: a celestial object consisting of intensely hot gases held together by gravity. Stars derive their energy from nuclear reactions going on in their interiors, generating heat and light. Stars are very large. Our Sun has a diameter of 865,400 mi—a comparatively small star.
A dwarf star is a small star that is of relatively low mass and average or below-average luminosity. The Sun is a yellow dwarf, which is in its main sequence, or prime of life. This means that nuclear reactions of hydrogen maintain its size and temperature. By contrast, a white dwarf is a star at the end of its life, with low luminosity, small size, and very high density.
A red giant is a star nearing the end of its life. When a star begins to lose hydrogen and burn helium instead, it gradually collapses, and its outer region begins to expand and cool. The light we see from these stars is red because of their cooler temperature. There are also red super giants, which are even more massive.
A brown dwarf lacks the mass to generate nuclear fusion like a true star, but it is also too massive and hot to be a planet. A brown dwarf usually cools into a dark, practically invisible object. The existence of brown dwarfs, also called failed stars, was confirmed in Nov. 1995 when astronomers at Palomar Observatory in California took the first photograph of this mysterious object.
Supernova: a celestial phenomenon in which a star explodes, releasing a great burst of light. There are two basic types of supernova. Type Ia happens when a white dwarf star draws large amounts of matter from a nearby star until it can no longer support itself and collapses. The second more well-known kind of supernova, type IIa, is the result of the collapse of a massive star. (Massive is a classification for a star that is at least eight times the size of our Sun.) Once the star's nuclear fuel is exhausted, if its core is heavy enough, the star will collapse in on itself, releasing a huge amount of energy (the supernova), which may be brighter than the star's host galaxy.
On Feb. 24, 1987, Canadian astronomer Ian Shelter at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile discovered a supernova—an exploding star—from a photograph taken on Feb. 23 of the Large Magellanic Cloud, a galaxy some 160,000 light-years away from Earth. Astronomers believe that the dying star was Sanduleak –69°202, a 10-million-year-old blue supergiant.
Supernova 1987A was the closest and best-studied supernova in almost 400 years. One was previously observed by Johannes Kepler in 1604, four years before the telescope was invented.

How Bright Is Bright?

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:52:00 +0000

How Bright Is Bright?

You will often hear astronomers refer to the brightness of an object in terms of an objects apparent magnitude.
The term apparent magnitude refers to a star's apparent brightness, or how bright the star looks to observers on Earth. Apparent stellar brightness is a combination of two things: how bright the star actually is, and how far the star is from Earth. A dim star close to Earth could appear brighter than a bright star far away.
Back in the second century B.C., the Greek astronomer Hipparchus created the first known star catalog, listing star positions and brightness. This catalog contained about a thousand stars. The brightest stars were called first magnitude, and the faintest were called sixth magnitude, with the rest being given intermediate magnitudes. This was a crude method of classification, for his observations were made with the unaided eye. His sixth magnitude stars were the faintest naked-eye objects, and man's view at that time was that the extent of the universe was limited to what could be seen by the naked eye.
Today, magnitude classifications are made using highly precise instruments, but Hipparchus's general classification of magnitudes remains. The branch of astronomy that deals with an objects brightness is called photometry, and towards the end of the 1700s, astronomer William Herschel devised a simple method of photometry. While Herschel's methods worked, they were only approximations. One key point that arose from his work was the determination that a first magnitude star delivers about 100 times as much light to Earth as that of a sixth magnitude star.
In 1856, after more precise methods of photometry had been invented, British astronomer Norman Pogson proposed a quantitative scale of stellar magnitudes, which was adopted by the astronomical community. He noted, like Herschel, that we receive 100 times more light from a first magnitude star as from a sixth; thus, with a difference of five magnitudes, there is a 100:1 ratio of incoming light energy, which is called luminous flux.
Because of the nature of human perception, equal intervals of brightness are actually equal ratios of luminous flux. Pogson's proposal was that one increment in magnitude be the fifth root of 100. This means that each increment in magnitude corresponds to an increase in the amount of energy by 2.512, approximately. A fifth magnitude star is 2.512 times as bright as a sixth, and a fourth magnitude star is 6.310 times as bright as a sixth, and so on. The naked eye, under optimum conditions, can see down to around the sixth magnitude, that is +6. Under the Pogson system, a few of the brighter stars now have negative magnitudes. For example, Sirius is –1.5. The lower the magnitude number, the brighter the object. The full moon has a magnitude of about –12.5, and the Sun is a bright –26.5!

A Star's Magnitude

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:50:00 +0000

A Star's Magnitude

Magnitude is the degree of brightness of a star. In 1856, British astronomer Norman Pogson proposed a quantitative scale of stellar magnitudes, which was adopted by the astronomical community. He noted that we receive 100 times more light from a first magnitude star as from a sixth; thus with a difference of five magnitudes, there is a 100:1 ratio of incoming light energy, which is called luminous flux.
Because of the nature of human perception, equal intervals of brightness are actually equal ratios of luminous flux. Pogson's proposal was that one increment in magnitude be the fifth root of 100. This means that each increment in magnitude corresponds to an increase in the amount of energy by 2.512, approximately. A fifth magnitude star is 2.512 times as bright as a sixth, and a fourth magnitude star is 6.310 times as bright as a sixth, and so on. The naked eye, upon optimum conditions, can see down to around the sixth magnitude, that is, +6. Under Pogson's system, a few of the brighter stars now have negative magnitudes. For example, Sirius is –1.5. The lower the magnitude number, the brighter the object. The full Moon has a magnitude of about –12.5, and the Sun is a bright –26.51!

Birth and Death of a Star

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:48:00 +0000

Birth and Death of a Star

Astronomers think that a star begins to form as a dense cloud of gas in the arms of spiral galaxies. Individual hydrogen atoms fall with increasing speed and energy toward the center of the cloud under the force of the star's gravity. The increase in energy heats the gas. When this process has continued for some millions of years, the temperature reaches about 20 million degrees Fahrenheit. At this temperature, the hydrogen within the star ignites and burns in a continuing series of nuclear reactions. The onset of these reactions marks the birth of a star.
When a star begins to exhaust its hydrogen supply, its life nears an end. The first sign of a star's old age is a swelling and reddening of its outer regions. Such an aging, swollen star is called a red giant. The Sun, a middle-aged star, will probably swell to a red giant in 5 billion years, vaporizing Earth and any creatures that may be on its surface. When all its fuel has been exhausted, a star cannot generate sufficient pressure at its center to balance the crushing force of gravity. The star collapses under the force of its own weight; if it is a small star, it collapses gently and remains collapsed. Such a collapsed star, at its life's end, is called a white dwarf. The Sun will probably end its life in this way. A different fate awaits a large star. Its final collapse generates a violent explosion, blowing the innards of the star out into space. There, the materials of the exploded star mix with the primeval hydrogen of the universe. Later in the history of the galaxy, other stars are formed out of this mixture. The Sun is one of these stars. It contains the debris of countless other stars that exploded before the Sun was born.
In 2006, astronomers were excited about star formation in Arp 220, a super galaxy created by the collision of two other galaxies 250 million light-years from Earth. The Hubble Space Telescope has observed more than 200 huge star clusters, giving scientists a glimpse of what occurred when the universe was young. A surprising find was that the mix of gas and dust in this new galaxy is very similar to our own older Milky Way.

The Age and Composition of the Universe

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:47:00 +0000

The Age and Composition of the Universe

In one of the most important cosmological discoveries in years, NASA scientists have captured the most precise image of the universe, shedding light on its origins, age, and providing further evidence for the long-standing Big Bang and inflation theories. In Feb. 2003, a joint NASA–Princeton University satellite, the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropic Probe (WMAP), produced a high-resolution map that captured the oldest light in the universe. This ancient light, called the cosmic microwave background, is the cooled remnant of the hot explosion known as the Big Bang. “The cosmic microwave light is a fossil,” explained David Wilkinson, after whom the probe was named, “Just as we can study dinosaur bones and reconstruct their lives of millions of years ago, we can probe this ancient light and reconstruct the universe as it was.” (Wilkinson died just before WMAP's amazing findings were published.)
The age of the universe has now been accurately determined—with just a 1% margin of error—as 13.7 billion years old (previous estimates ranged between 8–20 billion years old). The birth of stars has been pinpointed to just 200 million years after the Big Bang, a surprise to most scientists (predictions had ranged from 500 million to 1 billion years after the cosmos formed). The WMAP image also revealed the contents of the universe: only 4% is made up of atoms, or the physical universe as we know it. The remainder is made up of poorly understood substances: dark energy (73%) and dark matter (23%). These findings are consistent with the Big Bang and inflation theories, which assert that the universe materialized in a “big bang” and immediately began cooling and expanding. “I think every astronomer will remember where they were when they heard these results,” said John Bahcall, a Princeton University astrophysicist. “I certainly will. This announcement represents a rite of passage for cosmology from speculation to precision science.”

Five Easy Stats

How old is the universe? What is it made of? For the first time, scientists have clarity.

13.7 billion years: Age of the universe
200 million years: Interval betwen the Big Bang and the appearance of the first stars
4%: Proportion of the universe that is ordinary matter
23%: Proportion that is dark matter
73%: Proportion that is dark energy

The Big Bang: Origin of the Universe

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 07:46:00 +0000

The Big Bang: Origin of the Universe

Before the universe as we now know it existed, there was no space or time. The Big Bang and its associated theories try to explain or describe the moment of change from nothingness and no time to the existence of the universe filled with space and marked by time. Many physicists describe this event as an explosion, or flash, hence the name Big Bang. The Big Bang is a process of expansion in our universe that is still active today.
The universe flashed into existence (according to the Big Bang theory) from a very small agglomeration of matter of extremely high density and temperatures. As a dense, hot globule of gas, containing nothing but hydrogen and a small amount of helium, it began expanding rapidly outward. There were no stars or planets. The first stars probably formed when the universe was about 200 million years old. Our Sun was formed 4.5 billion years ago, and through telescopes we can now see stars forming out of compressed pockets of hydrogen in outer space.
In 1992 instruments aboard the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite, launched in 1989, showed that 99.97% of the radiant energy of the universe was released within the first year of the Big Bang event. This evidence seems to confirm the Big Bang theory. In March 1995 astronomers found more supporting evidence for the big bang when they concluded that data obtained from the space shuttle's Astro 2 observatory showed that helium was widespread in the early universe. The Big Bang theory holds that hydrogen and helium were the first elements created when the universe was formed.

2004 Disasters

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 01:43:00 +0000

January 2004 Disasters

Jan. 3, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt: A Egyptian charter Boeing 737 crashed into the Red Sea shortly after take-off, killing 148 people many of whom were French tourists going home from holidays.
Jan. 13, Tashkent, Uzbekistan: All 37 people, including the top UN official in Uzbekistan, killed in Uzbek plane crash in dense fog while landing at Tashkent airport.
Jan. 11–17, eastern Canada and U.S.: Record low temperatures more than 9° below normal.
Jan. 17, Pelee Island, Ontario: Flight 126 from Pelee Island bound for Windsor Ontario crashed into Lake Erie, killing all 10 on board.
Jan. 23, New Delhi, India: Sixty-four people, including the groom, perished in a wedding hall in southern India as people panicked in the narrow stairwell.
Jan. 24–29, eastern Europe and Mediterranean: Snow and high winds swept across Romania, Bulgaria, Italy, and Turkey. Turkey closed many shipping channels causing shortages in natural gas and disruptions to electricity and water supplies. Three freighters sunk in the eastern Mediterranean and shipping routes were closed. The Greek-owned cargo ship Kephi sank killing 15 of the 17–member crew. High winds and a sandstorm from this same system closed shipping lanes in the Suez Canal.
Jan. 24–27, midwest and eastern U.S. Snow, ice, and freezing cold spread across the mid-west, the northern Plains, and eastern U.S. from Atlanta, Georgia north through Pennsylvania. At least 56 deaths were blamed on the weather.

February 2004 Disasters

Feb., Canada, U.S., and Europe: Record cold and record snowfalls in the month of February were seen: blizzard conditions in North Dakota, exceedingly heavy snowfalls in North Carolina, and heavy snowfall in the eastern Mediterranean and in western Europe.
Feb. 1, Mecca, Saudi Arabia: At the Hajj pilgrimage, attended by more than 2 million people, a stampede during the stone-throwing ritual killed 251 pilgrims. This annual ritual by Muslims involves throwing stones at three columns of stone that symbolize the devil's temptation of Abraham. In 1990, the stampede killed 1,426 pilgrims, making it the deadliest in the history of the Muslim pilgrimage.
Feb. 5 UT, Papua, Indonesian A 7.0 magnitude earthquake killed 31 people (Feb. 6, local time).
Feb. 10, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates: An Iranian Fokker-50 enroute from Tish Island to Sharjah, Iran, crashed while landing, killing 43 people. There were 3 survivors in critical condition.
Feb. 15, eastern China: 2 deadly fires claimed the lives of more than 90 people. One fire was in a department store in the city of Jilin; the other was in a temple in Zhejiang province.
Feb. 18, Neishabour, Iran: Rail cars loaded with fertilizer, petrol, and sulphur products broke away from the locomotive, rolled 31 mi down the rails, caught fire, and subsequently exploded, killing more than 320 and devastating five villages.
Feb. 24, northern Morocco: A 6.4 magnitude earthquake in northern Morocco near the coastal city of al Hoceima killed 628 people and left 15,000 homeless.
Feb. 26, Sarajevo, Bosnia: The crash of a twin-engine turboprop plane in fog in the south of Bosnia, killed Macedonia's President Boris Trajkovski and eight others. Trajkovski was praised for his work in uniting his ethnically divided country after the break up of Yugoslavia.

March 2004 Disasters

March 8, Antalaha, Madagascar : Cyclone Gafilo with winds of 160 mph and heavy rains left hundreds of thousands homeless and killed 295 people. More than 100 were on a ferry that sank off the island of Comoros.
March 8, Baltimore, Md: Thunderstorms and strong winds gusting to 55 mph swept through Baltimore overturning a water taxi in the inner harbor, killing 5.
March 11, Madrid, Spain: Ten bombs exploded on morning commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191, injuring more than 1,500, causing the worst terrorist attack in Europe. Although the bombings were initially blamed on the ETA, a Basque separatist group, several Moroccans and Indians with possible ties to Al-Qaeda were later arrested. The bombings came a day before the Spanish elections and may have influenced the vote. The Spanish rejected the ruling government party of Jose Maria Aznar's who supported the coalition in Iraq and elected the Socialist party under Zapatero who pledged to remove troops from Iraq unless the United Nations took control.
March 28, Santa Catarina, Brazil: The first documented hurricane in the South Atlantic, since records began in 1966, struck Brazil, killing 3 people.

April 2004 Disasters

April 1–5, New Mexico and Texas: Torrential rains flooded rivers, closed roads, and forced many to evacuate their homes. A foot of hail fell in Fort Stockton.
April 4–6, Piedras Negras, Mexico: Flash flooding from torrential rains in the Rio Grande and Escondido rivers killed 37 Mexicans and forced many others to flee to shelters. Mexican President Vincente Fox declared a state of emergency.
April 20, Utica, Ill.: More than 52 tornadoes struck Illinois and other Midwest states devastating Utica, Ill., southwest of Chicago, and killing 8 people in the basement of the Millstone Tavern.
April 21, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: A suicide car bomber who was stopped short of the former General Security building detonated the vehicle, killing at least 5 and wounding 148. This was the third successful bombing in Riyadh in the past year. Several other potential car bombs were defused this week by security forces. A pro-al-Qaeda group claimed responsibility for the attack.
April 22, Ryongchon, North Korea: 2 trains carrying flammable liquids collided, causing a huge explosion near the Chinese border, killing 150, and injuring more than 1300. North Korea declared a state of emergency.
April 27, Damascus, Syria: Terrorists set off explosives near the British embassy and a former UN building. At least four people were killed.
April 29, Bogota, Colombia: A construction backhoe rolled off its trailer, fell over a ledge, and crushed a school bus, killing 22 children ages 5 to 16 and 2 adults.

May 2004 Disasters

May 1–6, southern Calif.: Six blazes raged through 20,000 acres this week. Many were evacuated from their homes and eight buildings at the Dorland Mountain Arts Colony retreat burned to the ground.
May 4, Athens, Greece: Three bombs exploded in Athens just 100 days before the start of the Olympics, causing increased concern about security for the games. There were no serious injuries.
May 18, Philippines: Typhoon Nida, the fourth to hit the Philippines this year, killed more than 25 people.
May 18–26, Dominican Republic and Haiti: Several days of torrential rains caused the Soliel River, which runs through both countries, to overflow its banks, causing floods and mudslides that destroyed entire villages. More than 3000 people were killed. The damage was particularly devastating in Haiti because of massive deforestation and poorly built homes.
May 19, Dallas, Tex.: 2 freight trains collided derailing 20 cars, killing one person.
May 23, Chandpur, Bangladesh: A storm on the Meghna River sank 2 ferries, killing more than 200 people.
May 23, Paris, France: A section of a new terminal at Charles DeGaulle airport collapsed killing 4 people and injuring 3. The terminal, built a year ago at the cost of $900 million dollars, was an unconventional design of glass and concrete tubes. Preliminary reports blame problems with the concrete.
May 28, Iran: A 6.3 magnitude earthquake in Northern Iran killed 35 people.
May 29–30; midwest, U.S.: Over the Memorial Day weekend tornadoes, high winds, and heavy thunderstorms from Louisiana to the Great Lakes killed 10 people, closed roads, caused power outages, flooded towns, and destroyed homes and buildings.

June 2004 Disasters

June 29–30, Philippines: Typhoon Mindulle struck the Philippines, killing 30.
June 29, Sierra Leone: A United Nations helicopter carrying peacekeepers and others crashed, killing all 24 on board.

July 2004 Disasters

June, July, and Aug., South Asia: The worst monsoon flooding in fifteen years in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh left up to 5 million homeless, killed more than 1800 people with at least 600 in Bangladesh, and destroyed much of the infrastructure. Many people died from drinking polluted water. Hundreds of people in South Asia die every year from the flooding and landslides caused by the monsoon rains.
July-Aug., Alaska: Wildfires in Alaska this summer have burned more than 5 million acres, the worst season on record.
July 1–3, Taiwan: Flooding from tropical storm Mindulle and the heavy rains that followed killed at least 27 people and left 13 missing. Agricultural losses were very heavy.
July 5–11, Romania: A heat wave killed 22 people in Romania and left many more sweltering in southern Europe.
July 12, Zhongba County, Tibet A powerful earthquake hit Tibet in the Gangdise mountains. Damages and casualties in this remote region are not yet known.
July 12, Burlington County, N.J.: Up to 13 inches of rains caused dams to break and severe flooding conditions in Burlington and Camden Country. More than 750 people were evacuated.
July 16, Southern India: The thatched roof of a private elementary school caught fire in southern India, killing 94 children. There were numerous safety hazards and many children who died were trapped in a room with one exit.
July 16–18: New Zealand: Floods and more than 30 earthquakes killed 2 people and led to the evacuation of 1500 people.
July 22, Sakarya province, Turkey: A high-speed train from Istanbul to Ankara derailed, killing 37 people.

August 2004 Disasters

Aug. 1, Asunción, Paraguay: Fire, caused by a gas leak, swept through a supermarket in a three-story shopping center, killing at least 400 people, many of whom were trapped inside because security guards locked the doors to prevent theft. There are still 130 people missing.
Aug. 9, Mihama, Japan: Non-radioactive steam leaked from a nuclear power plant north of Kyoto, killing 4 workers and severely burning 7 others.
Aug. 11, Havana , Cuba: Charley, a category 2 hurricane, caused damage exceeding $1 billion.
Aug. 12, Zhejiang province, China: Typhoon Rananim, the most powerful storm of the season, killed 164 people and caused extensive damage.
Aug. 12, Fla.: Tropical storm Bonnie made landfall in the Florida panhandle.
Aug. 13, Punta Gorda, Fla.: Charley, a category 4 hurricane, struck the southwest coast of Florida with 145 mile per hour winds, killing 31 people in storm-related deaths in the U.S., 4 in Cuba, and 1 in Jamaica. Damages estimated at $7.4. More than 2 million people were evacuated and ten of thousands were left homeless as thousands of buildings were damaged and mobile home parks were demolished. It was the worst hurricane in Florida since Andrew in 1992. Electricity remained out for more than 350,000 customers up to five days after the storm.
Aug. 22, Carabobo, Venezuela : A Venezuelan air force plane crashed in bad weather, killing all 25 aboard.
Aug. 24, Moscow, Russia: 2 Russian planes, a Siberia Airlines Tu-154 and a Volga-Avia Express Tupolev 134 aircraft, both departing from Moscow's airport, crashed within minutes of each other, killing a total of 89 people. Investigators discovered evidence of explosives on both flights.
Aug. 24–25, Taiwan and China: Typhoon Aere swept through Taipei, Taiwan, causing flooding and landslides that killed 39 people in Taiwan and 12 in the Philippines. Aere moved on to China where nearly 1 million people were evacuated.
Aug. 29, southwestern Japan: Typhoon Chaba, with record high winds, killed at least 9 people and caused flooding. Earlier in the month, Typhoon Megi killed 9 in Japan.
Aug. 29–31, S.C., N.C., and Va.: Tropical storm Gaston made landfall in McClellanville, South Carolina and then moved through North Carolina and Virginia. Heavy rains dumped up to 14 inches on Richmond, Va. and the surrounding area, devastating the historic downtown area. The death toll from Gaston; 8 people.

September 2004 Disasters

Sept. 5–8, east and west coast, Fla.: Hurricane Frances, downgraded from a Category 4 to a Category 2 storm, made landfall on the Atlantic coast of Florida, near Stuart, on Sept. 5, moved across the state dropping up to 13 inches of rain. Frances made a second Florida landfall, as a tropical storm, at St. Marks on the Panhandle on Sept. 8. More than 2.8 million people were evacuated and damages estimated at $9 billion. The storm killed at least 38 people.
Sept. 3–8, Sichuan province, China: Five days of downpours have left 172 people dead. The flooding led to concerns about damage to the Three Gorges Dam.
Sept. 7–8, Japan: Typhoon Songda, a powerful typhoon, killed 31 people in Japan and on freighters at sea. Songda was the seventh typhoon to hit Japan this season; there have been nineteen Pacific typhoons this year.
Sept. 8, Kure, Turkey: Fire swept through a Turkish copper mine, trapping and killing 19 miners.
Sept. 8, Caribbean: Hurricane Ivan, a Category 4 hurricane, ripped through Grenada, damaging an estimated 90 percent of the homes on the island. There was wide-spread destruction in St. George's, to the main hospital, the emergency control center, and the prison. Ivan, continued north, hitting Jamaica and battering the Caymans. Both islands experienced storm surges, major flooding, and destroyed homes. A total of 66 people died.
Sept. 16, Ala., Fla., La., and Miss.: Hurricane Ivan, made landfall at Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 3 hurricane, causing severe flooding and power outages from Louisiana to Florida, with some of the worst damage in the Florida Panhandle, where the storm spawned deadly hurricanes. The death toll is at least 52 and damages are estimated at $12 billion. Heavy rainfall and tornadoes spread into N.C. and Tenn.
Sept. 18, Gonaives, Haiti: Tropical storm Jeanne brought torrential rains and flooding to Haiti, killing more than 2,500 with more than 1,000 still missing. The storm killed 31 more in the Caribbean.
Sept. 25, Atlantic Coast, Fla.: Hurricane Jeanne, the fourth hurricane to hit Florida in 6 weeks, made landfall at almost the same area as Frances, three weeks earlier. Jeanne brought strong winds and more flooding to an already saturated state and then continued north through Georgia and South Carolina with heavy rains, killing 28. Total damages for the 4 hurricanes estimated to be more than for Andrew in 1992.
Sept. 28, Parkfield, Calif.: An earthquake registering 6.0 shook central California. No injuries or deaths.

October 2004 Disasters

Oct. 6, Taba, Egypt: Three car bombs targeting Israeli tourists exploded at Egyptian resort areas on the Sinai peninsula. The largest explosion at the Hilton Taba hotel killed at least 34. The other 2 bombs exploded in Ras Shitan, a camp area 35 miles to the south of Taba.
Oct. 8, Paris, France: A bomb exploded outside the Indonesian Embassy in Paris, wounding 10. No person nor organization has claimed responsibility.
Oct. 19, Kirksville, Mo.: A commuter plane, Corporate Airlines Flight 5966, crashed 4 mi outside of the Kirksville Regional Airport, killing 13 of the 15 on board.
Oct. 20, Japan: Typhoon Tokage, the deadliest typhoon to hit Japan in more than 2 decades, killed at least 80 people as heavy rains flooded tens of thousands of houses and triggered numerous landslides. The typhoon produced a record (since 1970) 80 ft (24 m) high wave, eight-stories high. A record ten typhoons have struck Japan this season, killing more than 100 people, and causing damages estimated at $6.7 billion.
Oct. 20, Henan province, China: A coal mine blast in central China killed 148. Insufficient ventilation led to a build up of gas and then sparks from mine machinery ignited the fire.
Oct. 23, Niigata, Japan: A 6.6 magnitude earthquake, the deadliest in more than a decade, hit Japan, killing 40, injuring more than 3,100, and destroying more than 6,000 buildings. A series of quakes triggered more than 1,000 landslides, derailed a high-speed train, disrupted power, and damaged many roads in the area. Communications to the area were cut off leaving many without food and supplies. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated to shelters.
Oct. 24, Martinsville, N.C.: A private plane, belonging to the Rick Hendrick NASCAR team, crashed in heavy fog in North Carolina killing 10, including his son, brother, and other close relatives of Hendrick and several members of the organization.

October 2004 Disasters

Oct. 6, Taba, Egypt: Three car bombs targeting Israeli tourists exploded at Egyptian resort areas on the Sinai peninsula. The largest explosion at the Hilton Taba hotel killed at least 34. The other 2 bombs exploded in Ras Shitan, a camp area 35 miles to the south of Taba.
Oct. 8, Paris, France: A bomb exploded outside the Indonesian Embassy in Paris, wounding 10. No person nor organization has claimed responsibility.
Oct. 19, Kirksville, Mo.: A commuter plane, Corporate Airlines Flight 5966, crashed 4 mi outside of the Kirksville Regional Airport, killing 13 of the 15 on board.
Oct. 20, Japan: Typhoon Tokage, the deadliest typhoon to hit Japan in more than 2 decades, killed at least 80 people as heavy rains flooded tens of thousands of houses and triggered numerous landslides. The typhoon produced a record (since 1970) 80 ft (24 m) high wave, eight-stories high. A record ten typhoons have struck Japan this season, killing more than 100 people, and causing damages estimated at $6.7 billion.
Oct. 20, Henan province, China: A coal mine blast in central China killed 148. Insufficient ventilation led to a build up of gas and then sparks from mine machinery ignited the fire.
Oct. 23, Niigata, Japan: A 6.6 magnitude earthquake, the deadliest in more than a decade, hit Japan, killing 40, injuring more than 3,100, and destroying more than 6,000 buildings. A series of quakes triggered more than 1,000 landslides, derailed a high-speed train, disrupted power, and damaged many roads in the area. Communications to the area were cut off leaving many without food and supplies. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated to shelters.
Oct. 24, Martinsville, N.C.: A private plane, belonging to the Rick Hendrick NASCAR team, crashed in heavy fog in North Carolina killing 10, including his son, brother, and other close relatives of Hendrick and several members of the organization.

November 2004 Disasters

Nov. 7, southern Philippines: Southern Philippines hit by tropical storm Lingling experienced flash floods and landslides that killed at least 115.
Nov. 11, Kepulauan Alor, Indonesia: A 7.5 earthquake, the largest in 2004, killed 28 people.
Nov. 20, San Jose, Costa Rica: A 6.4 earthquake, 30 mi south-southwest of San Jose, killed 8 people, several from heart attacks.
Nov. 21, Baotou, China: China Eastern Airlines commuter plane, a Bombardier CRJ-200, exploded and plunged into a frozen lake just after take-off from Baotou, a city in northern China. All 53 people on board and 1 on the ground were killed
Nov. 20–21, El Campo, Tex.: Fifteen inches of rain flooded El Campo and parts of southeast Texas. More than 250 were evacuated.
Nov. 22–26, Philippines and Vietnam: Tropical storm Muifa sank several boats and pounded the Philippine coast, killing at least 60. In Vietnam, torrential rains from Muifa killed at least 45 people, flooded more than 170,000 houses, and blocked roads, hampering rescue efforts and the delivery of relief supplies. Flooding also threatened the World Heritage site of Hoi An in Vietnam.
Nov. 27, Shaanxi province, China: A gas explosion at Chenjiashan Coal Mine in northwest China killed 166 miners. In October another blast killed 148. More than 4,500 miners died in China this year.
Nov. 26, West Papua province, Indonesia: A magnitude 7.1 earthquake destroyed 328 buildings and killed at least 32.
Nov. 27–28, Sierra Nevadas and Rocky Mountains: Holiday storms dumped up to three feet of snow in California, New Mexico, Colorado, and Nebraska bringing holiday travel to a halt.
Nov. 29, eastern coast and Quezon province, Philippines: Flash floods and landslides from Typhoon Winnie killed more than 500 people and hundreds are still missing. Because of the many landslides, many areas were inaccessible to rescue and clean-up crews. The landslides were caused by the deforestation from both illegal and legal logging.
Nov. 30, Solo, Indonesia: A Lion Air MD-82 plane skidded off the runway in Solo, Indonesia, killing 31 and injuring at least 62.

December 2004 Disasters

Dec. 2–3, eastern coast and Luzon, Philippines: Typhoon Nanmadol, a major storm, hit an area already devastated by 2 previous torrential storms that struck the northeastern region of the Philippines in the last 2 weeks. More than 1800 people died in storm related deaths from the three storms since November. It was the worst storm season for the Philippines in 13 years. Much of the devastation is due to massive landslides resulting from the deforestation by both legal and illegal logging. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has canceled all logging permits and security forces are cracking down on illegal logging.
Dec. 6, Jeddah , Saudi Arabia: Five Al-Qaeda militants attacked the U.S. consulate leaving a total of nine dead (five consulate employees and four attackers), none were American. The militants drove up to the consulate gates, then jumped out and opened fire with machine guns and hand grenades, and entered the compound. Saudi security forces stopped the raid and secured the compound within 30 minutes. The attackers claimed to be members of the Falluja Brigades. Attacks in Saudi Arabia have killed more then 75 since May 20, 2003.
Dec. 12, Manila, Philippines: A bomb exploded in a crowded market of Christmas stalls, killing 15 people and wounding 65.
Dec. 19, Mercer County, Penn.: Heavy snows and a whiteout caused a pileup of 70 cars on Interstate 80 in western Pennsylvania. No one was killed.
Dec. 26, Sumatra, Indonesia: A 9.0 magnitude earthquake—the largest earthquake since the 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake, —caused a powerful tsunami in the Indian Ocean that hit 12 countries; Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Somalia, Myanmar, Maldives, Malaysia, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Kenya, and the Seychelles. The earthquake's epicenter was off the west coast of the Indonesian Island of Sumatra. By Feb. 2005, the death toll was more than 225,000 with thousands still missing. Millions have lost their homes. Hardest hit were Indonesia (particularly the province of Aceh) with more than 166,000 deaths, Sri Lanka with more than 30,000 deaths, India, and Thailand.
Dec. 30, Buenos Aires, Argentina: A flare started a fire at an overcrowded nightclub, the Republica de la Cromagnon disco, killing 175 people and injuring more than 700. Four of the escape routes were locked.

2003 Disasters

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 01:35:00 +0000

January 2003 Disasters

Jan. 1–8, Bangladesh and Northern India: Nearly 400 people perished from cold weather and icy winds in an area where millions of people have no heat, electricity, or warm clothing.
Jan. 8, Charlotte, N.C.: A US Airways Express/Air Midwest commuter plane, Flight 5481, crashed moments after takeoff at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. All 21 people aboard were killed.
Jan. 8, Diyarbakar, Turkey: A Turkish airplane approaching the airport crashed in foggy weather, 75 people died, five survived.
Jan. 9, Chachapoyas, Peru: A Peruvian TANS Airlines plane carrying 46 people crashed in the mountains just before it was due to land in Chachapoyas, north of Lima. All 46 people perished.
Jan. 22¹, Colima, Mexico: An earthquake measuring 7.6 magnitude was felt throughout west-central Mexico, causing extensive damage and 29 deaths.

February 2003 Disasters

Feb. 1, Tex.: The Columbia Space Shuttle, on its 28th mission, broke up as it reentered Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven crew members. They were: Rick D. Husband, William C. McCool, Michael P. Anderson, David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, and Israel's first astronaut, Ilan Ramon. Communications with the shuttle were lost at 9 A.M. EST. Debris from the shuttle was found across east Texas and in parts of Louisiana. Foam insulation fell during takeoff damaging the left wing and allowing hot gases to enter the spaceship during re-entry.
Feb. 17, Chicago, Ill.: In an early morning fatal stampede from the second floor of a Chicago night club, 21 people were trampled. The club had numerous building code violations.
Feb. 14–18, eastern U.S.: The President's Day blizzard moved through the Midwest and up the East coast of the U.S. burying cities in record snowfall amounts, stranding travelers, and costing millions in cleanup and lost revenues. The storm claimed the lives of 42 people. It was the worst snowstorm for the region since the Blizzard of 1996..
Feb. 18, Daegu, South Korea: A subway fire started by an arsonist, who ignited a box filled with gasoline, raced through 2 trains, killing at least 189 people and injuring more than 140.
Feb. 19, southern Iran: An Iranian military airplane carrying members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards crashed in the Sirach Mountains of southeastern Iran en route to Kerman. All 276 on board were killed, making this Iran's worst air disaster.
Feb. 20, West Warwick, R.I.: A fire, caused by a pyrotechnics display, engulfed a Rhode Island nightclub, The Station, killing 100 and injuring more than 150.
Feb. 24, Xinjiang province, China: An earthquake, magnitude 6.4, struck the western edge of Xinjiang province in the far northwest of China early in the morning (02:03:44 UTC), killing more than 260 people and injuring more than 2,000. Thousands of homes and hundreds other buildings were destroyed. This area is populated mostly by the Uighur ethnic minority, most of whom are Muslim. Earthquakes are frequent in this area, though none has been this devastating.
Feb. 25, south-central U.S.: Snow and freezing rain in the south-central states caused the deaths of at least 14 people and closed highways across the region. The storm moved eastward causing widespread electrical outages and 2 more deaths.
Feb., Congo: An ebola outbreak in the Congo took a toll of 75 people.

March 2003 Disasters

March 4, Davao, Philippines: A bomb in a backpack exploded in the Davao airport on Mindanao Island, killing 21 people and injuring 145.
March 6, Tamanrasset, Algeria: An Algerian Boeing 737 crashed after takeoff from Tamanrasset, killing 102 people.
March 17–19, Denver, Colorado: Colorado's biggest storm of the year dumped several feet of snow in the Rockies, 87.5 inches in Gilpin county, and the second largest recorded amount of snow in Denver.

April 2003 Disasters

April, World: Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a deadly form of pneumonia, first detected in southern China was responsible for more than 388 deaths worldwide. The majority of the more than 5,500 cases were in China and Hong Kong. As a result of concerns about contacting SARS, travel and tourism to these areas dropped dramatically.
April 21, nr. Danka, Bangladesh: In 2 separate accidents, a double-decked ferry and a ferry carrying members of a bridal party sank in a storm. More than a 130 bodies were recovered and many more were still missing.
April 27, Buzzard's Bay, Ma.: An oil spill in Buzzard's Bay in southern Massachusetts shut down the shellfishing industry and killed hundreds of birds. A barge owned by Bouchard Transportation, Inc. leaked an estimated 98,000 gallons of oil from a gash in the hull. This estimate, a month after the disaster, was seven times greater than the original estimate of 15,000 gallons.

May 2003 Disasters

May: Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which was first detected in southern China last November, continued to spread in China and Taiwan but appeared to be contained in other areas of the world. As of May 31st, there were a probable 8,300 cases with a confirmed death toll of 755.
April-May, Horn of Africa: Flooding in Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia killed more than 150 people.
May 1– 11, United States: A series of tornadoes battered the Midwest and Southern states during May. In the first 11 days there were 412 tornadoes which broke the previous record in 1999 of about 200 tornadoes in a 10–day period (record keeping began in 1950).
May 1, Bingol, Turkey: In a remote region in the southeastern part of Turkey, an earthquake measuring 6.4 magnitude killed 177 people, including 83 boys from a school dormitory.
May 1, China: An accident on a Chinese submarine killed 70 people. The cause of the accident has not yet been disclosed.
May 4, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Tennessee: A series of tornadoes ripped through four states, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Tennessee causing at least 38 deaths and extensive damage to buildings and homes. The hardest hit area was Lawrence County, Missouri. Officials from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reported sightings of more than 80 tornadoes in parts of central and southeastern United States. Strong storms and tornadoes continued to hit the South and Midwest through the week, bringing the total number of deaths to more than 41. Some towns in Missouri closed schools for the year.
May 8, Kinshasa, Congo: When the cargo door of a Russian-built Ilyushin 76 opened 45 minutes after takeoff, more than 100 people were sucked out of the plane and died. The plane, an Ukrainian charter, was carrying Congolese soldiers and their families to Lubumbashi in southeast Congo. The exact number of causalities is unknown as there were no passenger lists.
May 12, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: suicide bombers killed 34, including eight Americans, at housing compounds for Westerners. Al-Qaeda suspected.
May 13, Hefei, Anhui province, China: A gas explosion in a Chinese mine claimed the lives of 81 miners. Five are still missing and 27 were rescued.
May 17–18, Sri Lanka: Floods and landslides in south-central Sri Lanka killed more than 300 people, left more than 200 missing, and more than 150,000 homeless. Although May through September is typically the monsoon season, these downpours were the worst in 60 years.
May 14–June 5, India: A 3–week heat wave with temperatures over 120° F. (48° C) left more than 1,200 people dead from sunstroke and dehydration. Most of the deaths occurred in the southern Andhra Pradesh state where a similar heat wave last year killed more than 1,000 people.
May 21, Algeria: There were 2,266 people killed and thousands more injured by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that caused the collapse of numerous buildings. The epicenter was 45 miles east of Algiers, the capital city.
May 26, Sindal, Japan: A 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit northern Japan, however, there were no casualties and very few people were injured due to the depth (about 44 miles underground) of the epicenter of the earthquake.
May 26, Macka, Turkey: A Ukrainian chartered airplane carrying Spanish peacekeeping forces returning from Afghanistan crashed into a mountain in heavy fog while attempting to land at Trabzon airport, killing all 75 people onboard.

June 2003 Disasters

June 17–July, nr. Tucson, Arizona: The Aspen wildfire, on Mount Lemmon northeast of Tucson, burned more than 80,000 acres and destroyed 333 structures in and around the vacation community of Summerhaven.

July 2003 Disasters

July 1, Louisiana Tropical Depression Bill moved through Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, leaving four dead and 30 million dollars in damage.
July 8, Port Sudan, Sudan: A Sudan Airways airplane, a Boeing 737, experienced technical difficulties shortly after takeoff and crashed while attempting to return to the Port Sudan airport. One child survived and 116 passengers and crew perished.
July 8, Dhaka, Bangladesh: More than 400 people drowned after an overcrowded ferry sank in turbulent waters while crossing the rain-swollen Meghna river near Danka in southern Bangladesh. Over 2500 people swam to shore or were rescued.
July 15, Gulf Coast, Texas: Hurricane Claudette, a Category I hurricane, packing winds up to 85 mph, killed three people and left battered buildings, trailers, and downed trees in its wake. Claudette was the first hurricane of the 2003 season. President Bush declared nine counties as disaster areas.
July 22–26, Manila, Philippines and southern China: Typhoon Imbudo, with winds up to 143 mph, stuck the Northern Philippines, killing at least 20 people. The typhoon, one of the most powerful in years, continued on to southern China where it killed 20 more people, destroyed crops, and devastated houses.
June-July, Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, China: The worst flooding from the monsoons in years forced the evacuation of millions, left more than 3.5 million homeless, and killed more than 500 people. Some of the worst flooding was along the Huai River
July, Kulu, India: Flash floods in the Kulu district north of New Delhi killed more than 100 people, bringing the total toll of people killed from the monsoon rains this year in Southeast Asia (India, Nepal, and Bangladesh) to about 400. Thousands of people were driven from their homes as landslides washed away homes and crops.

August 2003 Disasters

Aug. 1, Mozdok, Russia: Chechen separatists are blamed for an explosion at a military hospital in Mozdok which killed 35 and injured dozens.
Aug. 5, Jakarta, Indonesia: A car bomb blasted the JW Marriott Hotel, killing 12 and injuring nearly 150. Officials suspect the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group was involved with this bombing and the Bali bombing in October. Several suspects were arrested.
July-Aug., Europe: A three-week heat wave dominated Europe where temperatures, the highest in decades, ranged from the upper 90s to 104 degrees (F.), breaking records in Britain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Portugal, and Spain. Amarelejo, Portugal recorded the highest temperature since 1856. Fires raged in Portugal, Spain, Italy, and the French Riviera. Fires in Portugal caused more that one billion in damages. Glacial ice melted in the Alps, violent storms hit England, and nuclear power stations cut back due to overheated water. Thousands died with the toll highest among the elderly. The death toll in France was estimated at more than 14,000.
Aug. 14–15, northeast, U.S. and Canada: The largest power blackout in U.S. and North American history swept across Ohio, Michigan, and Canada and then spread to Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York, leaving 50 million without electricity for 24 hours and longer. Billions of dollars in revenue were lost.
Aug. 25, Mumbai, India: 2 deadly bombs exploded in Mumbai, the financial capital of India, killing 52 and wounding 153 people.
Aug. 27, Nasik, India: A stampede at the Kumbh Mela Hindu festival killed 40 people and injured 30 when a barricade fell. Ten of thousands of pilgrims were attending the Hindu festival and bathing in the Godavari river.
Aug., British Columbia, Canada: A summer of heat waves and very low precipitation caused hundreds of fires in the British Columbia province, making it the worst Canadian fire season in decades. The Okanagan Mountain fire that lasted more than 23 days destroyed 230 homes and forced tens of thousands to evacuate from the town of Kelowna.

September 2003 Disasters

Sept. 2, Guangdong province, China: The storm system, Dujuan, swept through Taiwan and then southern China with gale force winds, killing 40, injuring more than 100, and destroying houses, trees, crops, and the electric and telecommunications infrastructure. Dujuan, downgraded to a tropical depression, had been a Category 3 typhoon hitting Taiwan with 200 mph. winds.
Sept. 5, Bermuda: Hurricane Fabian slammed Bermuda for four hours with 120 mph winds, killing four, and bringing down trees and power lines. A category 3 storm, Fabian was the worst hurricane to hit Bermuda since 1926. Very strict building codes in Bermuda, that required buildings to withstand wind gusts of 150 mph, limited the amount of damage.
Sept. 12, South Korea: With winds up to 130 mph, Typhoon Maemi, one of the most powerful typhoons to hit South Korea in a century, killed at least 110 people, disrupted electrical power and communications systems, knocked over ships in the port, and forced the evacuation of thousands from their homes.
Sept. 18, North Carolina and Virginia: Hurricane Isabel, which reached the status of a Category 5 storm while in the Atlantic, hit the North Carolina coast as a Category 2 storm causing extensive storm surge flooding all up the Chesapeake Bay and Potomac and James rivers. Isabel continued north through Ohio and Pennsylvania dumping heavy amounts of rain in its tracks. At least 50 deaths resulted from Isabel and damages were estimated at $3.7 billion dollars.
Sept. 25, Hokkaido, Japan: A 8.3 magnitude earthquake, the strongest in the world this year, struck Japan on Sept. 25, 19.50 UTC (Sept. 26 local time) on the northern island of Hokkaido. More that 500 people were injured and tens of thousands forced to flee their homes. Damages were estimated at 90 billion U.S. dollars.
Sept. 28, Italy: A power blackout throughout Italy left more than 55 million (about 95 percent of the population) in the dark, some for up to 18 hours. Five people died as a result of the outage. Italy, with little electric capacity of its own, relies on Switzerland and France for much of its power.
Sept. 28, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada: Hurricane Juan made landfall near Halifax and stormed across Nova Scotia to Prince Edward Island heavily damaging farms, causing power outages that lasted more than 2 weeks in some areas, and killing eight people. Damages were estimated at $100 million

November 2003 Disasters

Nov. 2, Bohorok, Indonesia: Flash floods struck the tourist town of Bohorok, near an Indonesia's nation park and orangutan reserve, wiping out many guesthouses near the river banks and killing more than 150 people. Frequent floods in Indonesia result from the heavy illegal deforestation.
Nov. 9, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: After breaching security gates in a Saudi Arabic apartment compound, terrorists denoted 3 bombs, killing 17 and wounding 122. Most of the victims were Arabs.
Nov. 15, Istanbul, Turkey: 2 Turkish suicide bombers detonated bombs simultaneously outside of 2 synagogues, the Neve Shalom synagogue and the Beth Israel Synagogue, killing 25 people, 6 Jews and 19 Muslims, and injuring hundreds more. Although direct links with al-Qaeda has not been confirmed, al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility
Nov. 20, Istanbul, Turkey: At least 26 people killed and 400 wounded when 2 trucks blow up in Istanbul, Turkey. One truck explodes outside the British consulate, and the other at the British bank HSBC. Al-Qaeda suspected in the bombings. The blasts occur as President Bush was meeting with British prime minister Tony Blair in London.

December 2003 Disasters

Dec. 2–3, southeastern France: Floods, resulting from three days of rain and winds, killed 7 and left thousands homeless in the Rhone River and its tributaries in southeast France.
Dec. 5, Yessentuki, Russia A bomb ripped through a morning commuter train near the Chechyna region of Russia, killing 45 and injuring more than 170. The bombing occurred 2 days before parliamentary elections. Russian officials blame Chechen militants for the incident.
Dec. 9, Moscow, Russia: A bomb exploded outside the National Hotel, killing five people and wounding nine.
Dec. 5–7, northeastern U.S.: Record snowstorms dumped up to three feet of snow on towns in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire. President Bush approved Federal emergency funds for affected counties in each of these states.
Dec. 17–23, central and southern Philippines: Heavy rains resulted in landslides and flooding across central and southern Philippines killing more than 200 people and causing a ferry to sink.
Dec. 25, Cotonou, Benin: A Union des Transports Africains (UTA) Boeing 727 jet bound for Beruit, Lebanon, crashed after hitting a building on take-off, killing 151 people.
Dec. 25, San Bernardino Mountains, Ca: Heavy rains triggered flash floods and mudslides, killing 14 people in campsites around the area. October forest fires had left the hillsides barren of vegetation.
Dec. 26, Bam, Iran: a 6.6 magnitude earthquake devastated the ancient historic city of Bam in southeastern Iran, killing more than 30,000 people, injuring tens of thousands, and leaving many more homeless as buildings collapsed. Many of the buildings in this ancient city are made of mud brick and cannot withstand earthquakes. The Arg-e-Bam, a 2000 year-old citadel and a major tourist attraction which was built of sun-baked bricks and straw, was heavily damaged

2002 Disasters

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:41:00 +0000

January 2002 Disasters

Jan. 17–18, Goma, Dem. Rep. of Congo: Rivers of molten lava poured from Nyiragongo volcano, wiping out at least a dozen villages and engulfing the city of Goma. An estimated 300,000–500,000 people were displaced, many of whom fled temporarily to neighboring Rwanda. The Red Cross set the death toll at 47, but the number was expected to rise. Experts said the eruption was the worst since 1977, when 2,000 people died after lava burst from fissures on the volcano's flanks. A few days later (Jan. 21) the hot lava touched off an explosion at a gas station in the center of Goma, killing dozens of people who were looting gasoline.
Jan. 27, Lagos, Nigeria: More than 1,000 people were killed when a series of explosions at a military weapons depot triggered a stampede from the surrounding neighborhoods. Many of the victims were trampled to death or drowned in 2 muddy canals as they tried to flee the area.
Jan. 28, nr. Ipiales, southwest Colombia: Ecuadorian TAME airlines Boeing 727 crashed near the crater of the Nevado de Cumbal volcano, which rises nearly 16,000 ft near the Ecuador-Colombia border. All 92 passengers and crew aboard were killed. Foggy weather and pilot error were blamed for the crash.

February 2002 Disasters

Feb. 9 et seq., southern Calif.: More than 5,400 acres were burned in 2 separate brush fires, one near Fallbrook, north of San Diego, and the other outside Anaheim. About 40 buildings (including 30 residences) and 2 fire engines were destroyed by the Fallbrook blaze.
Feb. 12, western Iran: Iranian airliner en route from Teheran to Khorramabad crashed into a mountain while trying to land, killing all 118 aboard. Overcast or foggy conditions may have contributed to the crash.
Feb. 19, La Paz, Bolivia: Heavy rains collapsed scores of homes and caused flash flooding in the city, resulting in 69 deaths and approximately $60 million in damage.
Feb. 20, nr. Ayyat, Egypt: 361 people were killed in a fire aboard a crowded passenger train. The fire was reportedly started after a gas cylinder used for cooking exploded. The train, which was en route from Cairo to Luxor, was filled with holiday celebrants heading to their home villages for the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha. It is Egypt's worst train disaster.

March 2002 Disasters

March 3, Central Asia: 7.2 magnitude earthquake was felt in six countries—Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Kazakhstan. At least 100 people died in the village of Dakhli-e-Zeu in northern Afghanistan.
March 25, northeast Afghanistan: Series of earthquakes—the largest measuring 6.1 in magnitude—rattled a mountainous area 100 mi north of Kabul. Officials estimated that 1,000 people were killed and that 7,000 families were homeless. The city of Nahrin, a densely populated district capital, was completely razed.

April 2002 Disasters

April 15, nr. Pusan, South Korea: Air China Boeing 767 en route from Beijing crashed into a forested hillside 5 mi from the airport in Pusan, killing at least 115 people. Miraculously, 39 passengers survived. Heavy winds, rain, and fog were probably a factor in the crash.
April 28, east-central U.S.: Outbreak of tornadoes caused pockets of devastation from Maryland to Missouri. In southern Maryland a powerful F-5 tornado, with winds ranging over 261 mph, killed 3 people and nearly leveled the town of La Plata. In Missouri, Kentucky, and Illinois, one person was killed in each state.

May 2002 Disasters

May, southern India: Brutal heat wave, particularly in Andhra Pradesh State, left more than 600 dead nationwide.
May 2–5, southern W. Va. and southwest Va.: Storm system moving through Appalachian region dumped some 6 in. of rain in 4 just hours, causing major landslides and flooding. At least a dozen people died and nearly 2,000 homes and businesses were destroyed. The same region also suffered devastating floods in May and July of 2001.
May 3, Meghna River, southern Bangladesh: Overloaded ferry, Salahuddin 2, capsized in an storm about 100 mi south of Dhaka. Officials estimated that as many as 300 people may have drowned.
May 4, Kano, Nigeria: EAS Airline BAC 1–11 bound for Lagos ploughed into a poor, densely populated suburb of Kano shortly after takeoff, killing 148. The dead included all 76 people aboard the plane and dozens more on the ground.
May 7, Dalian Bay, northeast China: China Northern Airlines jet crashed into the bay shortly after the captain reported a fire in the cabin. The plane, which was an MD-82, had departed from Beijing with 103 passengers and 9 crew aboard; none survived.
May 25, Muamba, Mozambique: 192 people died and 169 more were injured when the passenger cars of a train rolled for several miles at top speed into the freight cars from which it had been disconnected because of mechanical problems. The accident occurred on the main rail line between Maputo, the capital, and Ressano Garcia, a popular weekend spot on the border of South Africa.
May 25, nr. Pescadores (islands) off western Taiwan: China Airlines Boeing 747, bound for Hong Kong with 225 people aboard, broke apart in midair and plunged into the sea 20 minutes after takeoff from Taipei. There were no survivors.
May 26, Webbers Falls, Okla.: A 500-foot section of a bridge along Interstate 40 collapsed, plunging ten cars and trucks into the Arkansas River below and leaving 14 people dead. The collapse occurred after a towboat slammed into the bridge.

June 2002 Disasters

June–early July, mainly western U.S.: Several major wildfires burned throughout the West and Southwest, forcing thousands of people to evacuate their homes. The Hayman fire in the Pike National Forest consumed some 137,760 acres and 600 structures, making it the worst wildfire in Colorado's history. In central Ariz., the 85,000-acre Rodeo fire, which had already been declared the worst in Arizona's history, merged with the Chediski fire to form a raging inferno that consumed 468,638 acres and more than 400 structures. Large wildfires also burned in Alaska, southern Calif., N.M., Utah, and Ga.
June, central and southeast China: Torrential rainfall produced floods and mudslides that left more than 750 people dead and tens of thousands more homeless in Shaanxi, Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Jiangxi, and Fujian provinces. Officials estimated that more than 5 million acres of crops had been destroyed, and numerous bridges, roads, and power and telephone lines had been wiped out.
June 20, northern Tanzania: 48 miners suffocated to death in a Tanzanite gemstone mine after a device used to pump oxygen into the mine failed. It is Tanzania's worst mining disaster since 1998, when 70 people died after heavy rains caused a mine to collapse.
June 20, Jixi, Heilongjian province, China: A gas explosion at the Chengzihe coal mine killed 111 people. China's mining industry is one of the deadliest; it is estimated that more than 5,000 mining-related deaths occurred in 2001.
June 21–29, southern Russia: Heavy rains caused the worst flooding in 10 years. Areas hardest hit were the Stavropol and Krasnodar regions, the republics of Chechnya, Dagestan, Karachayevo-Cherkessia, North Ossetia, and Kabardino-Balkaria. The flooding left 93 people dead and 87,000 homeless. Damages estimated at $385 million were expected to rise.
June 22, northwest Iran: Magnitude 6 earthquake flattened about 60 villages, killing at least 220 and leaving thousands homeless.
June 24, nr. Msagali, central Tanzania: Runaway passenger train collided with freight train on the same track, leaving some 200 dead.

July 2002 Disasters

July 1, nr. Ueberlingen, Germany: Russian airliner and cargo jet collided in midair over Germany near the Swiss border, killing 71 people. The Russian plane was a Bashkirian Airlines Tupolev 154, carrying 45 school children to a Spanish beach resort near Barcelona; the Boeing 757 cargo jet was operated by DHL International delivery service. Faulty monitoring by Swiss air traffic control may have led to the crash.
July 1–6, south-central Texas:Heavy rains and severe flooding resulted in damage to at least 48,000 houses, at a cost of tens of millions of dollars.
July 7, Ukrainsk, Urkraine: Fire gutted the Ukraina coal pit in the eastern Donetsk region, leaving 35 miners dead. Ukrainian coal mines are among the world's most dangerous; according to the Associated Press, some 3,700 miners have been killed in Ukraine since 1991.
July 16, Philippines and Japan: Typhoon Halong caused widespread evacuations in Japan and left 61 people dead in the Philippines. In all, four typhoons (Rammasun, Chata'an, Nakri, and Halong) swept through region in early July, killing about 100 people in Micronesia, the Philippines, China, and the Korean Peninsula.
July 18, nr. Lutoto, Uganda:Fuel truck hit a passenger bus and exploded, killing more than 60 people.
July 27, nr. Lviv, Ukraine:Russian-built Sukhoi-27 fighter jet crashed while performing an acrobatic maneuver during an air show. Eighty-three people were killed, including 23 children; the 2 pilots ejected to safety. It is the worst air show disaster in history. In 1988 70 people were killed when three Italian Air Force jets collided in midair at an air show at the American Air Force Base in Ramstein, West Germany.

August 2002 Disasters

August, central and western Europe: Torrential rains and flooding wreaked havoc across the region, from Germany to Russia, causing at least 71 deaths. The Black Sea area, in Russia, was among the hardest hit; flash floods swept houses and bridges into the sea and left thousands of vacationers stranded. In Czech Republic, thousands of people were evacuated from Prague as floodwaters deluged the city center, and Salzburg, Austria, was declared a disaster zone, with 1,000 buildings partially or totally submerged. The heavy rains also triggered landslides in Germany and Switzerland and caused major crop damage in northern Italy. Bulgaria and Romania were also the scenes of destructive flooding.
August, southeast China: Torrential rains triggered floods and landslides that left about 200 people dead (as of Aug. 16) in Hunan province. In the province of Yunnan, 25 people were killed and another 44 were said to be missing following a massive landslide (Aug. 16). An earlier landslide in the province left at least 16 dead (Aug. 12). The total death toll due to flooding this year in China has risen to about 1,000.
August, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh: Monsoon floods and mudslides resulted in 323 deaths in India; 424 in Nepal; and 157 in Bangladesh. In addition, there was a widespread loss of crops and livestock across the region.
Aug. 31, southern and eastern South Korea: Typhoon Rusa triggered flash floods and landslides, leaving more than 100 dead or missing. Wind gusts up to 127 mph uprooted trees and left more than a million homes without power. South Korea's worst typhoon in 40 years.

September 2002 Disasters

Sept. 20, Karmadon Gorge, North Ossetia, Russia: An avalanche of mud, ice, and rocks left more than 100 people dead, including popular Russian movie actor Sergei Bodrov, who was filming in the area. The avalanche was caused by a 500-foot chunk of glacier that broke loose and slid down the gorge.
Sept. 26, Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Gambia: Overloaded Senegalese ferry, Joola, capsized. The death toll of 1,863 people make it one of the worst maritime disasters in history. The maximum capacity of the ferry was 550 people.

October 2002 Disasters

Oct. 12, Bali, Indonesia: 202 die and hundreds more are wounded when a car bomb explodes in front of 2 nightclubs. The extremist Muslim group Jemaah Islamiyah, which has ties to al-Qaeda, is suspected.
Oct. 31, San Giuliano di Puglia, Italy: Magnitude 5.4 earthquake flattened school, killing 29, including 26 children.

November 2002 Disasters

Nov. 3, east-central Alaska: Magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck, damaging roads and bridges and triggering mudslides but causing no major injuries. Some of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline's supports were also damaged, but no leaks were reported. The quake was centered about 45 mi east-northeast of Cantwell, near Mt. McKinley, in the state's less populated interior.
Nov. 9–11, central and southeast U.S.: A series of more than 70 tornadoes flattened homes and other buildings across 14 states from Mississippi to Pennsylvania, killing some 36 people. Most of the deaths occurred in Tenn. (17); 12 died in Ala., 5 in Ohio, 1 in Pa., and 1 in Miss.
Nov. 19, Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of northern Spain: After leaking oil for six days from a cracked hull, the oil tanker Prestige broke in 2 and sank, spilling some 4 million gallons of oil. Most of the rest of the tanker's 20-million-gallon load remained aboard the sunken ship, where it was expected to solidify in cold underwater temperatures. However, drifting slicks caused major environmental damage along Spain's Galician coast and France's Atlantic coast. Fishing grounds have been closed and cleanup costs are more than $1.6 billion. As a result of this disaster, the EU (European Union) allows only double-hulled ships to carry heavy fuel oil in EU waters.
Nov. 30–Dec. 1, Caracas, Venezuela: A fire at a packed downtown nightclub left 47 people dead.

December 2002 Disasters

Dec. 4–5, eastern U.S.: A major winter storm swept across the country from Oklahoma and the Texas panhandle all the way to the Carolinas and the northeast coast. Ice and snow downed power lines, delayed travelers, and closed schools in half a dozen states. North Carolina was the hardest hit, with more than one million homes and businesses left without power. At least 29 people nationwide died as a result of the storm.
Dec. 3–9, Sydney, Australia: Up to 65 wildfires around Sydney have claimed one life, destroyed more than 60 homes, and burned more than 296,000 acres for an estimated $56 million in damages.
Dec. 6, Jilin province, China: An underground blaze in mine shafts killed 30 coal miners. The Chinese mining industry is one of the most dangerous industries in the world with official figures showing more than 5,000 miners died in accidents last year.
Dec. 8, Angra Dos Reis, Brazil: Torrential rains (more than 5 inches in 24 hours) caused mudslides that killed at least 39 people in a seaside town near Rio de Janeiro.
Dec. 23, :Isfahar, Iran: A Ukrainian Airways crashed in a mountainous area of central Iran, killing all 46 people.
Dec. 29, Southwest Pacific: Cyclone Zoe, a category 5 cyclone, with high winds and massive waves raced across the tiny islands of Tikopia and Anuta in the Solomon Islands chain located about 1900 miles northeast of Australia. Homes and crops were destroyed but the inhabitants survived by fleeing to mountain caves.

2001 Disasters

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:36:00 +0000

January 2001 Disasters

Jan. 13, San Miguel, El Salvador: Magnitude 7.6 earthquake set off some 185 landslides across El Salvador; at least 844 died and nearly 100,000 houses were destroyed.
Jan. 26, Bhuj, India: Magnitude 7.7 earthquake rocked the western Indian state of Gujarat, killing nearly 19,000 people and leaving 600,000 homeless. The total cost of the disaster was set at an estimated $1.3 billion.

February 2001 Disasters

Feb. 9, nr. Pearl Harbor, Hawaii: U.S. submarine Greeneville collided with the Ehime Maru, a Japanese fishing boat, which quickly sank. Twenty-six of the people aboard were rescued; nine others, including four students, were presumed dead.
Feb. 13, San Salvador, El Salvador: Magnitude 6.1 earthquake left 276 dead. As a result of the 2 earthquakes (the other occurred Jan. 13), 1.2 million people were left homeless in El Salvador.
Feb. 21, Mozambique: Floods left 41 people dead and 77,400 homeless.
Feb. 24, Pontotoc, Miss.: Tornado struck the northern part of the state, carving a 23-mile path of destruction through Pontotoc County and leaving five people dead. The twister was part of a larger storm system that caused blizzard conditions in the northern Plains and Midwest and heavy rains and flooding in the nation's mid-section.
Feb. 28, nr. Great Heck, North Yorkshire, England: Ten people were killed and 70 injured when a high-speed London-bound passenger train hit a car stalled on the track and then collided with a freight train moving in the opposite direction.
Feb. 28, Olympia, Wash.: Magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck northwest Washington State, injuring some 325 people and damaging bridges and buildings. Overall damage was estimated at $2 billion.

March 2001 Disasters

March 4, Castelo de Paiva, Portugal: Bridge over the Douro River collapsed, plunging a bus and 2 cars into the water. At least 70 people were presumed dead.
March 5, Mina, Saudi Arabia: Thirty-five Muslim pilgrims were crushed to death during the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual at the annual hajj pilgrimage.
March 6, Fang Lin, Jiangxi, China: An explosion at a village elementary school killed 41 people, most of them children. According to state media, the blast occurred when a deranged man walked into the school and detonated 2 bags of explosives. Victims' families, however, blamed school officials, who, they claimed, forced the children to make fireworks to help support the school.
March 15, southern Atlantic Ocean, off Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil: The world's largest offshore oil rig was rocked by a series of explosions that left 11 people dead. The rig, which was owned by the state oil giant Petrobras, listed for five days before it sank. The oil spill was reported as relatively minimal.
March 16, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China: A series of explosions destroyed four residential buildings, killing 108 people.
March 26, Machakos, Kenya: A fire in a secondary-school dormitory killed 58 boys and seriously injured 28.

April 2001 Disasters

April 2, Bering Sea: Seattle-based fishing trawler, the Arctic Rose, disappeared in rough seas about 200 mi northeast of St. Paul Island, one of the Pribilof Islands. All 15 crew members perished in one of the worst accidents in the history of the Pacific Northwest fishing industry.
April 11, Johannesburg, South Africa: Forty-three people were killed and 160 injured during a stampede at a soccer match at Ellis Park stadium.

May 2001 Disasters

May 9, Accra, Ghana: At least 120 people were killed in a stampede at a soccer match. It was Africa's worst soccer-related disaster ever, and the third in a month.

June 2001 Disasters

May–June, Utah: Hordes of crickets and grasshoppers infested more than 1.5 million acres in 18 of the state's 29 counties, causing some $25 million in crop damage.
June 6, Bangladesh: Severe flooding caused by heavy monsoon rains inundated several villages and left some 100,000 Bangladeshis stranded.
June 8–15, Gulf Coast to southern New England: Tropical Storm Allison caused severe flooding, especially around Houston, where 20,000 residents were evacuated from their homes. Rainfall totals reached 40 in. in parts of Tex. and La. Storm-related fatalities included 23 in Tex., 1 in La., 1 in Miss., 8 in Fla., 7 in Penn., and 1 in Va.
June 11–12, nr. Quito, Ecuador: At least 38 people died and thousands were evacuated from their homes after torrential rains flooded rivers and triggered landslides.
June 22, Cochin, Kerala, India: At least 57 people died and hundreds more were injured when the Mangalore–Chennai mail train derailed and plunged off an aging bridge into the Kadalundi River.
June 23, nr. Arequipa and Moquegua, Peru: A 7.9-magnitude earthquake killed 70 people, injured 1,200 others, and left 20,500 homeless.
June 23–24, Taiwan and Fujian province, China: Typhoon Chebi killed 9 people in Taiwan and 73 people in Fujian province in southeast China. A total of 109 fishing boats and four yachts sank in the Pescadores, off Taiwan's western coast. Damages to crops in Taiwan were estimated at $13.3 million.

July 2001 Disasters

southern W.Va. and southwest Va.: Torrential downpours during July caused flooding and mudslides that swept away homes and bridges and killed 2 people. Damages were estimated at more than $200 million.
July 3, nr.Irkutsk, Siberia, Russia: Russian Tupolev-154 passenger plane crashed and burst into flames, killing all 145 people aboard.
July 6, northern Philippines, Taiwan, southern China: Typhoon Utor, one of the worst storms to hit the area in years, left more than 160 dead (121 in the Philippines, 46 in China, and 1 in Taiwan). High winds and landslides leveled houses and knocked out roads and bridges. Damages were estimated at $286 million in China and $11.2 million in the Philippines.
July 18, Baltimore, Md.: Train derailment and fire in downtown tunnel closed several city blocks, blocked highways, and damaged fiber-optic cables, disrupting Internet service nationwide.
July 30–31, Taiwan and southern China: Typhoon Toraji slammed central Taiwan, causing flash floods and mudslides. At least 61 people were killed. Damages were estimated at $20 million.

August 2001 Disasters

Aug. 1, Nias Island, off western Sumatra, Indonesia: Flooding and landslides caused by heavy rains swept away entire villages and killed at least 31 people.
Aug. 16, nr. Katpadi, Tamil Nadu, India: Explosion ripped through a government-owned dynamite factory, killing 20 people.
Aug. 18, Quezon City, Philippines: Hotel fire killed 72 people, including some members of an evangelical Christian group from the United States who were attending a conference. It was the deadliest hotel fire ever in the Philippines.

September 2001 Disasters

Sept. 1, Tokyo, Japan: Fire in a crowded gambling club killed 44 people. It was the worst incident of its kind in Tokyo since 1982, when 33 people were killed in a hotel fire.
Sept. 11, New York City and Arlington, Va.: Hijackers crashed 2 commercial jets from Boston into the north and south towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, causing the collapse of both towers and other nearby buildings. A short time later, 2 more hijacked U.S. planes crashed, one into the Pentagon and the other into a field near Shanksville, Pa. All 266 people aboard the planes were killed; total dead and missing numbered 2,992, including the 19 hijackers. The names of the hijackers, four of whom have been connected to terrorist Osama bin Laden, were released in mid-September.
Sept. 17–18, Taiwan: Typhoon Nari caused 79 deaths.
Sept. 21, Toulouse, France: Explosion at one of France's largest petrochemical plants left 29 people dead, at least 10 missing, and more than 2,500 injured. The blast caused earth tremors measuring 3.4 in magnitude and damaged an estimated 20,000 buildings, some as far as 3 mi away.
Sept. 23, Brookwood, Ala.: 2 gas explosions at the Blue Creek No. 5 mine, the nation's deepest vertical shaft coal mine, killed 13 miners. It was the deadliest U.S. mine disaster since 1984, when a fire killed 27 coal miners near Orangeville, Utah.
Sept. 24, Maryland and Virginia: Tornado tore a path of destruction from Culpeper, Va., to Laurel, Md., leaving three dead and causing millions of dollars of damage.

October 2001 Disasters

Oct. 4, Black Sea, off the coast of Russia: Siberian Airlines jet en route from Tel Aviv, Israel, to Novosibirsk in Siberia exploded and plunged into the Black Sea. All 76 aboard, including scores of Jewish holiday celebrants, were killed. According to American officials, the plane was brought down by antiaircraft missiles fired by the Ukrainian military during a training exercise, a theory Ukrainian and Russian officials disputed.
Oct. 4–7, central Alaska: Some 285,600 gallons of crude oil spilled from the trans-Alaska pipeline, contaminating the area around the pipeline about 70 mi north of Fairbanks. The oil leaked through a bullet hole, which was made by a gun fired by a drunken resident of a nearby town.
Oct. 8, Milan, Italy: Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) jet bound for Copenhagen hit a Cessna aircraft during takeoff in a heavy fog at Milan's Linate airport. The SAS MD-87 then spun out of control and hit 2 airport buildings before crashing into a baggage handling hangar and bursting into flames. All 104 passengers and 6 crew aboard the airliner, as well as the four people in the smaller plane and four airport workers, were killed in what is one of Italy's worst air disasters.
Oct. 8, near Big Creek village, Belize: Hurricane Iris roared onto the coast of southern Belize, killing an estimated 25 people. The dead included 17 Americans from a diving club in Richmond, Va., whose boat capsized during the storm.
early October, central and southern United States: A record 83 tornadoes swept through portions of the U.S. in the first half of October, the highest number of twisters ever recorded for that time period. The states most affected were Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas. The previous record for the first 2 weeks of October was 47 confirmed tornadoes, set in 1998.
Oct. 24, St. Gotthard Tunnel, Switzerland: 2 trucks collided near the tunnel's southern entrance and burst into flames, causing dense black smoke to billow from the tunnel. At least 11 people died as a result, but tens more were missing. The fire continued to rage for 2 days. The accident was Switzerland's worst road tunnel crash.

November 2001 Disasters

Nov. 4–5, Cuba: Hurricane Michelle destroyed tens of thousands of homes and caused widespread agricultural damage; five people died. Before striking Cuba, Hurricane Michelle wiped out homes, roads, and bridges and killed 12 people in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Jamaica.
Nov. 8–9, central and southern Philippines: Tropical storm Lingling triggered floods and landslides that left some 350 people dead or missing.
Nov. 10–12, Algiers, Algeria: Heavy rains caused the worst flooding in 2 decades; official death toll stood at 651 (701 nationwide) as of Nov. 15 but was expected to rise.
Nov. 11–12, central Vietnam: Tropical storm Lingling continued to wreak havoc, with torrential rains and gusting winds that destroyed 15,000 homes and left 20 people dead. The storm caused an estimated $25 million in damage.
Nov. 12, Queens, N.Y.: American Airlines Airbus A-300 bound for Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, crashed into residential neighborhood minutes after taking off from JFK International Airport. All 260 people aboard and 5 on the ground were killed. Co-pilot error and poorly designed rudder system blamed for crash.
Nov. 15–16, central and southern Texas: Massive downpours and heavy winds caused extensive flooding that damaged hundreds of homes and killed 10 people. Rising waters not only wrecked homes but also caused severe sewage spills in the area.
Nov. 22, Irra, western Colombia: At least 67 people died, including 6 children, following a landslide at a huge open-pit gold mine.
Nov. 24, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama: Fierce thunderstorms, which spawned a series of tornadoes, ripped through the area, killing at least 11 people.
Nov. 24, Zurich, Switzerland: Swiss Crossair RJ-100 jet crashed in poor weather conditions on approach to Zurich International Airport, killing 24 of the 33 people aboard.

December 2001 Disasters

Dec. 23–31, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil: Flooding and landslides caused by heavy rains killed 60–70 people, mainly in the mountain resort city of Petropolis near Rio de Janeiro on Christmas Eve. Downpours on New Year's Eve destroyed part of the historic town of Goias Velho, a United Nations World Heritage Site.
Dec. 29, Lima, Peru: Nearly 300 people died in a massive fire that started after someone set off a firecracker, apparently to test it, in a crowded downtown street. The firecracker set off other fireworks nearby, causing a series of explosions. The blaze covered a four-block area; many of the dead were small children.

American Indian Myths

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:15:00 +0000

American Indian Myths

American Indian tribes share many myths. If a myth is exclusive to one tribe, the tribe is listed in parenthesis.

The Great Spirit in some form or name is found in most American Indian beliefs. It is the unknown power that is found in everything—the air, a rock, the sky. The Great Spirit is often seen as the great creator of life and the universe, aided by other spirits who are in charge of more specific things, such as stars, water, or trees. The Cheyenne call the Great Spirit Heammawihio; the Shawnee, Finisher; and the Algonquin, Gitche Manitou.

Coyote was a popular spirit among western tribes such as the Navajo, Zuni, Sioux, and Chinook. A sly trickster, he made life more interesting for people. Coyote was responsible for sorrow and death, but also for the creation of humans and the Milky Way. There are many stories of Coyote’s mischievous trickery and his contributions to the world.

Raven seemed to have his beak into everything, and like Coyote, was somewhat wily. He could change into a bird, a human or an animal. Raven could bring both good and evil. Always hungry, his search for food often got him into a lot of trouble. Raven was found mainly in Pacific Northwest and southeastern Alaska tribes.

Skywoman (Iroquois) fell through a hole in the sky to a dark watery Earth populated only by animals. Birds caught her and put her on a giant turtle’s back. The turtle grew bigger and became the land. The hole Skywoman fell through brought light to the world, and the beginning of Earth as we know it.

Kachinas (Hopi) are spirits that lived in and controlled everything—the sky, water, plants, animals. The kachinas protected humans and brought them good fortune. Today, the Hopi give their children kachina dolls to teach them about different spirits.

Aningan (Eskimo) is the most important Eskimo god and the Moon spirit. He was a hunter and he also chased his sister, the Sun, around the North Pole during the brief Arctic summer. She was unable to go over the horizon and the Sun never set.

The Breathmaker (Seminole) or Creator, made humans out of clay. He also blew across the heavens and created the Milky Way. When a good Seminole died the Big Dipper becoame a boat and sailed the soul across the Milky Way to the City in the Sky.

Windigo (Ojibwa, Algonquin) was a huge evil demon who wandered the winter woods in search of humans to eat. In a sort of werewolf or vampire way, if a person was bitten by Windigo, he turned into one.

Gods and Goddesses Around the World

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:12:00 +0000

Gods and Goddesses Around the World

Aztec

Huitzilopochtli was the god of the sun and of war. He was the patron god of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, where Mexico City now stands. The Aztecs built a great temple there in his honor and sacrificed many humans to him.
Coatlicue was the goddess of the earth and the mother of all the gods. She also gave birth to the moon and stars. In Tenochtitlán the Aztecs carved a gigantic stone statue of her wearing a necklace made of human hearts and hands.
Chicomecoatl was the goddess of corn and fertility. So important was corn to the Aztecs that she was also known as “the goddess of nourishment.”
Quetzalcoatl was the god of learning. A wise god, he helped to create the universe and humankind and later invented agriculture and the calendar. He is often depicted as a magnificent feathered serpent.

Egyptian

Ra was the supreme god and the god of the sun. The early pharaohs claimed to be descended from him. He sometimes took the form of a hawk or a lion.
Nut represented the heavens and helped to put the world in order. She had the ability to swallow stars and the pharaohs and cause them to be born again. She existed before all else had been created.
Osiris was the god of the underworld and the judge of the dead. He was associated with the continuity of life and was often shown wearing mummy wrappings.
Isis invented agriculture. She was the goddess of law, healing, motherhood and fertility. She came to be seen as a kind of Mother Earth figure.
Horus was a sky god who loved goodness and light. The son of Osiris and Isis, he was sometimes depicted as a young child.
Thoth was the god of wisdom and magic. He was believed to have invented writing, astronomy and other arts, and served as a scribe to the gods.
Nephthys was the goddess of the dead. She was a kind and understanding companion to the newly dead as well as to those left behind.

Mayan

Hunahpu was a god of the sun and the father of the first humans. A great hero, with his brother he defeated the forces of death and went on to rule in the heavens.
Hurakan was the god of storms and winds. When the first humans made him angry, he swept them away in a violent flood. The word “hurricane” comes from his name.
Ixchel was the goddess of the moon and the protector of pregnant women. She was often depicted as an old woman wearing a full skirt and holding a serpent.
Chac was the god of agriculture and a great friend to humankind. He brought them rain and used his vast tail and fangs to protect planted fields.
Itzamna was the state god of the Mayan empire and the founder of its people. Corn, chocolate, writing and calendars were among his many gifts to them.

Norse

Odin was the supreme god and, along with his brothers Vili and Ve, the creator of the world. He was also the ruler of war and wisdom.
Frigg was the goddess of the sky, marriage and motherhood. It was believed that she knew the fate of each person, but kept it a close secret.
Loki was the god of mischief and death. He liked to invent horrible ways to harm the other gods. His nastiness and trickery earned him many an enemy.
Freyja was the goddess of love and fertility. She was very beautiful and enjoyed music and song. Fairies were among her most beloved companions.
Balder was the god of light, peace and joy. A kind and gentle god, he was slain in a plot hatched by Loki. He was greatly mourned, especially by his parents, Odin and Frigg.

Norse Mythology

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:05:00 +0000

Norse Mythology

Aesir: Chief gods of Asgard.
Andvari: Dwarf; robbed of gold and magic ring by Loki.
Angerbotha (Angrbotha): Giantess; mother by Loki of Fenrir, Hel, and Midgard serpent.
Asgard (Asgarth): Abode of gods.
Ask (Aske, Askr): First man; created by Odin, Hoenir, and Lothur.
Asynjur: Goddesses of Asgard.
Atli: Second husband of Gudrun; invited Gunnar and Hogni to his court, where they were slain; slain by Gudrun.
Audhumia (Audhumbla): Cow that nourished Ymir; created Buri by licking ice cliff.
Balder (Baldr, Baldur): God of light, spring, peace, joy; son of Odin; slain by Hoth at instigation of Loki.
Bifrost: Rainbow bridge connecting Midgard and Asgard.
Bragi (Brage): God of poetry; husband of Ithunn.
Branstock: Great oak in hall of Volsungs; into it, Odin thrust Gram, which only Sigmund could draw forth.
Brynhild: Valkyrie; wakened from magic sleep by Sigurd; married Gunnar; instigated death of Sigurd; killed herself and was burned on pyre beside Sigurd.
Bur (Bor): Son of Buri; father of Odin, Hoenir, and Lothur.
Buri (Bori): Progenitor of gods; father of Bur; created by Audhumla.
Embla: First woman; created by Odin, Hoenir, and Lothur.
Fafnir: Son of Rodmar, whom he slew for gold in Otter's skin; in form of dragon, guarded gold; slain by Sigurd.
Fenrir: Wolf; offspring of Loki; swallows Odin at Ragnarok and is slain by Vitharr.
Forseti: Son of Balder.
Frey (Freyr): God of fertility and crops; son of Njorth; originally one of Vanir.
Freya (Freyja): Goddess of love and beauty; sister of Frey; originally one of Vanir.
Frigg (Frigga): Goddess of sky; wife of Odin.
Garm: Watchdog of Hel; slays, and is slain by, Tyr at Ragnarok.
Gimle: Home of blessed after Ragnarok.
Giuki: King of Nibelungs; father of Gunnar, Hogni, Guttorm, and Gudrun.
Glathsehim (Gladsheim): Hall of gods in Asgard.
Gram (meaning “Angry”): Sigmund's sword; rewelded by Regin; used by Sigurd to slay Fafnir.
Greyfell: Sigmund's horse; descended from Sleipnir.
Grimhild: Mother of Gudrun; administered magic potion to Sigurd which made him forget Brynhild.
Gudrun: Daughter of Giuki; wife of Sigurd; later wife of Atli and Jonakr.
Gunnar: Son of Giuki; in his semblance Sigurd won Brynhild for him; slain at hall of Atli.
Guttorm: Son of Giuki; slew Sigurd at Brynhild's request.
Heimdall (Heimdallr): Guardian of Asgard.
Hel: Goddess of dead and queen of underworld; daughter of Loki.
Hiordis: Wife of Sigmund; mother of Sigurd.
Hoenir: One of creators of Ask and Embla; son of Bur.
Hogni: Son of Giuki; slain at hall of Atli.
Hoth (Hoder, Hodur): Blind god of night and darkness; slayer of Balder at instigation of Loki.
Ithunn (Ithun, Iduna): Keeper of golden apples of youth; wife of Bragi.
Jonakr: Third husband of Gudrun.
Jormunrek: Slayer of Swanhild; slain by sons of Gudrun.
Jotunnheim (Jotunheim): Abode of giants.
Lif and Lifthrasir: First man and woman after Ragnarok.
Loki: God of evil and mischief; instigator of Balder's death.
Lothur (Lodur): One of creators of Ask and Embla.
Midgard (Midgarth): Abode of mankind; the earth.
Midgard Serpent: Sea monster; offspring of Loki; slays, and is slain by, Thor at Ragnarok.
Mimir: Giant; guardian of well in Jotunnheim at root of Yggdrasill; knower of past and future.
Mjollnir: Magic hammer of Thor.
Nagifar: Ship to be used by giants in attacking Asgard at Ragnarok; built from nails of dead men.
Nanna: Wife of Balder.
Nibelungs: Dwellers in northern kingdom ruled by Giuki.
Niflheim (Nifelheim): Outer region of cold and darkness; abode of Hel.
Njorth: Father of Frey and Freya; originally one of Vanir.
Norns: Demigoddesses of fate: Urth (Urdur) (past), Verthandi (Verdandi) (present), Skuld (future).
Odin (Othin): Head of Aesir; creator of world with Vili and Ve; equivalent to Woden (Wodan, Wotan) in Teutonic mythology.
Otter: Son of Rodmar; slain by Loki; his skin filled with gold hoard of Andvari to appease Rodmar.
Ragnarok: Final destruction of present world in battle between gods and giants; some minor gods will survive, and Lif and Lifthrasir will repeople world.
Regin: Blacksmith; son of Rodmar; foster-father of Sigurd.
Rerir: King of Huns; son of Sigi.
Rodmar: Father of Regin, Otter, and Fafnir; demanded Otter's skin be filled with gold; slain by Fafnir, who stole gold.
Sif: Wife of Thor.
Siggeir: King of Goths; husband of Signy; he and his sons slew Volsung and his sons, except Sigmund; slain by Sigmund and Sinflotli.
Sigi: King of Huns; son of Odin.
Sigmund: Son of Volsung; brother of Signy, who bore him Sinflotli; husband of Hiordis, who bore him Sigurd.
Signy: Daughter of Volsung; sister of Sigmund; wife of Siggeir; mother by Sigmund of Sinflotli.
Sigurd: Son of Sigmund and Hiordis; wakened Brynhild from magic sleep; married Gudrun; slain by Guttorm at instigation of Brynhild.
Sigyn: Wife of Loki.
Sinflotli: Son of Sigmund and Signy.
Skuld: One of several Norns.
Sleipnir (Sleipner): Eight-legged horse of Odin.
Surt (Surtr): Fire demon; slays Frey at Ragnarok.
Svartalfaheim: Abode of dwarfs.
Swanhild: Daughter of Sigurd and Gudrun; slain by Jormunrek.
Thor: God of thunder; oldest son of Odin; equivalent to Germanic deity Donar.
Tyr: God of war; son of Odin; equivalent to Tiu in Teutonic mythology.
Ull (Ullr): Son of Sif; stepson of Thor.
Urth: One of several Norns.
Valhalla (Valhall): Great hall in Asgard where Odin received souls of heroes killed in battle.
Vali: Odin's son: Ragnarok survivor.
Valkyries: Virgins, messengers of Odin, who selected heroes to die in battle and took them to Valhalla; generally considered as nine in number.
Vanir: Early race of gods; three survivors, Njorth, Frey, and Freya, are associated with Aesir.
Ve: Brother of Odin; one of creators of world.
Verthandi: One of several Norns.
Vili: Brother of Odin; one of creators of world.
Vingolf: Abode of goddesses in Asgard.
Vitharr (Vithar): Son of Odin; survivor of Ragnarok.
Volsung: Descendant of Odin, and father of Signy, Sigmund; his descendants were called Volsungs.
Yggdrasill: Giant ash tree springing from body of Ymir and supporting universe; its roots extended to Asgard, Jotunnheim, and Niffheim.
Ymir (Ymer): Primeval frost giant killed by Odin, Vili, and Ve; world created from his body; also, from his body sprang Yggdrasill.

Monsters in Greek Mythology

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Monsters in Greek Mythology

The Hydra

Minotaur

Argus

Argus may have had as many as one hundred eyes, which were located all over his body. Hera employed him as a guard. He was killed by Hermes. Afterward, Hera put Argus's eyes in the tail of the peacock, her favorite bird.

Cerberus

Cerberus was a huge and powerful three-headed dog. He was owned by Hades, god of the dead, who used the fearsome hound to guard the entrance to the underworld. In his final labor, Hercules went to the underworld and kidnapped Cerberus.

Cyclopes

Each of the Cyclopes was gigantic and had a single eye in the middle of its forehead. The Cyclopes made lightning and thunderbolts for Zeus to use. The brutal Polyphemus, a Cyclops and a son of Poseidon, lived on an island, where he was blinded by Odysseus.

Gorgons

The Gorgons were horrifyingly ugly monsters who lived at the edge of the world. Their hair was made of serpents, and one look from a Gorgon's eyes would turn a man to stone. Perseus killed the Gorgon Medusa by beheading her while looking only at her reflection.

Hydra

The Hydra was a massive and poisonous serpent with nine heads. Every time one head was injured, another two grew in its place. Hercules sought out the monster in its dark marsh and succeeded in destroying it.

Minotaur

The Minotaur was a man-eating monster with the head of a bull. King Minos kept it hidden in a labyrinth (a maze) in Knossos, on the island of Crete, where he used it to frighten his enemies. Theseus killed the Minotaur.

Scylla and Charybdis

The powerful monsters Scylla and Charybdis lived together in a sea cave. Scylla had many fierce dog heads and ate sailors alive; Charybdis created whirlpools by sucking in and spitting out seawater. Both Jason and Odysseus safely traveled by these monsters.

Sirens

The Sirens were giant, winged creatures with the heads of women. They lived on rocks on the sea, where their beautiful singing lured sailors to shipwreck. Odysseus filled his sailors' ears with wax so that they might sail safely past the Sirens.

Heroes in Greek Mythology

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 23:56:00 +0000

Heroes in Greek Mythology

Achilles

Achilles was the strongest and most fearless warrior in the Greek war against the Trojans. As an infant his mother dipped him into the River Styx, which made him invulnerable everywhere but the heel by which she held him. For ten years Achilles was a great hero in the Trojan War. But in the end Paris, son of the Trojan king, fatally wounded Achilles in the heel. Today, the tendon that connects the calf muscles to the heel bone is called the Achilles tendon, and a small but dangerous weakness is known as an “Achilles heel.”

Hercules (Herakles)

Hercules

Brave and powerful Hercules is perhaps the most loved of all Greek heroes. The son ofZeus and Alcmene (a granddaughter of Perseus), Heracles grew up to become a famed warrior. But Zeus's jealous wife, Hera, made him temporarily insane, and he killed his wife and children. As punishment Heracles performed twelve seemingly impossible labors (seeThe Twelve Labors of Hercules), which have been the subject of countless works of art and drama. Heracles is often depicted wearing a lion skin and wielding a club.

Jason

Jason was the leader of the Argonauts, the 50 heroes who sailed in search of the Golden Fleece. Jason's uncle, Pelias, had stolen the kingdom that should belong to Jason. He promised to return it only if Jason would bring home the Golden Fleece—the wool from the magical winged ram that became the constellation Aries. On their journey Jason and the Argonauts faced down such dangers as the deadly singing Sirens. They ultimately captured the fleece with the help of the sorceress Medea, who became Jason's wife.

Odysseus (Ulysses)

Odysseus

King of Ithaca and a celebrated warrior, Odysseus helped the Greeks triumph in the Trojan War. Afterward he journeyed nearly ten years to return home to Ithaca and his wifePenelope. Along the way Odysseus's courage and cleverness saved him and his men from such monsters as the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, and Scylla and Charybdis. Back in Ithaca, Odysseus proved his identity to Penelope and once again ruled his homeland. These adventures are told in Homer's epic poem, the Odyssey.

Perseus

The son of Zeus and Danaë, Perseus completed dangerous feats with his quick thinking and talents as a warrior. Most famous was his slaying of the Gorgon Medusa. Because looking directly at the monstrous Medusa would turn a man to stone, Perseus killed her while watching her reflection in a mirror. After beheading the Gorgon with his sword he kept her head in his satchel. Later, to save the princess Andromeda from being eaten by a sea monster, Perseus pulled out Medusa's head and turned the creature to stone.

Theseus

Theseus was known for his triumph over numerous monsters, especially the Minotaur, which lived in a labyrinth on the island of Crete. Every year the people of Athens had been forced to send fourteen young people for the Minotaur to eat alive. But Theseus, using a ball of magic thread from the princess Ariadne, found his way in and out of the labyrinth and killed the beast. Theseus was the son of either Aegeus, king of Athens, or the sea god Poseidon. In later life he became king of Athens and a famous warrior.

1000–1099 (A.D.) World History

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:35:00 +0000

1000–1099 (A.D.) World History

Mesa VerdeCliff Dwellings(c. 1000–1300)

Pete Maio

Cathedral and Tower at Pisa

Tasha Vincent

c. 1000–1300: Classic Pueblo period of Anasazi culture; cliff dwellings.

c. 1000: Hungary and Scandinavia converted to Christianity. Viking raider Leif Eriksson discovers North America, calls it Vinland. Beowulf, Old English epic.

c. 1008: Murasaki Shikibu finishes The Tale of Genji, the world's first novel.

1009: Muslims destroy Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

1013: Danes control England. Canute takes throne (1016), conquers Norway (1028), dies (1035); kingdom divided among his sons: Harold Harefoot (England), Sweyn (Norway), Hardecanute (Denmark).

1040: Macbeth murders Duncan, king of Scotland.

1053: Robert Guiscard, Norman invader, establishes kingdom in Italy, conquers Sicily (1072).

1054: Final separation between Eastern (Orthodox) and Western (Roman) churches.

1055: Seljuk Turks, Asian nomads, move west, capture Baghdad, Armenia (1064), Syria, and Palestine (1075).

1066: William of Normandy invades England, defeats last Saxon king, Harold II, at Battle of Hastings, crowned William I of England (“the Conqueror”).

1068: Construction on the cathedral in Pisa, Italy, begins.

1073: Emergence of strong papacy when Gregory VII is elected. Conflict with English and French kings and German emperors will continue throughout medieval period.

1095: At Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II calls for a holy war to wrest control of Jerusalem from Muslims, which launches the First Crusade (1096), one of at least 8 European military campaigns between 1095 and 1291 to regain the Holy Land. (For detailed chronology, see The Crusades.)

1100–1199 (A.D.) World History

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:35:00 +0000

1100–1199 (A.D.) World History

Chartres Cathedral

Tasha Vincent

1100–1300: Construction of Cathedral at Chartres, France.

1144: Second Crusade begins.

c. 1150: Angkor Wat is completed.

1150–1167: Universities of Paris and Oxford founded in France and England.

1162: Thomas á Becket named Archbishop of Canterbury, murdered by Henry II's men (1170). Troubadours (wandering minstrels) glorify romantic concepts of feudalism.

1169: Ibn-Rushd begins translating Aristotle's works.

1189: Richard I (“the Lionhearted”) succeeds Henry II in England, killed in France (1199), succeeded by King John. Third Crusade.

The Crusades

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:34:00 +0000

The Crusades

King John
(1167–1216)

Thomas Aquinas
(1225–1274)

1200–1204: Fourth Crusade.

1211: Genghis Khan invades China, captures Peking (1214), conquers Persia (1218), invades Russia (1223), dies (1227).

1212: Children's Crusade.

1215: King John forced by barons to sign Magna Carta at Runneymede, limiting royal power.

1217: Fifth Crusade.

1228: Sixth Crusade.

1231: The Inquisition begins as Pope Gregory IX assigns Dominicans responsibility for combating heresy. Torture used (1252). Ferdinand and Isabella establish Spanish Inquisition (1478). Tourquemada, Grand Inquisitor, forces conversion or expulsion of Spanish Jews (1492). Forced conversion of Moors (1499). Inquisition in Portugal (1531). First Protestants burned at the stake in Spain (1543). Spanish Inquisition abolished (1834).

1241: Mongols defeat Germans in Silesia, invade Poland and Hungary, withdraw from Europe after Ughetai, Mongol leader, dies.

1248: Seventh Crusade.

1251: Kublai Khan governs China, becomes ruler of Mongols (1259), establishes Yuan dynasty in China (1280), invades Burma (1287), dies (1294).

1260: Chartres cathedral consecrated.

1270: Eighth Crusade.

1271: Marco Polo of Venice travels to China, in court of Kublai Khan (1275–1292), returns to Genoa (1295) and writes Travels.

1273: Thomas Aquinas stops work on Summa Theologica, the basis of all Catholic theological teaching; never completes it.

1295: English King Edward I summons the Model Parliament.

1300–1399 (A.D.) World History

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:33:00 +0000

1300–1399 (A.D.) World History

1312–1337: Mali Empire reaches its height in Africa under King Mansa Musa.

c. 1325: The beginning of the Renaissance in Italy: writers Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio; painter Giotto. Development of Noh drama in Japan. Aztecs establish Tenochtitlán on site of modern Mexico City. Peak of Muslim culture in Spain. Small cannon in use.

1337–1453: Hundred Years' War—English and French kings fight for control of France.

1347–1351: At least 25 million people die in Europe's “Black Death” (bubonic plague).

1368: Ming Dynasty begins in China.

1376–1382: John Wycliffe, pre-Reformation religious reformer, and followers translate Latin Bible into English.

1378: The Great Schism (to 1417)—rival popes in Rome and Avignon, France, fight for control of Roman Catholic Church.

c. 1387: Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.

1398: Tamerlane, the Mongol conqueror, begins last great conquest—Delhi.

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:32:00 +0000

1400–1499 (A.D.) World History

The Duomo in
Florence

Linda J. Barnes

Joan of Arc
(1412–1431)

1407: Casa di San Giorgio, one of the first public banks, founded in Genoa.

1415: Henry V defeats French at Agincourt. Jan Hus, Bohemian preacher and follower of Wycliffe, burned at stake in Constance as heretic.

1418–1460: Portugal's Prince Henry the Navigator sponsors exploration of Africa's coast.

1420: Brunelleschi begins work on the Duomo in Florence.

1428: Joan of Arc leads French against English, captured by Burgundians (1430) and turned over to the English, burned at the stake as a witch after ecclesiastical trial (1431).

1438: Incas rule in Peru.

1450: Florence becomes center of Renaissance arts and learning under the Medicis.

1453: Turks conquer Constantinople, end of the Byzantine empire, beginning of the Ottoman empire.

1455: The Wars of the Roses, civil wars between rival noble factions, begin in England (to 1485). Having invented printing with movable type at Mainz, Germany, Johann Gutenberg completes first Bible.

1462: Ivan the Great rules Russia until 1505 as first czar; ends payment of tribute to Mongols.

1492: Moors conquered in Spain by troops of Ferdinand and Isabella. Columbus becomes first European to encounter Caribbean islands, returns to Spain (1493). Second voyage to Dominica, Jamaica, Puerto Rico (1493–1496). Third voyage to Orinoco (1498). Fourth voyage to Honduras and Panama (1502–1504).

1497: Vasco da Gama sails around Africa and discovers sea route to India (1498). Establishes Portuguese colony in India (1502). John Cabot, employed by England, reaches and explores Canadian coast. Michelangelo's Bacchus sculpture.

1500–1599 (A.D.) World History

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:30:00 +0000

"1500–1599 (A.D.) World History"

Michelangelo's David
(1504)

Tasha Vincent

Martin Luther
(1483–1546)

Henry VIII(1491–1547)

Queen Elizabeth I
(1533–1603)

William Shakespeare
(1564–1616)

Rembrandt van Rijn
(1606–1669)

Catherine de Medici
(1519–1589)

1501: First black slaves in America brought to Spanish colony of Santo Domingo.

c. 1503: Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa. Michelangelo sculpts the David (1504).

1506: St. Peter's Church started in Rome; designed and decorated by such artists and architects as Bramante, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Raphael, and Bernini before its completion in 1626.

1509: Henry VIII ascends English throne. Michelangelo paints the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

1513: Balboa becomes the first European to encounter the Pacific Ocean. Machiavelli writes The Prince.

1517: Turks conquer Egypt, control Arabia. Martin Luther posts his 95 theses denouncing church abuses on church door in Wittenberg—start of the Reformation in Germany.

1519: Ulrich Zwingli begins Reformation in Switzerland. Hernando Cortes conquers Mexico for Spain. Charles I of Spain is chosen Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sets out to circumnavigate the globe.

1520: Luther excommunicated by Pope Leo X. Suleiman I (“the Magnificent”) becomes Sultan of Turkey, invades Hungary (1521), Rhodes (1522), attacks Austria (1529), annexes Hungary (1541), Tripoli (1551), makes peace with Persia (1553), destroys Spanish fleet (1560), dies (1566). Magellan reaches the Pacific, is killed by Philippine natives (1521). One of his ships under Juan Sebastián del Cano continues around the world, reaches Spain (1522).

1524: Verrazano, sailing under the French flag, explores the New England coast and New York Bay.

1527: Troops of the Holy Roman Empire attack Rome, imprison Pope Clement VII—the end of the Italian Renaissance. Castiglione writes The Courtier. The Medici family expelled from Florence.

1532: Pizarro marches from Panama to Peru, kills the Inca chieftain, Atahualpa, of Peru (1533). Machiavelli's The Prince published posthumously.

1535: Reformation begins as Henry VIII makes himself head of English Church after being excommunicated by Pope. Sir Thomas More executed as traitor for refusal to acknowledge king's religious authority. Jacques Cartier sails up the St. Lawrence River, basis of French claims to Canada.

1536: Henry VIII executes second wife, Anne Boleyn. John Calvin establishes Reformed and Presbyterian form of Protestantism in Switzerland, writes Institutes of the Christian Religion. Danish and Norwegian Reformations. Michelangelo's Last Judgment.

1541: John Knox leads Reformation in Scotland, establishes Presbyterian church there (1560).

1543: Publication of On the Revolution of Heavenly Bodies by Polish scholar Nicolaus Copernicus—giving his theory that the earth revolves around the sun.

1545: Council of Trent to meet intermittently until 1563 to define Catholic dogma and doctrine, reiterate papal authority.

1547: Ivan IV (“the Terrible”) crowned as czar of Russia, begins conquest of Astrakhan and Kazan (1552), battles nobles (boyars) for power (1564), kills his son (1580), dies, and is succeeded by his weak and feeble-minded son, Fyodor I.

1553: Roman Catholicism restored in England by Queen Mary I.

1556: Akbar the Great becomes Mogul emperor of India, conquers Afghanistan (1581), continues wars of conquest (until 1605).

1558: Queen Elizabeth I ascends the throne (rules to 1603). Restores Protestantism, establishes state Church of England (Anglicanism). Renaissance will reach height in England—Shakespeare, Marlowe, Spenser.

1561: Persecution of Huguenots in France stopped by Edict of Orleans. French religious wars begin again with massacre of Huguenots at Vassy. St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre—thousands of Huguenots murdered (1572). Amnesty granted (1573). Persecution continues periodically until Edict of Nantes (1598) gives Huguenots religious freedom (until 1685).

1568: Protestant Netherlands revolts against Catholic Spain; independence will be acknowledged by Spain in 1648.

1570: Japan permits visits of foreign ships. Queen Elizabeth I excommunicated by Pope. Turks attack Cyprus and war on Venice. Turkish fleet defeated at Battle of Lepanto by Spanish and Italian fleets (1571). Peace of Constantinople (1572) ends Turkish attacks on Europe.

1580: Francis Drake returns to England after circumnavigating the globe; knighted by Queen Elizabeth I (1581). Montaigne's Essays published.

1582: Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian calendar.

1583: William of Orange rules the Netherlands; assassinated on orders of Philip II of Spain (1584).

1587: Mary, Queen of Scots, executed for treason by order of Queen Elizabeth I. Monteverdi's First Book of Madrigals.

1588: Defeat of the Spanish Armada by English. Henry, King of Navarre and Protestant leader, recognized as Henry IV, first Bourbon king of France. Converts to Roman Catholicism in 1593 in attempt to end religious wars.

1590: Henry IV enters Paris, wars on Spain (1595), marries Marie de Medici (1600), assassinated (1610). Spenser's The Faerie Queen. El Greco's St. Jerome. Galileo's experiments with falling objects.

1598: Boris Godunov becomes Russian czar. Tycho Brahe describes his astronomical experiments.

The Revolutionary War

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:29:00 +0000

"The Revolutionary War"

Pocahontas
(c. 1595–1617)

The Library of Congress Picture Collection

Galileo
(1564–1642)

Johannes Kepler
(1571–1630)

Taj Mahal

The Library of Congress Picture Collection

John Milton
(1608–1674)

1600: Giordano Bruno burned as a heretic. English East India Company established.

1603: Ieyasu rules Japan, moves capital to Edo (Tokyo). Shakespeare's Hamlet.

1605: Cervantes's Don Quixote de la Mancha, the first modern novel.

1607: Jamestown, Virginia, established—first permanent English colony on American mainland. Pocahontas, daughter of Chief Powhatan, saves life of John Smith.

1609: Samuel de Champlain establishes French colony of Quebec. The Relation, the first newspaper, debuts in Germany.

1610: Galileo sees the moons of Jupiter through his telescope.

1611: Gustavus Adolphus elected King of Sweden. King James Version of the Bible published in England. Rubens paints his Descent from the Cross.

1614: John Napier discovers logarithms.

1618: Start of the Thirty Years' War > Protestants revolt against Catholic oppression; Denmark, Sweden, and France will invade Germany in later phases of war. Kepler proposes last of three laws of planetary motion.

1619: A Dutch ship brings the first African slaves to British North America.

1620: Pilgrims, after three-month voyage in Mayflower, land at Plymouth Rock. Francis Bacon's Novum Organum.

1623: New Netherland founded by Dutch West India Company.

1630: Massachusetts Bay Colony.

1632: Maryland founded by Lord Baltimore.

1633: Inquisition forces Galileo (astronomer) to recant his belief in Copernican theory.

1642: English Civil War. Cavaliers, supporters of Charles I, against Roundheads, parliamentary forces. Oliver Cromwell defeats Royalists (1646). Parliament demands reforms. Charles I offers concessions, brought to trial (1648), beheaded (1649). Cromwell becomes Lord Protector (1653). Rembrandt paints his Night Watch.

1643: Taj Mahal completed.

1644: End of Ming Dynasty in China—Manchus come to power. Descartes's Principles of Philosophy.

1648: End of the Thirty Years' War. German population about half of what it was in 1618 because of war and pestilence.

1658: Cromwell dies; son Richard resigns and Puritan government collapses.

1660: English Parliament calls for the restoration of the monarchy; invites Charles II to return from France.

1661: Charles II is crowned King of England. Louis XIV begins personal rule as absolute monarch; starts to build Versailles.

1664: British take New Amsterdam from the Dutch. English limit “Nonconformity” with reestablished Anglican Church. Isaac Newton's experiments with gravity.

1665: Great Plague in London kills 75,000.

1666: Great Fire of London. Molière's Misanthrope.

1667: Milton's Paradise Lost, widely considered the greatest epic poem in English.

1682: Pennsylvania founded by William Penn.

1683: War of European powers against the Turks (to 1699). Vienna withstands three-month Turkish siege; high point of Turkish advance in Europe.

1684: Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz's calculus published.

1685: James II succeeds Charles II in England, calls for freedom of conscience (1687). Protestants fear restoration of Catholicism and demand “Glorious Revolution.” William of Orange invited to England and James II escapes to France (1688). William III and his wife, Mary, crowned. In France, Edict of Nantes of 1598, granting freedom of worship to Huguenots, is revoked by Louis XIV; thousands of Protestants flee.

1689: Peter the Great becomes Czar of Russia—attempts to westernize nation and build Russia as a military power. Defeats Charles XII of Sweden at Poltava (1709). Beginning of the French and Indian Wars (to 1763), campaigns in America linked to a series of wars between France and England for domination of Europe.

1690: William III of England defeats former king James II and Irish rebels at Battle of the Boyne in Ireland. John Locke's Human Understanding.

French Revolution (1789–1799)

khilven19@gmail.com (Geography Encyclopedia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:27:00 +0000

"French Revolution (1789–1799)"

Benjamin Franklin
(1706–1790)

Frederick the Great
(1712–1786)

Samuel Johnson
(1709–1784)

George Washington (1732–1799)

Alexander Hamilton
(1755–1804)

Napoléon Bonaparte
(1769–1821)

1701: War of the Spanish Succession begins—the last of Louis XIV's wars for domination of the continent. The Peace of Utrecht (1714) will end the conflict and mark the rise of the British Empire. Called Queen Anne's War in America, it ends with the British taking New Foundland, Acadia, and Hudson's Bay Territory from France, and Gibraltar and Minorca from Spain.

1704: Deerfield (Mass.) Massacre of English colonists by French and Indians. Bach's first cantata. Jonathan Swift's Tale of a Tub. Boston News Letter—first newspaper in America.

1707: United Kingdom of Great Britain formed—England, Wales, and Scotland joined by parliamentary Act of Union.

1729: Bach's St. Matthew Passion. Isaac Newton's Principia translated from Latin into English.

1732: Benjamin Franklin begins publishing Poor Richard's Almanack. James Oglethorpe and others found Georgia.

1735: John Peter Zenger, New York editor, acquitted of libel in New York, establishing press freedom.

1740: Capt. Vitus Bering, Dane employed by Russia, discovers Alaska. Frederick II “the Great” crowned king of Prussia.

1746: British defeat Scots under Stuart Pretender Prince Charles at Culloden Moor. Last battle fought on British soil.

1751: Publication of the Encyclopédie begins in France, the “bible” of the Enlightenment.

1755: Samuel Johnson's Dictionary first published. Great earthquake in Lisbon, Portugal—over 60,000 die. U.S. postal service established.

1756: Seven Years' War (French and Indian Wars in America) (to 1763), in which Britain and Prussia defeat France, Spain, Austria, and Russia. France loses North American colonies; Spain cedes Florida to Britain in exchange for Cuba. In India, over 100 British prisoners die in “Black Hole of Calcutta.”

1757: Beginning of British Empire in India as Robert Clive, British commander, defeats Nawab of Bengal at Plassey.

1759: British capture Quebec from French. Voltaire's Candide. Haydn's Symphony No. 1.

1762: Catherine II (“the Great”) becomes czarina of Russia. Jean Jacques Rousseau's Social Contract. Mozart tours Europe as six-year-old prodigy.

1765: James Watt invents the steam engine. Britain imposes the Stamp Act on the American colonists.

1769: Sir William Arkwright patents a spinning machine—an early step in the Industrial Revolution.

1770: The Boston Massacre.

1772: Joseph Priestley and Daniel Rutherford independently discover nitrogen. Partition of Poland—in 1772, 1793, and 1795, Austria, Prussia, and Russia divide land and people of Poland, end its independence.

1773: The Boston Tea Party.

1774: First Continental Congress drafts “Declaration of Rights and Grievances.”

1775: The American Revolution begins with battle of Lexington and Concord. Second Continental Congress. Priestley discovers hydrochloric and sulfuric acids.

1776: Declaration of Independence. Gen. George Washington crosses the Delaware Christmas night. Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Thomas Paine's Common Sense. Fragonard's Washerwoman. Mozart's Haffner Serenade.

1778: Capt. James Cook discovers Hawaii. Franz Mesmer uses hypnotism.

1781: Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. Herschel discovers Uranus.

1783: Revolutionary War ends with Treaty of Paris. William Blake's poems. Beethoven's first printed works.

1784: Crimea annexed by Russia. John Wesley's Deed of Declaration, the basic work of Methodism.

1785: Russians settle Aleutian Islands.

1787: The Constitution of the United States signed. Lavoisier's work on chemical nomenclature. Mozart's Don Giovanni.

1788: French Parlement presents grievances to Louis XVI who agrees to convening of Estates-General in 1789—not called since 1613. Goethe's Egmont. Laplace's Laws of the Planetary System.

1789: French Revolution begins with the storming of the Bastille. (For detailed chronology, see French Revolution (1789–1799).) In U.S., Washington elected president with all 69 votes of the Electoral College, takes oath of office in New York City. Vice President: John Adams. Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson. Secretary of Treasury: Alexander Hamilton.

1790: H.M.S. Bounty mutineers settle on Pitcairn Island. Aloisio Galvani experiments on electrical stimulation of the muscles. Philadelphia temporary capital of U.S. as Congress votes to establish new capital on Potomac. U.S. population about 3,929,000, including 698,000 slaves. Lavoisier formulates Table of 31 chemical elements.

1791: U.S. Bill of Rights ratified. Boswell's Life of Johnson.

1792: Mary Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Woman.

1793: Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette executed. Reign of Terror begins in France. Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin, spurring the growth of the cotton industry and helping to institutionalize slavery in the U.S. South.

1794: Kosciusko's uprising in Poland quelled by the Russians. In U.S., Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania as farmers object to liquor taxes. Reign of Terror ends with execution of Robespierre.

1796: Napoléon Bonaparte, French general, defeats Austrians. In the U.S., Washington's Farewell Address (Sept. 17); John Adams elected president; Thomas Jefferson, vice president. Edward Jenner introduces smallpox vaccination.

1798: Napoleon extends French conquests to Rome and Egypt. U.S. Navy Department established.

1799: Rosetta Stone discovered in Egypt. Napoleon leads coup that overthrows Directory, establishes the Consulate, becomes First Consul—one of three who rule France together.