How will you remember 1997? Maybe it was the year your soccer team went undefeated, or you moved to a new school. Maybe, like the President, it was the year you finally got a dog.
How will historians remember 1997? They just might say it was a year in which it often seemed that all the world was celebrating or sobbing together. People on every continent mourned the death of elegant Princess Diana and saintly Mother Teresa. In every country, people gazed in awe as the Hale-Bopp comet flashed through the sky.
And what could unite and excite Earthlings more than pictures from the surface of Mars, 35 million miles away? Folks from Australia to Alaska watched in amazement--on TV or the Internet--as the spunky little rover named Sojourner bumped around that distant world.
What was it about 1997 that brought us together? Many people say that television and the Internet have brought the world's people closer together than ever before. Maybe they have. Others insist that it was the special triumphs and losses of this year that made the world react so strongly. Whatever the reason, 1997 was a year of amazing news. Here's a last look at some of the big events.
January
Bill Clinton was sworn in for a second term as President on January 20. At one of the Inaugural balls in Washington, D.C., the once shy Chelsea Clinton, now a graceful 17, whirled around the dance floor with the President. She was proud of her dad, but he seemed twice as proud of her.
February
China shed tears for its leader, Deng Xiaoping, who died on February 19 at age 92. Deng had led China for 20 years. He
opened his closed-off land to trade and modern technology.
March
The Hale-Bopp comet streaked across the night sky in the northern hemisphere last March and April. The giant ice ball is seen here at Joshua Tree National Monument in California. Tara Lipinski became the youngest world figure-skating champ in history, at age 14.
April
Tiger Woods, 21, became the youngest person ever, and the first person of color, to win the Masters golf tournament. In North Dakota, melting snow caused the Red River to overflow and swallow up businesses and homes. In downtown Grand Forks, floodwaters kept fire trucks from reaching burning buildings in time.
May
For more than 30 years, Mobutu Sese Seko ruled the African country of Zaïre. Rebels led by Laurent Kabila forced Mobutu from power on May 16. The country was renamed Congo. Thousands of refugees from neighboring Rwanda, who were living in Zaïre, fled on foot.
June
The year's biggest fight was a bust. Heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson was disqualified after biting his opponent, Evander Holyfield. In Hong Kong, 156 years of British rule ended. At
midnight on June 30, China regained control of its long-lost jewel.
July
After a seven-month journey from Earth, the Pathfinder spacecraft bounced, rolled, then rested on Mars' dusty surface. The thrilling touchdown on July 4 opened a new age of space
exploration. Millions visited NASA's Website to watch as the robot explorer Sojourner poked around Martian rocks like Yogi.
August
Britain's Princess Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris, France, on August 31. She was mourned all over the world.
Visitors to London laid more than 10,000 tons of flowers at Diana's home at Kensington Palace and at other places. White lilies, her favorite flowers, rested on Diana's coffin as it was
carried to her funeral at Westminster Abbey. Diana was known for her work on behalf of the needy, including victims of land mines. Today a charity in Diana's name continues her
work.
September
Mother Teresa died in Calcutta, India, on September 5 at the age of 87. The tiny Roman Catholic nun had led some 4,000 sisters of the Missionaries of Charity in feeding and caring for the
"poorest of the poor." Mother Teresa won the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize for her work
October
Firefighters in Malaysia struggled to put out some of the raging flames that burned through Southeast Asia for more than two months. The fires destroyed 1,500 square miles of valuable rain
forest and produced deadly pollution. Companies had set the fires to clear land for farming. El Niño's dry winds spread the flames.
November
People in Iraq gathered by a mural of Saddam Hussein to show support for their leader. Saddam had refused to allow U.S.
members of the United Nations inspection team to search for illegal weapons in Iraq. The U.S. and the United Nations fear that Iraq is hiding such weapons.
December
The U.S. didn't join in, but 120 other countries agreed to ban deadly land mines. Jody Williams was at the treaty signing. She won the Nobel Peace Prize for helping in the fight against the underground weapons. The African country of Somalia was flooded by deadly, drenching rains. Last week the United Nations dropped the first packages of food for thousands of hungry Somalis trapped by the waters.