2008

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2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. It has been designated as:

• International Year of Planet Earth;^[1]
• European Year of Intercultural Dialogue.^[2]

In Chinese astrology, most of 2008, starting with February 7 will overlap with the Year of the Rat (Dates before February 7 are Year of the Pig). The next Year of the Rat will be in 2020.

Predicted and scheduled events

January

Main article: January 2008

• January - Building for the new Liverpool Arena should be completed.^[3]
• January - The Andean Community and Mercosur will fully integrate into the Union of South American Nations.
• January 1 - Russia will be composed of 84 federal subjects instead of 85 as Ust-Orda Buryatia is merged into Irkutsk Oblast following a 2006 referendum.^{[citation needed]}
• January 1 - Cyprus and Malta adopt the euro.^[4]
• January 1 - Slovenia will start the presidency of European Union as the first of new member states.^[5]
• January 1 - The Republic of Ireland will have fully implemented its postal code system by this date.^{[citation needed]}
• January 1 - The Venezuelan bolívar is expected, as a result of a government decree issued on March 7, 2007, to be revalued at a ratio of 1 to 1000 and renamed the bolívar fuerte (ISO 4217 code: VEF).
• January 1 - The second National Hockey League regular-season game to be played outdoors will take place at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, New York, between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres.^[6]
• January 9 - Singapore Changi Airport's Terminal 3 is due to be completed on this day.^{[citation needed]}
• January 15 - NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes its first of three flybys of Mercury at 200 km altitude, to decrease velocity enough to a 2011 orbit insertion.^{[citation needed]}
• January 19 - Parliamentary elections in the Faroe Islands.^{[citation needed]}
• January 19 - The state of Nevada will hold its presidential caucus, sandwiching itself between what, to date, had been the two earliest votes on the candidacy for U.S. presidents, the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary.^{[citation needed]}
• January 20 - Scheduled opening ceremony of the 2008 African Cup of Nations to be held in Ghana.^{[citation needed]}
• January 20 - The day Brian Leetch number is retired by the New York Rangers

February

• February - Chief of the Defence Staff (Canada) General Rick Hillier's term is set to end.
• February 1 - Sweden plans to cease analog television broadcasts.^{[citation needed]}
• February 2-February 6 - Carnival in Brazil.^{[citation needed]}
• February 3 - Super Bowl XLII held at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.^[7]
• February 7 - Annular solar eclipse^{[citation needed]}
• February 8 - Santo Domingo Metro will be complete.
• February 10 - Super Smash Bros. Brawl comes out after being pushed back from it December 3rd release date
• February 10 - The 50th Annual Grammy Awards will take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA.^{[citation needed]}
• February 14 - The 178-metre high Singapore Flyer is expected to be completed in this day and could become the tallest observation wheel in the world.^{[citation needed]}
• February 17 - The 2008 NBA All-Star Game is to be played in New Orleans, the first year the New Orleans Hornets are expected to return full-time to New Orleans.^{[citation needed]}
• February 17 - The 50th annual Daytona 500 to be held at Daytona Beach, Florida.
• February 21 - Total lunar eclipse - North and South America.^{[citation needed]}
• February 24 - The 80th Academy Awards will take place at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California.^[8]
• February 27 - The Santo Domingo Metro will successfully be completed and ready for test-runs as expected by the Dominican Republic Government.

March

• March 1 - Russia will be composed of 83 federal subjects instead of 84 as Chita Oblast and Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug will merge into the Zabaykalsky Krai following a 2007 referendum.^{[citation needed]}
• March 9 - Tentative date for the Spanish general election
• March 9 - Tentative date for the 2008 Russian presidential election.^[9]
• March 22 - 2008 presidential election to be held in Taiwan.^{[citation needed]}
• March 23 - The earliest Easter since 1913.^{[citation needed]}
• March 30 - Smoking will be banned in all enclosed public places in the Isle of Man.^{[citation needed]}
• March 30 - WWE's Main Extravaganza, Wrestlemania XXIV will take place in Orlando, Florida

April

• April - The 20th NATO Summit takes place in Bucharest. It is expected that Albania, Croatia and Macedonia will join NATO at this date, while Georgia and Montenegro will make their final move towards NATO membership.^{[citation needed]}
• April - Washington Nationals' new ballpark expected to open.^{[citation needed]}
• April 5-April 7 - NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four to be held at the Alamodome in San Antonio.^{[citation needed]}
• April 5 - Some Rastafaris believe that Haile Selassie will be resurrected due to the belief that he will rise after 33.3 years, the approximate age of Jesus when he died.^{[citation needed]}
• April 6 - The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 comes into force in the UK.^[10]
• April 12 - The new Oslo Opera House in Oslo, Norway will open.^{[citation needed]}
• April 28 - The First Cathedral celebrates 40 years as a Christian ministry.

May

• May - Large Hadron Collider (located at CERN, near Geneva, Switzerland) is scheduled to begin operation.
• May 1 - Elections to all 22 county and county boroughs take place in Wales.^{[citation needed]}
• May 8 (forwarded) - Israel marks 60 years as a nation, it also marks 60 years Palestine (as a British proctorate) came to an end.
• May 11 - The Formula 1 Turkey GP to be held at the Istanbul Park in Istanbul.^{[citation needed]}
• May 12 - Cassini Spacecraft is set to orbit within 100 km of Enceladus, its closest encounter of the sixth largest moon of Saturn.^{[citation needed]}
• May 14 - The UEFA Cup Final to be held at the City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester.
• May 16 - A Presidential election slated for the Dominican Republic.^{[citation needed]}
• May 20 - President Chen Shui-bien scheduled to step down after eight years as President of Taiwan, officially referred to as the Republic of China.^{[citation needed]}
• May 21 - The UEFA Champions League Final to be held at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.
• May 22 - Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (a.k.a. Indiana Jones IV) - To be released worldwide.
• May 22 - The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Semi-Final will take place in Serbia.^[11]
• May 24 - The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final will take place in Serbia.^[11]
• May 25 - The Teatro Colón is set to re-open on its 100-year anniversary after two years of extensive renovation.^{[citation needed]}
• May 25 - NASA's Phoenix spacecraft will land on Mars.
• May 25 - The 92nd edition of the Indianapolis 500 will be run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as the main race of the IndyCar Series.
• May 26-May 31 - The Urdd National Eisteddfod will be held at Penrhyn Bay, Llandudno, North Wales.^{[citation needed]}

June

• June 7-June 29 - UEFA Euro 2008 Championship tournament. Joint hosts Switzerland and Austria.^[12]
• June 8 - NASA's Pluto probe New Horizons will cross the orbit of Saturn, after 2½ years journey. The Voyagers spent 3 to 4 years to get to Saturn.^{[citation needed]}
• June 9-June 15 - the United States Golf Open 2008 is scheduled at Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course).^[13]
• June 14 - Expo 2008 scheduled to begin in Zaragoza, Spain.
• June 15 - Launch of NASA Interstellar Boundary Explorer^{[citation needed]}
• June 17 - Christ's College May Ball
• June 24 - 400th anniversary Of Quebec City^{[citation needed]}
• June 28 - Scheduled remodeling of the White House.

July

• July 15 - The 2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be held at Yankee Stadium in New York City^{[citation needed]}
• July 15-July 20 - World Youth Day 2008 in Homebush, Sydney, Australia^{[citation needed]}
• July 31 - Bill Gates will step down from daily duties at the Microsoft Corporation after over three decades.^[14]
• July 31 - The Planck Surveyor will be launched by the European Space Agency^{[citation needed]}

August

• The United Football League plans to launch.^{[citation needed]}
• August 1 - Total solar eclipse: northern Canada, Siberia, Mongolia, northern China^{[citation needed]}
• August 2-August 10 - The 31st European Juggling Convention (EJC) will be held in Karlsruhe, Germany^{[citation needed]}
• August 2-August 9 - The National Eisteddfod of Wales will be held in Cardiff, South Wales^[15]
• August 8 The date will be 08/08/08.
• August 8-August 24 - The 2008 Summer Olympics will take place in Beijing, China.^{[citation needed]}
• August 11 - Elections are held in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Regional Governor, Regional Vice Governor and Members of the Regional Legislative Assembly following Republic Act No. 9333.
• August 15 - The 200th year since the best renowed statue of the Assumption arrived in Hal Ghaxaq, Malta. 1808-2008
• August 25 - The 2008 Democratic National Convention convenes in Denver, Colorado.^{[citation needed]}

September

• Shenzhou 7, China's third manned spacecraft will be launched.^{[citation needed]}
• September 1 - The 2008 Republican National Convention convenes in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota.^{[citation needed]}
• September 10 - The Space Shuttle Atlantis is expected to launch on this date on STS-125, the fifth and final shuttle servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope. This will be the final Space Shuttle mission that does not involve Space Station construction, barring any STS-300-series rescue missions.^{[citation needed]}
• September 11 - Tentative topping-out of Freedom Tower at World Trade Center site, exactly seven years from their destruction. ^{[citation needed]}
• September 30 - Set date for the establishment of United States Africa Command.^{[citation needed]}
• September (possibly October)- Major League Baseball's New York Mets will play their last game at Shea Stadium as the New York Yankees will play their last game at Yankee Stadium. The Mets will move into Citi Field in April 2009 and the Yankees will move into New Yankee Stadium.

October

• October 1 - 50th anniversary of when NASA was established.
• October 6 - NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes the second of three flybys of Mercury.^{[citation needed]}
• October 25 - The 2008 Rugby League World Cup begins in Sydney with hosts Australia - New Zealand.^{[citation needed]}

November

• The Boeing 787 aircraft will enter service with All Nippon Airways.^{[citation needed]}
• November 4 - Presidential election slated in the United States to elect the 44th President of the United States.^{[citation needed]}
• November 4 - Gubernatorial election slated in Puerto Rico to elect the Governor of the island.^{[citation needed]}
• November 15 - New Zealand will hold a general election on or before this date.
• November 22 - Peru will host the 20th Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.^{[citation needed]}
• November 22 - The 2008 Rugby League World Cup final takes place at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.^{[citation needed]}
• November 27 - The British luxury liner RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 is to be retired at the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai.^{[citation needed]}

December

• December 15 - The Netherlands Antilles are to be disbanded and will become an associated state of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.^{[citation needed]}
• December 26 (approximate) - Opening of the METRO Light Rail in Phoenix, Arizona.^{[citation needed]}
• December 30-January 12 2009 - 2008 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship to be held in Chile.^{[citation needed]}

Unknown dates

• Construction on Interstate 10 in Houston, Texas will be completed.^{[citation needed]}
• The High Street Bridge & the 5th Street Bridge on Interstate 880 in Oakland, California, will be replaced and rebuilt starting in 2008.^{[citation needed]}
• Lucas Oil Stadium will host the Bands of America Grand National Championship and Drum Corps International World Championship for the first time due to the closing of the RCA Dome in 2008.^{[citation needed]}
• The Indian Space Research Organization plans an un-manned human spaceflight.^{[citation needed]}
• The United Nations is to review drug policies around the world.^[16][17]
• Both Liverpool (England) and Stavanger (Norway) are European Capital of Culture.^{[citation needed]}
• The ECB is expected to issue a new series of euro banknotes, replacing the old series, and should include new security features along with the incorporation of Cyprus on the EU map.^{[citation needed]}
• The United Kingdom plans to begin 5-year process to cease analog television broadcasts region-by-region, starting with Border.^[18]
• The inaugural FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup will be held in New Zealand.^{[citation needed]}
• The Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino will be completed in Las Vegas.^{[citation needed]}
• The Palm Jumeirah, part of the Palm Islands development, is expected to be completed this year in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.^{[citation needed]}
• The New York Mets will play their final game in Shea Stadium at some point in late September or October.^{[citation needed]}
• The New York Yankees will play their final game at Yankee Stadium ever at some point in late September or October.^{[citation needed]}
• Belize must hold a general election before June of this year.^{[citation needed]}
• The Westfield London shopping mall will open.^{[citation needed]}
• The Avenue of the Saints, a 4-lane expressway connecting St. Louis, Missouri, and St. Paul, Minnesota, is scheduled to be complete^[19].
• The Marquette Interchange of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that joins I-94, I-43, and I-794 is going to complete a $810 million reconstruction of the interchange that is going to be completed sometime in December.^{[citation needed]}
• Karlsruhe, Germany is set to host the European Juggling Convention EJC 2008. ^{[citation needed]}
• The FIA will introduce new regulations for the Formula 1 in order to reduce the costs and improve racing.^{[citation needed]}
• Seattle-Tacoma International Airport's third runway is expected to open.^{[citation needed]}
• Honda will start introducing the first commercially available hydrogen vehicle, the Honda FCX.^{[citation needed]}
• The maiden flight of the Sukhoi T-50 is expected to take place late in the year.

Major religious holidays

• January 7 - Christmas in Eastern Christianity
• February 1 - Imbolc, a Cross-quarter day (Celebrated on February 2 in some places)^{[citation needed]}
• February 6 - Ash Wednesday^{[citation needed]}
• March 9 - Purim ^{[citation needed]}
• March 17 - St. Patrick's Day celebrated in Ireland and the United States
• March 20 - March Equinox, also known as Ostara
• March 23 - Easter Sunday, the earliest Easter has fallen since 1913
• April 20 - Passover
• April 27 - Pascha in Eastern Christianity
• May 1 - Beltane, a Cross-quarter day^{[citation needed]}
• June 9 - Shavuot ^{[citation needed]}
• June 20 - June Solstice, also known as Midsummer or Litha
• August 1 - Lammas, a Cross-quarter day^{[citation needed]}
• September 22 - September Equinox, also known as Mabon
• September 30 - Rosh Hashana ^{[citation needed]}
• October 9 - Yom Kippur ^{[citation needed]}
• November 1 - Samhain, a Cross-quarter day and Neopagan new year^{[citation needed]}
• December 21 - December Solstice, also known as Yule
• December 21 - Hanukkah
• December 25 - Christmas in Western Christianity

2008 in fiction

Books

• Isaac Asimov's 1955 short story Franchise takes place in 2008, the premise being that the U.S. president will be selected by a computer program looking for the "most representative citizen".
• John Barnes, Mother of Storms (1995) begins with a 2008 UN resolution barring any nation from acquiring nuclear weapons after June 1, 2008, subject to penalty of preemptive strike.
• Gregory Benford's books The Jupiter War and The Threads of Time are set in 2008.
• P.D. James's mystery The Children of Men is set in 2008. No children have been born since 1995, and the last generation reaches puberty.
• The Galactic Milieu Series by Julian May features Earth's first contact with an alien race on June 20, 2008
• Ian McDonald's "Chaga Saga" (Evolution's Shore and Kirinya) begins with the March 13, 2008 impact arrival of the plant form Chaga from outer space.
• Alan E. Nourse's 1957 book Rocket to Limbo begins with the March 3, 2008 launch of the starship Argonaut on a centuries long trip to Alpha Centauri
• The Mote in God's Eye (1974) by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle postulates that faster than light travel is perfected in 2008.
• The Next War, a controversial 1996 novel about the post-Soviet era, co-authored by former U.S. Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, looks at a possible 2008 nuclear confrontation between the United States and Russia.

Computer and video games

• Set in 2008:
• Ghost Recon (2001): Russia attempts to reunite the Soviet Union and invades several Eastern European countries. The UN intervenes with peacekeeping forces.
• Splinter Cell series: Sam Fisher goes undercover.
• Shattered Union: U.S. President David Jefferson Adams is elected in a Sham election, and becomes the most unpopular president in U.S. history.
  • Mega Man 2 (1989)
  • Twisted Metal 3 (1998)

Film

• Jason X (Friday the 13th series, 2002): Mass murderer Jason Voorhees is captured for the 2nd time and sentenced to death. Though the US government is unsure how to execute him, an electric chair, a gas chamber, a firing squad, and hanging are all tried - none of which worked.
• The Lake House (2006): The ending takes place on Valentine's Day, 2008
• Set in 2008:
  • Silent Running (1971)
  • Southland Tales (2006)
  • The Manchurian Candidate (2004)

Television

• Dawson's Creek (2003 series finale): The characters meet once again. Dawson is creator of a television series, The Creek, based on his life.
• Futurama (1999 episode "Space Pilot 3000"): Suicide booths are invented.
• The 2007 series of Doctor Who is primarily set in 2008.
• seaQuest DSV: Set in 2018, but it is mentioned that in 2008, Seattle played Havana in the World Series and that Florida State won the NCAA football championship.

Media franchises

• .hack: The MMORPG The World reaches twenty million players.

References

External links

• 2008 Calendar at Internet Accuracy Projectaf:2008

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