In pictures: Review of the Year 2021
- Published
Democrat Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States on 20 January 2021, at the US Capitol in Washington, replacing Republican President Donald Trump in the White House.
Nasa's Perseverance Rover made history, and a perfect landing, on the surface of Mars on 18 February. Here is the first high-resolution, colour image to be sent back by the robot's cameras in the area known as the Jezero crater. The rover will study the planet's ancient geology and paves the way for future human exploration of the Red Planet.
Next slide please: By March, lockdown restrictions slowly began to ease in the UK as the vaccination programme kicked in. The number of vaccinations administered worldwide was more than 500 million by the end of the month.
Lift Off: Nasa astronauts headed to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The mission on 23 April carried four crew members of Expedition 65 and 66 using the commercial company's reusable spacecraft Crew Dragon.
Nil points! James Newman performs during the final of the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest 2021, in the Netherlands, on 22 May. The UK scored zero, with Italy winning the competition.
Euro 2020: Following the postponement of last year's tournament, the Euros finally kicked off in June. Roberto Mancini's Italy beat England 4-3 on penalties at Wembley in the final.
Space Tourism took a giant leap: Billionaires Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos spent this summer blasting off to the edge of space in their purpose-built spacecraft, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, in a bid to become the first to offer trips to space for paying passengers. Branson described the voyage as a 'trip of a lifetime'.
The Taliban return: With the Taliban re-taking Kabul and Afghanistan's government collapsing, troops from the US, UK and their allies raced to complete the withdrawal from the country and evacuated thousands of people seeking to escape.
US Open Tennis: Great Britain's Emma Raducanu holds up her trophy after winning the Women's Final vs Canada's Leylah Fernandez in September.
COP26 UN Climate Summit: More than 120 world leaders gathered in Glasgow in a bid to tackle climate change. Activist Greta Thunberg took part in a protest, putting pressure on politicians to act to reduce emissions.
Record numbers of people crossing the English channel peaked in November, when 1185 made the crossing in a single day. It was the first time the official number had exceeded 1000. Most small boats set off from the French coast near Calais and Dunkirk.
Storm Arwen: As winter set in, Storms Arwen and Barra brought heavy rain, gale force winds of 90mph and snow to the UK. Many areas in the north-east of England and Scotland lost power and the Met Office issued rare red warnings.
- Published6 March 2021
- Published20 September 2021
- Published27 November 2021
