January 2004 in History

Events in History

Election of Interest

Jan 1 In a vote of confidence, Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf wins 658 out of 1,170 votes in the Electoral College and is "deemed to be elected" as President according to Pakistan Constitution (Article 41(8))

Jan 2 Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that it will return to Earth two years later
Jan 3 Flight 604, a Boeing 737 owned by Flash Airlines, an Egyptian airliner, plunges into the Red Sea, killing all 148 people on board.
Jan 4 Mikheil Saakashvili is elected President of Georgia
Jan 4 Spirit, a NASA Mars Rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC.
Jan 6 Costas Simitis announces his resignation as president of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement in Greece.

Event of Interest

Jan 8 RMS Queen Mary 2, the largest passenger ship ever built, is christened by her namesake's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II

Jan 12 The world's largest ocean liner, RMS Queen Mary 2, makes its maiden voyage.
Jan 13 Harold Shipman, a British GP who is believed to have killed more than 200 of his patients in Manchester, is found hanged in his prison cell
Jan 14 The national flag of Georgia, the so-called "five cross flag" restored to official use after a hiatus of some 500 years
Jan 21 Canada: The residence of reporter Juliet O'Neill is searched by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigating leaks concerning the deportation of Maher Arar
Jan 21 NASA's MER-A (the Mars Rover Spirit) ceases communication with mission control. The problem lies with Flash Memory management and is fixed remotely from Earth on February 6.

Spirit Rover Begins Mars Mission

Jan 25 NASA's Opportunity rover (MER-B) lands on the surface of Mars

The first color image compiled by photos from the Spirit rover - at the time the highest quality photo taken on another planet

Jan 26 A whale explodes in the town of Tainan, Taiwan. A build-up of gas in the decomposing sperm whale is suspected of causing the explosion.
Jan 26 Mydoom, the most destructive computer worm (so far), first sighted on computers in North America. Goes on to cause $38 billion in damages.

Event of Interest

Jan 26 President Hamid Karzai signs the new constitution of Afghanistan

Birthdays in History

Jan 21 Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway

Deaths in History

Jan 2 Jess Collins, American artist, dies at 80
Jan 3 Des Corcoran, Premier of South Australia (b. 1928)
Jan 4 Jeff Nuttall, English writer (b. 1933)
Jan 4 Joan Aiken, English writer of children's books (The Whispering Mountain), dies at 79
Jan 4 John Toland, American political writer (Rising Sun, Pulitzer 1971), dies at 91
Jan 6 Francesco Scavullo, American celebrity photographer, dies at 82
Jan 6 Pierre Charles, 5th Prime Minister of Dominica, dies at 49
Jan 7 Oswald Garrison Villard Jr., American Engineer (electronics) who invented the over-the-horizon radar that could detect objects thousands of miles away and peer around the Earth's curvature, dies of pneumonia at 87
Jan 8 John A. Gambling, American radio talk-show host (b. 1930)
Jan 9 Norberto Bobbio, Italian philosopher (b. 1909)
Jan 10 Alexandra Ripley, American author (b. 1934)
Jan 11 Mervyn Pike [Baroness Pike], British politician (C), dies at 85
Jan 12 Olga Aleksandrovna Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician (fluid dynamics), dies at 81
Jan 13 Arne Næss Jr., Norwegian mountain climber and businessman, dies at 66
Jan 13 Harold Shipman, British general practitioner and prolific serial killer, commits suicide at 57
Jan 16 Kalevi Sorsa, Prime Minister of Finland (b. 1930)

Jan 19 Harry E. Claiborne, American judge (suicide) (b. 1917)
Jan 21 Yordan Radichkov, Bulgarian writer and playwright (The Tied Up Balloon), dies at 74
Jan 22 Thomas Mead, Australian politician and journalist, dies at 85
Jan 23 Helmut Newton, German fashion photographer, dies at 83
Jan 27 Salvador Laurel, Vice President of the Philippines (b. 1928)
Jan 28 Don Cholito, Puerto Rican radio host (b. 1923)
Jan 28 Lloyd M. Bucher, U.S. Navy officer (b. 1927)
Jan 29 Janet Frame, New Zealand writer (An Angel at My Table, Care, Owls Do Cry), dies at 79
Jan 29 M. M. Kaye, British writer (The Far Pavilions), dies at 95