Dictionary of Meaning
<<Back
Please select a letter:
A |
B |
C |
D |
E |
F |
G |
H |
I |
J |
K |
L |
M |
N |
O |
P |
Q |
R |
S |
T |
U |
V |
W |
X |
Y |
Z |
0-9
Click here for Shopping
2003
*** Shopping-Tip: 2003
{{yearbox|
in?= |
cp=20th century|
c=21st century |
cf=22nd century |
yp1=2000 |
yp2=2001 |
yp3=2002 |
year=2003 |
ya1=2004 |
ya2=2005 |
ya3=2006 |
dp3=1970s |
dp2=1980s |
dp1=1990s |
d=2000s |
dn1=2010s |
dn2=2020s |
dn3=2030s |
}}
{{C21YearInTopic}}
{{Different calendars
| gregorian=2003
| auc=2756
| chinese=
Sexagesimal cycle 乙酉-丙戌(4699–4700)
| japanese=
Heisei 15
| hebrew=5763–5764
| shaka=1925–1926
| vikram=2058–2059
| hindu=5104–5105
| iranian=1381–1382
| islamic=1423–1424
| runic=2253
}}
'''2003''' ('''
Roman numerals MMIII''') was a
common year starting on Wednesday of the
Gregorian calendar.
It has been designated the:
* ''International Year of
Fresh water Freshwater''
* ''European
Disability Year''
* ''Year of the Sheep'' in the
Chinese Zodiac.
* ''The Year of
Scorpio in
Western Astrology
See also
Current events#Past events by month 's almanac of events for this year.
2003 is prime. The next prime year is 2011.
Events
January 2003 January
*
January 1 -
LuÃz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of
Brazil.
*
January 1 -
Pascal Couchepin becomes
President of the Confederation (Switzerland) President of the Confederation in
Switzerland.
*
January 3 -
The Ohio State University defeats the
University of Miami in double-overtime in the
Fiesta Bowl, 31-24, for the national
Bowl Championship Series (BCS) title. The game is considered to be among the best in recent years.
*
January 7 -
Oolong (rabbit), famous for balancing various objects on his head, dies.
*
January 8 -
US Airways flight 5481 crashes at
Charlotte-Douglas International Airport in
Charlotte, North Carolina killing all 21 people aboard.
*
January 15 - The
Supreme Court of the United States United States Supreme Court hands down its decision in
Eldred v. Ashcroft allowing the extension of copyright terms in the U.S.
*
January 24 - The new
United States Department of Homeland Security officially begins operation.
*
January 25 - Central Line train crashes into the tunnel wall at
Chancery Lane station in London, injuring 34 people.
*
January 25 - An
Human shield action to Iraq international group of volunteers left London and headed for
Baghdad to act as voluntary
human shields, hoping to avert a U.S. invasion.
*
January 30 -
Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of
United Kingdom Britain,
Spain,
Italy,
Portugal,
Hungary,
Poland,
Romania,
Denmark, and the
Czech Republic release a statement,
the letter of the eight, demonstrating support for the
United States' plans for an
2003 invasion of Iraq invasion of Iraq.
February 2003 February
Image:AntiWarProtestLondon.jpg London.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|200px|Anti-war protestors gather in [[London, during world-wide protests against war in Iraq..html" title="Meaning of 200px|Anti-war protestors gather in [[London">thumb|200px|Anti-war protestors gather in [[London, during world-wide protests against war in Iraq.">200px|Anti-war protestors gather in [[London">thumb|200px|Anti-war protestors gather in [[London, during world-wide protests against war in Iraq.
*
February 1 - The
Space Shuttle Columbia disaster Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrates over
Texas upon reentry, killing all seven
astronauts onboard.
*
February 1 - In
Northern Ireland, The
Protestant UDA Belfast leader
John Gregg is killed by a loyalist faction.
*
February 5 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. Secretary of State
Colin Powell addresses the
UN Security Council on Iraq.{{noMention}}
*
February 9 -
Cricket World Cup begins in
South Africa
*
February 15 - Global
February 15, 2003 anti-war protest protests against Iraq war - more than ten million people protest in over 600 cities worldwide, the largest war protest to take place before the war occurred.
*
February 17 -
Antwerp Diamond Center in
Belgium opens its vaults after weekend and discovers that unknown burglars had stolen
diamonds worth $100 million - largest diamond theft so far.{{noMention}}
*
February 20 -
The Station nightclub fire in
West Warwick, Rhode Island claims the lives of 100 people, the fourth deadliest nightclub fire in
United States history.
*
February 26 - An American businessman is admitted to the Vietnam France Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam.
World Health Organization WHO doctor
Carlo Urbani reports the unusual highly contagious disease to WHO. Both the businessman and Carlo Urbani die of
Severe acute respiratory syndrome SARS in March.{{noMention}}
*
February -
The Druid Network is founded in the
United Kingdom.
March 2003 March
*
March 1 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The
United Arab Emirates calls for Iraqi president Saddam Hussein to step down to avoid war. The sentiment is later echoed by
Bahrain and
Kuwait
*
March 1 - The Turkish parliament vetos the access of the U.S troops to airbases in Turkey in order to attack Iraq from the north. The Bush administration starts working on the ''B Plan'', namely attacking Iraq from the south, through the Persian Gulf.
*
March 1 - The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the
United States Customs Service, and the
United States Secret Service moves to the
United States Department of Homeland Security
*
March 1 -
War on Terrorism: Authorities in
Pakistan capture
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the
September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks along with money man
Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi.
*
March 1 -
Ohio celebrates its
1803 bicentennial statehood.
*
March 1 - The 25th
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is held in
Australia.
*
March 5 - The
Supreme Court of the United States by a 5-4 margin upholds California's "
Three strikes law three strikes and you're out" law.
*
March 11 -
Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraqi fighters threaten two U.S.
Lockheed U-2 U-2 surveillance planes, flying missions for U.N. weapons inspectors, forcing them to abort their mission and return to base.
*
March 12 -
Serbia Serbian Prime Minister
Zoran Ä?inÄ‘ić assassinated in Belgrade
*
March 12 -
WHO issues a global alert on
Severe acute respiratory syndrome SARS.
*
March 12 -
Elizabeth Smart was rescued in
Sandy, Utah 9 months after she was abducted from Her bedroom by knifepoint.
*
March 12 -
Iraq disarmament crisis: British prime minister
Tony Blair proposes an amendment to the possible 18th U.N. resolution, which would call for Iraq to meet certain benchmarks to prove that it was disarming. The amendment is immediately rejected by France, who promises to
veto any new resolution.
*
March 13 -
Human evolution: The journal ''
Nature (journal) Nature'' reports that 350,000-year-old upright-walking
human footprints had been found in
Italy
*
March 15 -
Hu Jintao becomes
president of the People's Republic of China, replacing
Jiang Zemin.
*
March 16 -
Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of the
United States,
United Kingdom Britain,
Portugal, and
Spain meet at a summit in the
Azores Islands. U.S. President Bush calls Monday, March 17th, the "moment of Truth", meaning that the "
coalition of the willing" would make its final effort to extract a resolution from the
U.N. Security Council that would give Iraq an ultimatum to disarm immediately or to be disarmed by force.
*
March 17 -
Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. President George W. Bush gives an ultimatum: Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and his sons must either leave Iraq, or face military action at a time of the U.S.'s choosing
*
March 19 - First American bombs dropped on
Baghdad, Iraq. President
Saddam Hussein and his sons do not comply with President Bush's 48 hour mandate demanding their exit from
Iraq.
*
March 20 -
2003 invasion of Iraq 2003 Iraq war: Land troops from United States,
United Kingdom,
Australia and
Poland invade Iraq.
*
March 22 - The United States and the United Kingdom begin their
shock and awe campaign with a massive air strike on military targets in Baghdad.
*
March 23 -
Cricket World Cup ends as
Australia wins over
India in Centurion,
South Africa.
*
March 29 - WHO doctor
Carlo Urbani, who first identified SARS, dies of the disease.
*
March 30 -
Meigs Field Airport in
Chicago,
Illinois is demolished overnight.
April 2003 April
Image:Saddamstatue.jpg Saddam Hussein.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|200px|The Statue of [[Saddam Hussein is toppled by Iraqis as the American forces capture
Baghdad..html" title="Meaning of 200px|The Statue of [[Saddam Hussein">thumb|200px|The Statue of [[Saddam Hussein is toppled by Iraqis as the American forces capture
Baghdad.">200px|The Statue of [[Saddam Hussein">thumb|200px|The Statue of [[Saddam Hussein is toppled by Iraqis as the American forces capture
Baghdad.
*
April 3 - Passenger bus hits remote-controlled land mine in the
Chechnya Chechen capital, killing at least 8.
*
April 3 - U.S. forces seize control of Saddam International Airport, changing the airport's name to
Baghdad International Airport.
*
April 9 - U.S. forces seize control of Baghdad, apparently ending the regime of Saddam Hussein.
*
April 14 -
Human Genome Project successfully completed with 99% of the human
genome sequenced to 99.99% accuracy.
*
April 17 - The
Stevens Report concludes that members of the
Royal Ulster Constabulary RUC and British Army cooperated with the
Ulster Defence Association UDA in the killings of Catholics in
Northern Ireland
*
April 21 - Retired U.S. Army General
Jay Garner becomes Interim Civil Administrator of Iraq.
*
April 30 - The last American owned vehicle frame manufacturer, [http://web.archive.org/web/20010623093543/www.immsp.com/index.htm Midland Steel Products] goes [http://www.newsnet5.com/news/2166844/detail.html out of business] after almost 110 years in business, laying off almost 250 people.
May 2003 May
*
May 1 - George W. Bush landed on the aircraft carrier
USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) USS ''Abraham Lincoln'', in a
Lockheed S-3 Viking, where he gave a speech announcing end of major combat in the
2003 Invasion of Iraq Iraq war. During his speech, a prominent banner declared "
Mission Accomplished."
*
May 2 -
Monkeyman superhero hoax begins in
Tunbridge Wells,
Kent, UK
*
May 3 -
Old Man of the Mountain, rock formation in
New Hampshire, crumbles after heavy rain
*
May 4-
May 10 10 - A major severe weather outbreak spawned more tornadoes than any week in U.S. history. 393 tornadoes were reported in 19 states.
*
May 11 -
Benvenuto Cellini's
Saliera is stolen from the
Kunsthistorisches Museum in
Vienna.
*
May 12 -
Suicide bombing Suicide truck-bomb attack kills at least 60 at a government compound in northern
Chechnya.
*
May 12 - In
Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia, 26 people are killed in the
Riyadh Compound Bombings.
*
May 14 - Female
suicide bomber blows up
explosives strapped to her waist in crowd of thousands of
Muslim pilgrims, killing at least 18 people in
Chechnya.
*
May 16 - In
Casablanca,
Morocco, 33 civilians are killed and more than 100 people are injured in the
Casablanca Attacks Casablanca terrorist attacks.
*
May 19 -
Pen Hadow becomes the first man to walk alone, without any outside help, from
Canada to the
North Pole
*
May 20 -
Buffy The Vampire Slayer airs its final show ending a 7 year run on both
The WB Network and
UPN
*
May 21 -
Earthquake in
Boumerdès region of northern
Algeria - 2,200 killed
*
May 22 - The
Sheffield Winter Gardens was officially opened by Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
*
May 23 - The birth of
Dewey (deer) Dewey, the first
Cloning cloned deer by scientists at
Texas A&M University
*
May 26 - A draft of the proposed
European constitution is unveiled.
*
May 28 - The birth of
Prometea, the first
Cloning cloned horse by
Italy Italian scientists.
*
May 31 -
Eric Rudolph, the suspected person to have carried out the
Centennial Olympic Park bombing is captured in
North Carolina behind a ''Save-A-Lot'' store.
June 2003 June
*
June 1 - The
People's Republic of China begins filling the
lake reservoir behind the massive
Three Gorges Dam, raising the water level near the dam over 100 metres.
*
June 4 -
Martha Stewart and her broker are
indicted for using privileged investment information and then obstructing a federal investigation. Stewart also resigned as chairperson and chief executive officer of
Martha Stewart Living.
*
June 5 - Female
suicide bomber detonates
bomb near a bus carrying soldiers and civilians to a military airfield in
Mozdok, a major
staging area staging point for
Russian troops in
Chechnya, killing at least 16 people.
*
June 22 - The largest
hailstone ever recorded falls in
Aurora, Nebraska,
USA.
*
June 23 -
Supreme Court of the United States U.S. Supreme Court upholds
affirmative action in university admissions in ''
Grutter v. Bollinger''
*
June 26 - U.S. Supreme Court rules
sodomy laws unconstitutional in ''
Lawrence v. Texas''
July 2003 July
*
July 1 - 500,000 Hong Kong people march to protest
Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23, which redefined
treason controversially.
*
July 2 -
International Olympic Committee session in
Prague.
Vancouver ,
Canada is declared the Host City for the
2010 Winter Olympics XXI Olympic Winter Games in
2010.
*
July 5 - SARS is declared to be contained by WHO.
*
July 5 - Double
suicide bombing at a
Moscow concert rock concert kills the female attackers and 15 other people.
*
July 6 - Residents of
Corsica reject a referendum for increased autonomy for the region from
France by a very narrow margin.
*
July 7 - Canon
Jeffrey John, first would-be gay bishop in the Church of England, withdraws his acceptance of the post of The
Bishop of
Reading, Berkshire Reading after discussions with the church leaders
*
July 10 - Russian security agent dies in
Moscow while trying to defuse a bomb a woman had tried to carry into a cafe on central
Moscow Moscow's main street.
*
July 14 - U.S. columnist
Robert Novak publishes the name of
Valerie Plame, blowing her cover as a
CIA operative.
CIA leak scandal begins.
*
July 18 -
Convention on the Future of Europe finishes its work and proposes the first European constitution
*
July 18 - The body of
David Kelly Dr. David Kelly, a scientist at the
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) Ministry of Defence, is found a few miles from his home, leading to the
Hutton inquiry
*
July 23 -
Operation Warrior Sweep is the first major military deployment of the
Afghan National Army
*
July 24 - The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands,
Operation Helpem Fren, led by
Australia, begins in the
Solomon Islands
*
July 30 - The last old-style
Volkswagen Beetle rolls off its production line in
Puebla, Puebla,
Mexico.
August 2003 August
*
August 1 -
Suicide bomber rams truck filled with
explosives into a military hospital near
Chechnya, killing 50 people, including
Russian troops wounded in
Chechnya.
*
August 2 - The
United Nations authorizes an international
UN peacekeeping peacekeeping force for
Liberia.
*
August 10 - The highest temperature ever recorded in the
United Kingdom UK - 38.5
celsius °C (101.3
fahrenheit °F) at
Brogdale near
Faversham in
Kent [http://www.metoffice.com/climate/uk/2003/]. It is the first time the
United Kingdom UK has recorded a temperature over 100 degrees
Fahrenheit.
*
August 11 -
NATO takes over command of the
International Security Assistance Force peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history.
*
August 11 -
Jemaah Islamiah leader Riduan Isamuddin, better known as
Hambali, is arrested in
Bangkok,
Thailand.
*
August 14 -
2003 North America blackout Widespread power outage affects northeast United States and Canada.
*
August 14 - 6.4
Richter scale earthquake near the Greek
Ionian Islands Ionian island of
Lefkada - 24 injured
*
August 22 -
Brazilian rocket explosion 21 killed at the
Centro de Lançamento de Alcântara Brazilian rocket complex in
Alcântara due to a premature ignition of a
solid rocket booster.
*
August 25 - 52 killed in
1993 Mumbai bombings two bomb blasts in
Mumbai,
India.
*
August 27 -
Perihelion Perihelic Opposition (astronomy) opposition of
Mars (planet) Mars, and its closest approach to Earth in over 50,000 years.
September 2003 September
*
September 4 -
Europe's largest shopping centre, the
Bullring Shopping Centre Bullring in
Birmingham, is officially opened by Sir Albert Bore.
*
September 5 -
Roller coaster accident at
Disneyland injures 10 and kills one.
*
September 10 -
Sweden Swedish foreign minister
Anna Lindh is stabbed in a
Stockholm department store and dies the next day.
*
September 14 - Sweden rejects adopting the
Euro in a referendum. (
Elections in Sweden Results.)
*
September 14 -
Estonia approves joining the European Union in a referendum.
*
September 15 -
National Liberation Army (Colombia) ELN kidnaps 8 foreign tourists in the
Ciudad Perdida - they demand a human rights investigation and release last of the hostages three months later
*
September 16 - Two
suicide bombers drive a truck laden with explosives into a government security services building near
Chechnya, killing three people and injuring 25.
*
September 27 -
Smart 1 is launched.
*
September 27 - The
Uniterran Church was founded in Victor, NY
*
September 28 - a power failure affected all of Italy except Sardinia, cutting service to more than 56 million people.
*
September 29 - Hurricane Juan makes landfall at
Halifax Regional Municipality Halifax,
Nova Scotia,
Canada as a category 2 storm. Two were killed directly and 5 indirectly.
October 2003 October
Image:Sz5insignia.png Shenzhou 5.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|175px|The insignia of [[Shenzhou 5, the first Chinese manned space mission..html" title="Meaning of 175px|The insignia of [[Shenzhou 5">thumb|175px|The insignia of [[Shenzhou 5, the first Chinese manned space mission.">175px|The insignia of [[Shenzhou 5">thumb|175px|The insignia of [[Shenzhou 5, the first Chinese manned space mission.
*
October 7 -
2003 California recall: Voters recall Governor
Gray Davis from office and elect
Arnold Schwarzenegger to succeed him.
*
October 10 - Facing an investigation surrounding allegations of illegal drug use,
United States American Right Wing radio host
Rush Limbaugh publically admits that he is
Addiction addicted to prescription
Oxycodone pain killers and will seek treatment.
*
October 14 - The
Florida Marlins defeat the
Chicago Cubs in Game 6 of
Major League Baseball's
National League Championship Series; the game is remembered for Cubs fan
Steve Bartman interfering with a foul ball which could have helped Chicago win the game and the series. The Marlins go on to win the World Series.
*
October 15 -
People's Republic of China China launches
Shenzhou 5, their first
manned space mission; the
2003 Staten Island Ferry crash kills 11 after one of its ferries slammed into a pier
*
October 23 -
Luis A. Ferre, the third Democratically Elected
Governor of Puerto Rico, dies at age 99.
*
October 24 -
Concorde makes its last commercial flight, bringing the era of airliner
supersonic travel to a close, at least for the time being.
*
October 25 -
Cedar Fire begins in
San Diego County burning 280,000 acres (1,100 km²), 2,232 homes and killing 14
*
October 31 -
Mahathir Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of
Malaysia after 22 years in power.
November 2003 November
*
November 5 -
Gary Ridgway, The "Green River Killer", confesses murders of 48 women
*
November 9 -
Lunar eclipse (
the Americas, Europe,
Africa,
Central Asia)
*
November 12 -
Occupation of Iraq: In
Nasiriya, Iraq, at least 23 people, among them the first Italian casualties of the 2003 Iraq war are killed in a suicide bomb attack on an Italian police base.
*
November 15 - Two
car bombs explode simultaneously in
Istanbul, Turkey targeting two synagogues, killing at least 25 people and wounding more than 300;
Al-Qaida claims responsibility.
*
November 18 -
United States U.S. President
George W. Bush makes a state visit to
London in the midst of massive protests.
*
November 18 -
Goodridge v. Department of Public Health rules anti-
same-sex marriage laws unconstitutional in
Massachusetts
*
November 18 - Britney Spears breaks her own record with her 4th album "In The Zone" going to #1 on the Billboard 200, making her the only artist in music history to have her first 4 albums go to #1 on the Billboard 200.
*
November 20 - Several bombs explode in
Istanbul, Turkey destroying the Turkish head office of
HSBC Bank AS HSBC and the
United Kingdom British consulate.
*
November 20 -
Michael Jackson is arrested by police on charges of child molestation, a charge that can carry an 8 year jail term.
*
November 22 -
England wins the
Rugby Union World Cup defeating Australia 20-17 after extra time.
*
November 22 - The pilots and flight engineer of a DHL cargo plane are acknowledged after they become the first ever flight crew to successfully land a plane with no hydrolics, by means of engine thrust. The steering failure was the consequence of a fire started on the left wing, which was the result of a surface-to-air missile while on the descent for landing in
Baghdad.
*
November 23 -
Georgia (country) Georgian
Rose Revolution ends with overwhelming victory - president
Eduard Shevardnadze resigns following weeks of mass protests over fraudulent elections.
*
November 23 - Total
solar eclipse (
Antarctica)
*
November 24 - The High Court in
Glasgow imposes a minimum sentence of 27 years for Al Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, the Libyan convicted of bombing
Pan Am Flight 103 over
Lockerbie,
Scotland.
*
November 24 -
Nintendo NSider Forums is created.
*
November 27 –
Kalev Ots succeeds presidency of the pre-WW II Republic of Estonia, in exile, after death of
Mihkel Mathiesen
December 2003 December
Image:Saddamcapture.jpg Saddam Hussein.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|200px|A captured [[Saddam Hussein is investigated by US military doctors..html" title="Meaning of 200px|A captured [[Saddam Hussein">thumb|200px|A captured [[Saddam Hussein is investigated by US military doctors.">200px|A captured [[Saddam Hussein">thumb|200px|A captured [[Saddam Hussein is investigated by US military doctors.
*
December 1 - The use of hand-held
cell phone mobile phones while driving is made illegal in the
United Kingdom.
*
December 1 -
Boeing chairman and
CEO Phil Condit resigns unexpectedly. He is replaced by
Lewis Platt as non-executive chairman and
Harry Stonecipher as president and CEO.
*
December 5 -
Suicide bombing on commuter train in southern
Russia kills 44 people. President
Vladimir Putin condemns attack as bid to destabilize the country two days before parliamentary elections.
*
December 7 -
Russian legislative election, 2003 Parliamentary election in
Russia.
*
December 9 - Female suicide bomber blows herself up outside
Moscow Moscow's National Hotel, across from
the Kremlin and
Red Square, killing five bystanders.
*
December 12 -
Paul Martin becomes the 21st
Prime Minister of Canada
*
December 12 -
Olympic Airlines,
Greece's new flag carrier is launched.
*
December 13 -
Saddam Hussein, former
President of Iraq, is captured in
Tikrit by the
U.S. 4th Infantry Division.
*
December 16 - The
United Kingdom announces plans to build a new runway at
London Stansted Airport Stansted Airport in
Essex and a short-haul runway at
Heathrow Airport sparking anger from environmental groups.
*
December 17 - The film ''
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (film) The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' released, effectively completing the Lord of the Rings Trilogy directed by
Peter Jackson.
*
December 18 - The
Soham murders Soham Murder Trial ends at the
Old Bailey in
London with
Ian Huntley found guilty of two counts of murder. His girlfriend, Maxine Carr is found guilty of perverting the course of justice.
*
December 20 -
Libya admits that it was building a
nuclear bomb.
*
December 22 - An
earthquake shakes up
California, killing two people.
*
December 22 -
Parmalat is first accused of falsifying accounts to the tune of USD $5 billion, later admitted by founder Calisto Tanzi; observers call it "Europe's
Enron".
*
December 24 - A
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy BSE outbreak in
Washington Washington State is announced. Several countries including
Brazil,
Australia and
Republic of China Taiwan place a ban on the import of beef from the
United States United States of America.
*
December 24 - At the request of the US Embassy in Paris, the
France French Government orders
Air France to cancel several flights between France and the US in response to terrorist concerns.
*
December 24 - The
Spain Spanish police thwarts an attempt by
ETA to detonate 50 kg of
explosives at 3:55 PM on
Christmas Eve inside
Madrid's busy ChamartÃn Station.
*
December 25 -
Beagle 2 is scheduled to land on Mars, but nothing is heard from the lander.
*
December 25 - The President
Pervez Musharraf of
Pakistan, escapes the second assassination attempt in two weeks.
*
December 26 - A massive
earthquake devastates southeastern
Iran. Over 40,000 people are reported to have been killed in the city of
Bam.
*
December 31 - The world's largest
Hogmanay party in the
Scotland Scottish capital
Edinburgh is cancelled twenty minutes before midnight due to bad weather.
Births
*
April 29 -
Maud Angelica Behn, daughter of
Ari Behn and
Princess Märtha Louise of Norway
*
August 24 -
Alexandre Coste, son of
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
*
November 8 -
Lady Louise Windsor, daughter of
Edward, Earl of Wessex Earl and
Sophie, Countess of Wessex Countess of Wessex
*
December 7 -
Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, daughter of
Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
Deaths
'''For more deaths, see:
Deaths in 2003'''
January
*
January 3 -
Sid Gillman, American football coach (b.
1911)
*
January 4 -
Conrad Hall, Tahitian-born cinematographer (b.
1926)
*
January 4 -
Yfrah Neaman, Lebanese-born violinist (b.
1923)
*
January 8 -
Ron Goodwin, English composer and conductor (b.
1925)
*
January 11 -
Maurice Pialat, French actor and director (b.
1925)
*
January 11 -
Richard Simmons (actor) Richard Simmons, American actor (b.
1913)
*
January 12 -
Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine dictator (b.
1926)
*
January 12 -
Maurice Gibb, Australian musician (
Bee Gees) (b.
1949)
*
January 15 -
Doris Fisher, American singer and songwriter (b.
1915)
*
January 17 -
Richard Crenna, American actor (b.
1926)
*
January 20 -
Al Hirschfeld, American cartoonist (b.
1903)
*
January 23 -
Nell Carter, American singer and actress (b.
1948)
*
January 24 -
Gianni Agnelli, Italian auto executive (b.
1921)
*
January 26 -
Valeriy Brumel, Russian athlete (b.
1942)
*
January 26 -
Hugh Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton, English historian (b.
1917)
*
January 29 -
Frank Moss, U.S. Senator from Utah (b.
1911)
February
*
February 1 - Crew of the Space Shuttle ''Columbia''
**
Michael P. Anderson (b.
1959)
**
David M. Brown (b.
1956)
**
Kalpana Chawla (b.
1961)
**
Laurel Clark (b.
1961)
**
Rick D. Husband Rick Husband (b.
1957)
**
William McCool (b.
1961)
**
Ilan Ramon (b.
1954)
*
February 2 -
Lou Harrison, American composer (b.
1917)
*
February 10 -
Edgar de Evia, American photographer (b.
1910)
*
February 10 -
Ron Ziegler,
Richard Nixon's White House Press Secretary (b.
1939)
*
February 16 -
Eleanor "Sis" Daley, wife of Chicago mayor
Richard J. Daley (b.
1907)
*
February 19 -
Johnny PayCheck, American singer (b.
1938)
*
February 20 -
Maurice Blanchot, French philosopher and writer (b.
1907)
*
February 20 -
Orville Freeman, American politician (b.
1918)
*
February 27 -
Fred Rogers, American television host (stomach cancer) (b.
1928)
*
February 28 -
Fidel Sánchez Hernández,
President of El Salvador (heart attack) (b.
1917)
March
*
March 2 -
Hank Ballard, American musician (b.
1927)
*
March 9 -
Bernard Dowiyogo,
President of Nauru (diabetes) (b.
1946)
*
March 12 -
Zoran Ä?inÄ‘ić,
Prime Minister of Serbia (assassinated) (b.
1952)
*
March 12 -
Lynne Thigpen, American actress (b.
1948)
*
March 22 -
Paul Moran, Australian cameraman (Iraq, car bomb) (b.
1963)
*
March 26 -
Daniel Patrick Moynihan, U.S. Senator from New York (b.
1926)
*
March 29 -
Carlo Urbani, Italian physician (SARS) (b.
1956)
April
*
April 1 -
Leslie Cheung, Hong Kong singer and actor (b.
1956)
*
April 7 -
Cecile de Brunhoff, French storyteller (b.
1903)
*
April 11 -
Cecil Howard Green, British-born geophysicist and businessman (b.
1900)
*
April 17 -
Robert Atkins (nutritionist) Robert Atkins, American nutritionist (b.
1930)
*
April 17 -
Paul Getty, American-born philanthropist (b.
1932)
*
April 17 -
Earl King, American musician (b.
1934)
*
April 20 -
Ruth Hale (playwright and actress) Ruth Hale, American playwright and actress (b.
1908)
*
April 20 -
Bernard Katz, German-born biophysicist, recipient of the
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b.
1911)
*
April 21 -
Nina Simone, American singer (b.
1933)
*
April 23 -
Fernand Fonssagrives, French photographer (b.
1910)
*
April 26 -
Peter Stone, American writer (b.
1930)
*
April 30 -
Wim van Est, Dutch cyclist (b.
1923)
May
*
May 3 -
Suzy Parker, American actress (b.
1932)
*
May 9 -
Russell B. Long, U.S. Senator from Louisiana (b.
1933)
*
May 12 -
Sadruddhin Aga Khan, French UN High Commissioner for Refugees (b.
1933)
*
May 14 -
Wendy Hiller, English actress (b.
1912)
*
May 14 -
Robert Stack, American actor (b.
1919)
*
May 15 -
June Carter Cash, American singer (b.
1929)
*
May 15 -
Rik Van Steenbergen, Belgian cyclist (b.
1924)
*
May 26 -
Kathleen Winsor, American writer (b.
1919)
*
May 27 -
Luciano Berio, Italian composer (b.
1925)
*
May 28 -
Ilya Prigogine, Russian-born physicist and chemist, recipient of the
Nobel Prize in Chemistry (b.
1917)
*
May 28 -
Martha Scott, American actress (b.
1912)
June
*
June 2 -
Burke Marshall, American lawyer and politician (b.
1922)
*
June 10 -
Donald Regan, U.S. Treasury Secretary (b.
1918)
*
June 10 -
Bernard Williams, English philosopher (b.
1929)
*
June 11 -
David Brinkley, American television reporter (b.
1920)
*
June 12 -
Gregory Peck, American actor (b.
1916)
*
June 15 -
Hume Cronyn, Canadian actor (b.
1911)
*
June 18 -
Larry Doby, baseball player (b.
1923)
*
June 21 -
Leon Uris, American writer (b.
1924)
*
June 23 -
Maynard Jackson, Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia (b.
1938)
*
June 25 -
Lester Maddox, Governor of Georgia (b.
1915)
*
June 26 -
Denis Thatcher, husband of
Margaret Thatcher (b.
1915)
*
June 26 -
Strom Thurmond, U.S. Senator (b.
1902)
*
June 29 -
Katharine Hepburn, American actress (b.
1907)
*
June 30 -
Buddy Hackett, American comedian and actor (b.
1924)
July
*
July 1 -
Herbie Mann, American jazz flutist (b.
1930)
*
July 4 -
Barry White, American singer (b.
1944)
*
July 5 -
Roman Lyashenko, Russian hockey player (b.
1979)
*
July 7 -
Buddy Ebsen, American actor (b.
1908)
*
July 10 -
Winston Graham, English writer (b.
1908)
*
July 10 -
Hartley Shawcross, British chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials (b.
1902)
*
July 12 -
Benny Carter, American musician (b.
1907)
*
July 13 -
Compay Segundo, Cuban musician (
Buena Vista Social Club) (b.
1907)
*
July 15 -
Roberto Bolaño, Chilean writer (b.
1953)
*
July 15 -
Tex Schramm, American football team president and general manager (b.
1920)
*
July 16 -
Celia Cruz, Cuban singer (b.
1924)
*
July 16 -
Carol Shields, American-born writer (b.
1935)
*
July 17 -
Rosalyn Tureck, American pianist and harpsichordist (b.
1914)
*
July 25 -
Ludwig Bölkow, German aeronautical engineer (b.
1912)
*
July 25 -
John Schlesinger, English film director (b.
1926)
*
July 27 -
Bob Hope, English-born comedian (b.
1902)
*
July 30 -
Sam Phillips, American record producer (b.
1923)
August
*
August 1 -
Marie Trintignant, French actress (b.
1962)
*
August 4 -
Frederick Chapman Robbins, American pediatrician and virologist, recipient of the
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b.
1916)
*
August 9 -
Gregory Hines, American dancer and actor (cancer) (b.
1946)
*
August 11 -
Armand Borel, Swiss mathematician (b.
1923)
*
August 14 -
Helmut Rahn, German footballer (b.
1929)
*
August 16 -
Idi Amin, Ugandan dictator
*
August 19 -
Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (b.
1948)
*
August 19 -
Carlos Roberto Reina,
President of Honduras (b.
1926)
*
August 23 -
Bobby Bonds, baseball player and manager (b.
1946)
*
August 30 -
Charles Bronson, American actor (b.
1921)
September
*
September 1 -
Terry Frost, English artist (b.
1915)
*
September 6 -
Harry Goz, American actor (b.
1932)
*
September 8 -
Jaclyn Linetsky, Canadian actress (b.
1986)
*
September 8 -
Leni Riefenstahl, German film director (b.
1902)
*
September 8 -
Vadim Schneider, French actor (automobile accident) (b.
1986)
*
September 9 -
Larry Hovis, American actor (b.
1936)
*
September 9 -
Edward Teller, Hungarian-born physicist (b.
1908)
*
September 11 -
Anna Lindh, Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs (assassinated) (b.
1957)
*
September 11 -
John Ritter, American actor (b.
1948)
*
September 12 -
Johnny Cash, American singer and guitarist (b.
1932)
*
September 14 -
Yetunde Price, American sister of
Venus Williams Venus and
Serena Williams (murdered)
*
September 17 -
Erich Hallhuber, German actor (b.
1951)
*
September 17 -
Sheb Wooley, American actor and singer (b.
1921)
*
September 22 -
Gordon Jump, American actor (b.
1932)
*
September 24 -
Edward Said, Palestinian-born literary critic (b.
1935)
*
September 25 -
Franco Modigliani, Italian-born economist,
Nobel Prize in Economics Nobel Prize laureate (b.
1918)
*
September 25 -
George Plimpton, American writer and actor (b.
1927)
*
September 26 -
Robert Palmer (British singer) Robert Palmer, English singer (b.
1949)
*
September 27 -
Donald O'Connor, American actor, singer, and dancer (b.
1925)
*
September 28 -
Althea Gibson, American tennis player (b.
1927)
*
September 28 -
Elia Kazan, Hungarian-born director (b.
1909)
October
*
October 3 -
William Steig, American cartoonist (b.
1907)
*
October 5 -
Denis Quilley, British actor (b.
1927)
*
October 5 -
Dan Snyder, Canadian hockey player (b.
1978)
*
October 10 -
Eugene Istomin, American pianist (b.
1925)
*
October 12 -
Jim Cairns, Australian politician (b.
1914)
*
October 12 -
Willie Shoemaker, American jockey (b.
1931)
*
October 13 -
Bertram Brockhouse, Canadian physicist,
Nobel Prize in Physics Nobel Prize laureate (b.
1918)
*
October 16 -
László Papp, Hungarian boxer (b.
1926)
*
October 19 -
Alija Izetbegović,
Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (b.
1925)
*
October 20 -
Jack Elam, American actor (b.
1918)
*
October 21 -
Fred Berry, American actor (b.
1951)
*
October 21 -
Elliott Smith, American musician (b.
1969)
*
October 23 -
Tony Capstick, English comedian, actor, and musician (b.
1944)
*
October 23 -
Soong May-ling, Chinese wife of
Chiang Kai-shek (b.
1898)
*
October 29 -
Hal Clement, American writer (b.
1922)
*
October 29 -
Franco Corelli, Italian tenor (b.
1921)
*
October 31 -
Richard Neustadt, American political historian (b.
1919)
November
*
November 4 -
Richard Wollheim, British philosopher (b.
1923)
*
November 5 -
Bobby Hatfield, American singer (
Righteous Brothers) (b.
1940)
*
November 6 -
Rie Mastenbroek, Dutch swimmer (b.
1919)
*
November 6 -
Eduardo Palomo, Mexican actor (b.
1962)
*
November 9 -
Art Carney, American actor (b.
1918)
*
November 10 -
Canaan Banana, first
President of Zimbabwe (b.
1936)
*
November 10 -
Irv Kupcinet, American columnist and television personality (murdered) (b.
1912)
*
November 12 -
Jonathan Brandis, American actor (suicide) (b.
1976)
*
November 12 -
Penny Singleton, American actress (b.
1908)
*
November 13 -
Kellie Waymire, American actress (b.
1967)
*
November 14 -
Gene Anthony Ray, American actor (b.
1962)
*
November 15 -
Ray Lewis (runner) Ray Lewis, Canadian runner (b.
1910)
*
November 15 -
T. Y. Lin, Chinese-born civil engineer (b.
1912)
*
November 15 -
Dorothy Loudon, American actress (b.
1933)
*
November 18 -
Michael Kamen, American composer (b.
1948)
*
November 20 -
Robert Addie, British actor (cancer) (b.
1960)
*
November 20 -
David Dacko, first
President of the Central African Republic (b.
1930)
*
November 20 -
Jim Siedow, American actor (b.
1920)
*
November 24 -
Hugh Kenner, Canadian literary critic (b.
1922)
*
November 24 -
Warren Spahn, baseball player (b.
1921)
*
November 26 -
Abed Hamed Mowhoush, Iraqi general
*
November 26 -
Stefan Wul, French writer (b.
1922)
*
November 28 –
Mihkel Mathiesen, Estonian statesman (b.
1918)
*
November 30 -
Gertrude Ederle, American swimmer (b.
1906)
December
*
December 3 -
David Hemmings, English actor (b.
1941}
*
December 6 -
Carlos Manuel Arana Osorio,
President of Guatemala (b.
1918)
*
December 7 -
Carl F. H. Henry, American theologian and publisher (b.
1913)
*
December 7 -
Azie Taylor Morton, U.S. Treasurer (b.
1936)
*
December 8 -
Rubén González, Cuban pianist (
Buena Vista Social Club) (b.
1919)
*
December 9 -
Paul Simon (politician) Paul Simon, U.S. Senator from Illinois (b.
1928)
*
December 11 -
Ahmadou Kourouma, Ivorian writer (b.
1927)
*
December 12 -
Geidar Aliev,
President of Azerbaijan
*
December 12 -
Keiko,
Orca from
Free Willy
*
December 13 -
William Roth, U.S. Senator from Delaware (b.
1921)
*
December 14 -
Jeanne Crain, American actress (b.
1925)
*
December 15 -
George Fisher (cartoonist) George Fisher, American political cartoonist (b.
1923)
*
December 16 -
Robert Stanfield, Premier of Nova Scotia (b.
1914)
*
December 16 -
Gary Stewart (singer) Gary Stewart, American singer (suicide) (b.
1945)
*
December 17 -
Ed Devereaux, Australian actor (b.
1925)
*
December 17 -
Otto Graham, American football player (b.
1921)
*
December 19 -
Hope Lange, American actress (b.
1941)
*
December 22 -
Dave Dudley, American singer (b.
1928)
*
December 27 -
Alan Bates, English actor (b.
1934)
*
December 27 -
Ivan Calderon (baseball player) Ivan Calderon, Puerto Rican baseball player (murdered) (b.
1962)
*
December 29 -
Earl Hindman, American actor (lung cancer) (b.
1942)
*
December 29 -
Dinsdale Landen, English actor (cancer) (b.
1932)
*
December 29 -
Bob Monkhouse, English comedian and game show host (b.
1928)
*
December 30 -
David Bale, South African-born activist (cancer) (b.
1941)
*
December 30 -
John Gregory Dunne, American writer (b.
1932)
*
December 30 -
Anita Mui, Hong Kong singer (b.
1963)
*
December 31 -
Arthur R. von Hippel, German-born physicist (b.
1898)
Nobel prizes
*
Nobel Prize in Physics Physics -
Alexei Alexeevich Abrikosov,
Vitaly Lazarevich Ginzburg,
Anthony James Leggett
*
Nobel Prize in Chemistry Chemistry -
Peter Agre,
Roderick MacKinno 
