70's, 80's, 90's, 00's Timeline

  • Jimmy Carter Elected President

    Jimmy Carter ; In office. January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981 ; In office. January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981 · Walter Mondale · Gerald Ford · Ronald Reagan.
  • Star Wars Movie Premier

    Star Wars was released on May 25, 1977, and first subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope in the 1979 book The Art of Star Wars. The film's success led Lucas ...
  • Three Mile Island Meltdown

    On March 28, 1979, a cooling malfunction caused part of the core to melt in Reactor 2. Some radioactive gas was released but not enough to cause adverse health effects, as noted in numerous health studies. Reactor 2 was destroyed. The accident prompted additional safety measures and rigorous testing programs
  • Iran/ Contra Affair

    Iran-Contra Affair, 1980s U.S. political scandal in which the National Security Council became involved in secret weapons transactions with Iran, ...
  • Mount. St. Helens Eruption

    On March 27, 1980, a series of volcanic explosions and pyroclastic flows began at Mount St. Helens in Skamania County, Washington, United States. A series of phreatic blasts occurred from the summit and escalated until a major explosive eruption took place on May 18, 1980, at 8:32 am.
  • Iran Hostages Released

    The crisis was a pivotal episode in the history of Iran–United States relations. On January 20, 1981, after the signing of the Algiers Accords, the hostages were released. 8 American servicemen and 1 Iranian civilian killed during an attempt to rescue the hostages.
  • Assassination Attempt on President Reagan

    On March 30, 1981, Ronald Reagan, then president of the United States, was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. in Washington, D.C., as Reagan was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton hotel.
  • Challenger Shuttle Explosion

    News. Challenger disaster, explosion of the U.S. space shuttle orbiter Challenger, shortly after its launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 28, 1986. The disaster claimed the lives of seven astronauts. The primary goal of shuttle mission 51-L was to launch the second Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-B).
  • Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster

    On April 26, 1986, the Number Four RBMK reactor at the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, Ukraine, went out of control during a test at low-power, leading to an explosion and fire that demolished the reactor building and released large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere.
  • George H.W. Bush Elected President

    Bush, a Republican from Texas and the incumbent vice president for two terms under President Ronald Reagan, took office following his landslide victory over Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential election.
  • Fall of the Berlin Wall

    The Berlin Wall fell on 9 November 1989
    At a press conference on 9 November, East German spokesman Günter Schabowski announced that East Germans would be free to travel into West Germany, starting immediately.
  • Start of the Persian Gulf War

    The Persian Gulf War began on August 2, 1990 when Iraqi forces, led by Saddam Hussein, invaded and occupied the neighboring country of Kuwait, marking the start of the conflict; this invasion prompted a U.S.-led coalition to respond and eventually liberate Kuwait through military action known as "Operation Desert Storm
  • Original U.S.A. Olympic Basketball Dream Team

    The 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team, nicknamed the "Dream Team", was the first American Olympic team to include active professional players from the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team has often been described as the greatest sports team ever assembled
  • Bill Clinton Elected President

    Clinton was elected president in the 1992 election, defeating the incumbent Republican Party president George H. W. Bush, and the independent businessman Ross Perot. He became the first president to be born in the Baby Boomer generation and the youngest to serve two full terms.
  • Rodney King Decision & L.A. Riots

    Unrest began in South Central Los Angeles on April 29, after a jury acquitted four officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) charged with using excessive force in the arrest and beating of Rodney King.
  • Launch of Google

    Google was officially launched in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin to market Google Search, which has become the most used web-based search engine.
  • Bill Clinton Impeached by the House of Representatives

    After an inquiry between October and December 1998, President Clinton was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives on December 19, 1998; the articles of impeachment charged him with perjury and obstruction of justice. It was the second impeachment trial of a U.S. president, preceded by that of Andrew Johnson.
  • World Trade Center/Pentagon/Shanksville, PA Attacks

    An Islamist extremist network called al-Qaeda planned the attacks from Afghanistan. Led by Osama Bin Laden, al-Qaeda blamed the US and its allies for conflicts in the Muslim world. Nineteen people carried out the hijackings, working in three teams of five and one of four (on the plane which crashed in Pennsylvania)