JANUARY 
1. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi aims to lead the challenge to President Donald Trump’s political and legislative agendas when the new U.S. Congress convenes
2. Brazil’s far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro is sworn in as president of Latin America’s biggest country
3. NASA’s New Horizons probe makes its closest pass of the Kuiper Belt object MU69. At 6.5bn km from Earth, it is the farthest exploration in the history of humankind

FEBRUARY
4. China marks the Year of the Pig. People born in pig years are said to be honest, sincere and genuine
5. Nigerians head to the polls with President Muhammadu Buhari seeking a second term in office despite poor health
6. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards the Oscars in Los Angeles

MARCH
7. Barring a late change of heart, Britain will exit the EU on Mar 29 after 46 years in the club
8. Barbie, unveiled at a New York toy fair in 1959, turns 60, but still doesn’t look a day over 20
9. Ukraine is due to hold a presidential election

APRIL
10. Around 900 million people head to the polls in India, the world’s biggest democracy
11. Indonesia holds presidential and parliamentary elections
12. Emperor Akihito of Japan steps down after three decades as ruler of the world’s oldest hereditary monarchy. Crown Prince Naruhito succeeds to the Chrysanthemum Throne

MAY
13. 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci – master painter, architect, engineer and inventor whose genius epitomised the brilliance of the Renaissance
14. Australia is due to hold a general election
15. Sixteen teams contest the four-yearly Cricket World Cup, hosted by England and Wales

JUNE
16. Commemorations mark the 75th anniversary of the 1944 D-Day landings – the biggest seaborne invasion in history
17. World leaders head to Osaka as Japan hosts its first G20 Summit
18. France hosts FIFA’s Women’s World Cup

JULY
19. One giant leap for mankind – Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon 50 years ago
20. Disney releases its live-action remake of The Lion King, starring Beyonce, Donald Glover, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Seth Rogan
21. The Great South American Eclipse will be best viewed from Chile and Argentina

AUGUST
22. Germany’s 30th Wacken Open Air, an annual heavy metal festival, will attract 75,000 music fans
23. The world’s first daily international scheduled flight took off from London 100 years ago, bound for Paris
24. The FIBA Basketball World Cup, expanded from 24 to 32 teams, begins in China

SEPTEMBER
25. Japan is the first Asian country to host the Rugby World Cup, the world’s third-largest sporting event behind the Olympics and the soccer World Cup
26. The UN General Assembly’s 74th session opens in New York
27. Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan set sail 500 years ago on the expedition that resulted in the first circumnavigation of the Earth.

OCTOBER
28. Canada must hold its general election by the end of this month
29. Argentina elects a new president and members of congress
30. The EU appoints new presidents of the European Commission and European Central Bank when the terms of Jean-Claude Juncker and Mario Draghi end. Donald Tusk’s term as European Council president ends in November

NOVEMBER
31. Gun lovers mark the birth centenary of Mikhail Kalashnikov, Russian designer of the world’s most famous rifle
32. The tiny planet Mercury makes a transit across the sun – a rare event not seen again until 2032
33. Leaders of 21 Pacific Rim countries meet in Chile for the APEC Summit

DECEMBER
34. Russia hopes to start gas supplies to China via Gazprom’s 4,000km Power of Siberia pipeline
35. An annular solar eclipse will dazzle sky watchers from Saudi Arabia to Guam
36. Disney releases Star Wars: Episode IX, the conclusion to the
immensely popular series (Story: Julie Mullins)