2009 Facts

1 Jan 2009: Slovakia adopted the Euro Currency.

Here is the first of our 2009 facts. The Euro was adopted to assist the process of conversion of currency. The Koruna was planned for withdrawal on April 1, 2008, and later on, applied to enter the eurozone. The European Commission approved this application on May 7, 2008.

1 Jan 2009: Hanyu Pinyin was adopted as the Republic of China’s official Chinese romanization.

The government of the Republic of China officially adopts this style of Chinese romanization as its official format. Before this was approved, the most commonly used method was by Tonyong Pinyin. It was also stated that local governments would not be able to receive financial aid if the old Tonyong Pinyin-derived romanizations were used. 

3 Jan 2009: Bitcoin Network was created.

This network was created as the first block of the digital currency. It was mined by a person by the name of Satoshi Nakamoto. The reward for mining the genesis block of bitcoin had a reward of 50 bitcoins.

12 Jan 2009: Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded the 2008 FIFA player of the year.

Ronaldo was awarded the FIFA World Player of the Year in Zurich. This makes him the first player from the Premier League to win this award. Ronaldo plays for Manchester United. 

15 Jan 2009: All passengers survived a flight malfunction on the Hudson River.

On Jan 15, 2009, the Chesley Sullenberger lands the US Airways Flight no. 1549 on the Husdon river successfully after a malfunction. The malfunction was caused by a damaged Airbus A320 which could’ve faced life-threatening malfunctions. All 155 passengers survived the flight and were lead to safety after landing. 

20 Jan 2009: Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States of America.

This also makes Barack Obama the first African-American President of the United States. Joe Biden also assumed the role of Vice President. Here’s one more 2009 fact about this event. The inauguration for his presidency also reached a new record of attendance for any event held in Washington D.C.

23 Jan 2009: Dendermonde nursery attack. 

This event was a stabbing attack on the Dendermonde nursery center in the Flemish village in Belgium. A total of three people were stabbed to death and twelve were mutilated. The perpetrator was revealed to be Kim de Gelder who was sentenced to life imprisonment. 

24 Jan 2009: Pope Benedict XVI rescinded the ex-communications of four bishops.

In an attempt to reach out to the far right of the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope revoked the four bishops’ ex-communications. The Vatican also stated that the Pope is considering whether or not to formally affirm the four men as full bishops.

29 Jan 2009: Rod Blagojevich was removed from office.

Here is one of our more political 2009 facts for you. The former governor of Illinois was found guilty of federal corruption. He was charged with the filling of President Obama’s vacant Senate seat and several other charges. Blagojevich was then later impeached. 

31 Jan 2009: An oil spillage in Kenya killed hundreds. 

An oil spill ignition resulted in the deaths of 113 people and caused critical injuries to over 200 more. The oil spill came from an overturned truck that burst into flames.

1 Feb 2009: Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir was elected to be the first female prime minister of Iceland. 

Here is some more cool information from these 2009 facts. She is also the first openly LGBT head of a government that Iceland has ever had. Forbes also listed her among the 100 most powerful women in the world. 

11 Feb 2009: Uri Geller bought Lamb Island.  

This is a small uninhabited island located between the islands of Fidra and Craigleith on the southeast coast of Scotland. You can reach the island by boat from North Berwick. Uri Geller bought the island because he believed it held a secret Egyptian treasure.

12 Feb 2009: Colgan Air flight crashed near Buffalo state.

The flight was approaching the Buffalo-Niagara International Airport when the twin-engine turboprop experienced an aerodynamic stall. This led to the plane crashing into a house and killing all 49 passengers and residents in the house. Here is one of our most shocking 2009 facts. Investigators believe that this crash was mainly due to the pilot’s errors. 

13 Feb 2009: Unix time had passed 1,234,567,890 seconds. 

This was recorded to have passed on the 13th of February, 2009 at 11:31:30pm UTC Unix Time. How’s that for satisfying 2009 facts?

18 Feb 2009: Terry Pratchett was knighted by the Queen of England. 

British author Terry Pratchett was invited to be knighted during the December of the previous year. During the Queen’s New Year Honours, Pratchett formally received the accolade at Buckingham Palace.

25 Feb 2009: BDR Massacre in Bangladesh, Dhaka, and Pilkhana.

Over 74 people were killed during the massacre which included the 50 army officials. The event also took place by the Bangladeshi Border guards inside its headquarters. 

3 Mar 2009: A Sri Lankan cricket team was attacked by terrorists. 

The attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team occurred while they were on the bus on the way to the Gaddafi Stadium. The bus was shot upon by 12 gunmen near the stadium. A total of 6 players were also injured along with two staff members.

4 Mar 2009: Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir was arrested.

Here’s another one of our many political 2009 facts. Al-Bashir’s warrant of arrest was issued on counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Because of this, he became the first sitting head of state ever to be indicted. 

5 Mar 2009: Moises Alou announced his retirement. 

Former outfielder, Alou announces his retirement from Major League Baseball. Alou is known for having played 17 seasons in MLB for 7 different teams. 

7 Mar 2009: Neymar made his professional debut for Santos at the age of 17. 

He was put on during the last half hour in a 2-1 win against Oeste. He also scored his first goal the following week against Mogi Mirim. Here’s another one of our 2009 facts that sports fans will love. During his first season, Neymar finished with a total of 14 goals in 48 games. 

22 Mar 2009: Mount Redoubt eruption.

The Alaskan volcano began to erupt approximately around 10:40 pm after a prolonged period of unrest. The eruptions from this volcano were said to be the most seismic activity that has ever occurred on the mountain in twenty years. 

25 Mar 2009: Grindr was launched to the public.  

The app initially received cautious yet positive remarks that circulated the LGBTQA+ community. While it was based on the western dating scene, it quickly grew popular all over the globe. 

28 Mar 2009: The first case of H1N1 swine flu in the U.S. was found in California. 

The Center for Disease Control states that the disease started spreading to other states such as Texas and New York by the time of April. It continued to spread even further until confirmed cases from all 50 states were found. 

6 Apr 2009: A 6.3 magnitude earthquake killed hundreds in Italy.  

The earthquake occurred near L’Aquila, Italy and killed at least 253 civilians. Thousands of people also lost their homes and were left in a state of chaos. 

7 Apr 2009: The former Peruvian President was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment.

Alberto Fujimori’s trials for human rights abuses lasted for 15 months and was also postponed multiple times for health reasons. He was also charged with murder and kidnapping. 

17 Apr 2009: Helen Clark became the first woman to lead the UNDP.

Helen Clark gained global recognition in 1999 when she became New Zealand’s first female prime minister. Since then, Clark has delivered many discussions regarding gender equality and leadership.

30 Apr 2009: An attack on the Dutch Royal Family failed and led to multiple casualties. 

The attacker was identified as 38-year-old Karst Roeland. Roeland crashed a car into a monument at the side of the road and caused several injuries. After missing running over the royal family, he soon died from brain injuries from the crash. 

1 May 2009: Same-sex marriage was legalized in Sweden. 

This new law followed the adoption of a new gender-neutral law on marriage by the Swedish Parliament. This also made the country 7th in the world to open up to the idea of same-sex marriage. 

How’s that for amazing 2009 facts?

18 May 2009: The end of the Sri Lankan civil war. 

On this day, the LTTE was defeated by the Sri Lankan government. This day marked the end of a 26-year civil war between the two sides. 

20 May 2009: Mexico officially entered recession. 

This made Mexico the first Latin American country to enter a recession. The 2009 recession was mainly said to be due to housing issues. After a significant run-up of housing prices, home prices suddenly plummeted which led thousands of borrowers unable to pay their loans. 

25 May 2009: North Korea conducted several missile tests.

These tests were part of measures to bolster up its nuclear deterrent for self-defense. The tests were conducted successfully by underground nuclear testing as requested by its scientists and technicians. 

11 Jun 2009: H1N1 flu was declared a global pandemic.

This is the first time in over four decades that a new flu virus has emerged and caused a global pandemic. By this time, over 70 countries had confirmed cases of the virus. 

23 Jun 2009: Akio Toyoda became the new President of Toyota Motor Corp.  

Akio is the grandson of the founder of the company and was stated to take the position of President of the automobile company along with four new executive vice presidents. Here’s another one of our 2009 facts. By 2009, Toyoda was also an avid racing fan. 

4 Jul 2009: The Statue of Liberty crown was reopened to the public.  

After almost eight years of closure, the crown was once again re-opened for the public. The reason behind the closure of the Statue of Liberty crown was due to the World Trade Center attacks that also occurred during September 2001.

17 Jul 2009: Jakarta double bombings at the JW Marriott hotels. 

The hotel was bombed by terrorists and has sustained over $500 million in damages. Today, there are now five layers of blast walls that surround the hotel and armed security personnel for safety measures. Here’s another bonus 2009 fact for you. This wasn’t the first bombing in this hotel, it is the second one. The first bombing occurred in August 2003.

4 Aug 2009: Kim Jong-Il met Bill Clinton.

During this meeting, Clinton had the two journalists pardoned and released after entering North Korea illegally. Clinton’s visit also implied bettering the relations between the United States and North Korea.

16 Aug 2009: Usain Bolt won 100m with a new world record of 9.58s.

During the finals of the World Athletics Championship, Usain Bolt beat his world record by 0.11 seconds. Because of this, Jamaica easily took the victory in the 100m finals in Berlin. 

5 Sep 2009: The first national flag day was celebrated in Denmark. 

This day is dedicated to celebrating the memory of the fallen Danes in international operations since 1948. This day is for Denmark’s deployed military personnel and has been official since 2009. 

29 Sep 2009: Tsunami occurred from an 8.0 magnitude earthquake near the Samoan Islands.

The Samoa earthquake and tsunami took place in the Southern Pacific Ocean adjacent to the Kermadec-Tonga subduction zone. Several houses and roads were damaged during the incidents costing over $200 million in damages. Here is one of the more shocking 2009 facts about this earthquake. Almost 200 people were killed and around 150 injured, making this the highest number of casualties in the U.S. during the 21st century. 

2 Oct 2009: Los Angeles declared Oct 2 to be Stan Lee Day.

The City of L.A declared this after Lee was given the National Medal of Arts award. Additionally, the City of Long Beach also declared this same day in honor of the Comic Book Artist. 

10 Oct 2009: Turkey and Armenia reopened their borders in Zurich.

The borders were opened again after almost 200 years of closure. Moreover, this was done as an attempt to normalize ties between the two sides and gain a better relationship with each other. 

24 Oct 2009: First International Day of Climate Action.  

This was organized with 350.org as a campaign to raise awareness and address the global warming crisis. 

25 Oct 2009: Baghdad Bombings killed hundreds.  

The bombings in Baghdad resulted in a total of 155 deaths and over 721 people injured. Reports say that this was one of the deadliest attacks to ever occur in the country of Iraq. The blasts from the bombings had multiple ripple effects throughout the country which lead the upcoming elections to be postponed.

28 Oct 2009: NASA launched the Ares-I X mission.  

The rocket was successfully launched and was the only one launched for its later-canceled Constellation program. This project cost approximately $445 million to achieve. 

9 Nov 2009: Joe Cada claimed the title of the youngest world series poker champion. 

At the age of 21, Joe Cada is the youngest person ever to hold this title. Additionally, he is also the highest-profile, non-professional player, to reach the November Nine. 

25 Nov 2009: Jeddah flooded from a 4-hour rain. 

A strong storm brings on 3 years’ worth of rain in 4 hours. The flood also killed over 150 people and swept away several vehicles during Hajj. 

10 Dec 2009: President Obama accepted the Nobel Peace Prize. 

Barack Obama received the award at the Oslo City Hall located in Norway. Additionally, he also delivered almost a half-hour speech to discuss the tensions between the idea of war and peace. 

11 Dec 2009: Tiger Woods announced his indefinite leave from golf.  

He stated that this was needed so that he could work on his marriage and do some soul searching. Tiger Woods is known as one of the top-ranked golfers in the world. 

16 Dec 2009: The title of Time’s Person of the year was awarded to Ben Bernanke.  

He was given the honor after rescuing the global economy from the Great Recession. Ben Bernanke is an economist and the chairman of the federal reserve.  

27 Dec 2009: WHO declares over 208 countries to have H1N1 cases and deaths. 

This is the last, but not the least of our 2009 facts. The World Health Organization raised the alert level to phase 6 which indicates a global pandemic. Moreover, by December 2009, over 208 countries have reported severe cases of the flu.