WORLD EVENTS AND THE YEAR 1985

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World Events of 1985

Soviet leader Chernenko dies at the age of 73. He is succeeded by Mikhail Gorbachev.
The reform movements of Glasnost and Perestroika are introduced by Gorbachev in the Soviet Union.
PLO terrorists hijack Achille Lauro, Italian cruise ship, with 80 passengers, plus crew. One person is killed. The Italian government falls due to the political fallout over its handling of the hijacking.

Achille Lauro
Hijackers seize Egyptian Boeing 737 airliner after takeoff from Athens.
In Hollywood, California, the charity single "We Are the World" is recorded by USA for Africa.

We Are The World
The Provisional Irish Republican Army carries out a mortar attack on the Royal Ulster Constabulary police station at Newry, killing nine officers in the highest loss of life for the RUC on a single day.
A joint American-French expedition locates the wreck of the RMS Titanic.

Titanic
Microsoft Corporation releases the first version of Windows, Windows 1.0.

1985_windows.png
Buckyballs (carbon nano-structures) discovered by Harold Kroto, Robert Curl and Richard Smalley.

C-60 fullerene
NeXT is founded by Steve Jobs after resigning from Apple Computer.
British Telecom retires Britain's world famous red telephone boxes.

Telephone box

** Master Index for Years ** Index for This Year ** World Events ** South Asian Events ** Film World Events ** Film Song Videos **
Last Year's World Events ** 1985 ** Next Year's World Events

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