Your place in the Universe on 2008
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Get your map!The Highlights of 2008: A Year That Shaped the Future
2008 (MMVIII in Roman Numerals) was the year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2008th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations.
Is 2008 a year special to you? Discover what 2008 was famous for, Key World Leaders of 2008, 2008 Time’s Person of the Year, the #1 song, movie and book in 2008, how old is someone born in 2008 and what Chinese zodiac sign is associated to 2008.
On this page we will address all your questions and curiosities about 2008 to help you enjoy your trip down memory lane.
Table of contents
- What was 2008 known for ?
- Key World Leaders of 2008
- Who was the U.S. President in 2008?
- Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2008?
- Who was the Pope in 2008?
- 2008: Who was Time's Person of the Year?
- What was the number 1 song in the USA in 2008?
- What was the number 1 song in the UK in 2008?
- What was the most popular movie in 2008?
- What was the best selling book in 2008?
- How old is someone born in 2008?
- What was the Chinese Zodiac sign associated with the year 2008?
What was 2008 known for ?
- The events of 2008 were dominated largely by the global financial crisis of the day, sometimes referred to as the Great Recession.
- Even so, there were certainly some other developments that are worth mentioning. This was the year, for instance, that an exploding star halfway across the visible universe became visible to the naked eye. It was the farthest known object that was visible to the unaided human eye at the time.
- Also in the field of space, this was the year that the Falcon 1 spacecraft of SpaceX was successfully launched into Earth’s orbit. It was the first privately developed spacecraft to do so. As space exploration through government agencies such as NASA began to wane, SpaceX offered the world a glimpse at a possible new future of space exploration.
- 2008 was also the year of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China. It was at these games that American swimmer, Michael Phelps, broke the record for Gold Medals earned at a single Olympics by winning eight Gold Medals. This broke fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz’s previous record of seven. Phelps would go on to become the most highly decorated Olympian of all time.
- In politics, the change in leadership of two countries is particularly noteworthy. In February of 2008, Fidel Castro of Cuba resigned from leadership, being succeeded by his brother, Raul Castro. As one leader stepped down, another noteworthy leader stepped into office. In November of 2008, Barack Obama was elected as the 44th President of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the office.
- This was, of course, a year of economic turmoil. Sparked by the subprime mortgage crisis that began in 2007, the year of 2008 saw unprecedented measures taken by governments and central banks as they desperately tried to avoid a major economic depression. In addition to economic stimulus measures taken by central banks through a policy of quantitative easing, governments also bailed out failing financial institutions that were deemed “too big to fail.” One of the notable programs was the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, signed by U.S. President George W. Bush. This bill authorized the Treasury Secretary to provide up to $700 billion in aid to troubled institutions with the aim of stabilizing financial markets. While many academic and policy experts deemed these measures necessary, some economists, particularly those of the Austrian School, heavily criticized the bailouts and quantitative easing.
- The world population in 2008 was 6,789,088,686 people according to data by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. This figure includes both urban and rural populations. The urban population at that time accounted for 51.0% of the total population, which is roughly 3.5 billion individuals.The annual population change in 2008 was an increase of +83.2 million people, representing a percentage increase of +1.24% over the previous year.The average population density in 2008 was 29 persons per square mile (or 46 persons per square kilometer).
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Key World Leaders of 2008
Who was the U.S. President in 2008?
In 2008, George W. Bush (Republican) was the President of the United States. His term spanned from January 20, 2001 to January 20, 2009. His administration led the U.S. response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks and initiated wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2008?
In 2008 the UK Prime Minister was Gordon Brown (Labour). His administration handled the global financial crisis of 2008, introducing stimulus measures to stabilize the UK economy.
Who was the Pope in 2008?
The leader of the Catholic Church in 2008 was Pope Benedict XVI who had held the papacy since 2005. His papacy emphasized the need to return to traditional Catholic values, and he became the first pope in 600 years to resign from office.
2008: Who was Time's Person of the Year?
Barack Obama
In 2008, Barack Obama was named by TIME magazine as Person of the Year. In 2008, Obama was elected President of the United States, defeating John McCain.
What was the number 1 song in the USA in 2008?
The number 1 song in the USA in 2008, i.e. the best selling and most popular song of tha year, was Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis
What was the number 1 song in the UK in 2008?
The number 1 song in the UK in 2008, i.e. the best selling and most popular song of tha year, was Rockstar by Nickelback
What was the most popular movie in 2008?
The most popular movie and box office hit was Iron Man by Jon Favreau
What was the best selling book in 2008?
How old is someone born in 2008?
Someone born in 2008 is 17 years old this year.
Try out our age, time and generation calculators:
What was the Chinese Zodiac sign associated with the year 2008?
According to the Chinese Zodiac and Astrology 2008 was the Year of the Rat.
Discover Zodiac Sign Characteristics and Personality Traits of people born under the Rat sign.