El Nino, a large-scale periodic warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean, affects the world climate, upsetting normal weather patterns.

Millions are clicking their mouses on the Internet. The online population numbers between 30-60 million users, and it is estimated that there are 5 million web sites in January 1998.

Tension mounts in Kosovo as the ethnic Albanian majority demands greater autonomy from Serb-dominated Yugoslavia.

Northern Ireland acquires a fragile peace when the Good Friday Accord is signed after 22 months of negotiations and 30 years of violence.

Bill Gates' company, Microsoft, is charged with allegedly using an operating-system monopoly to unfairly expand into the Internet industry.

To the dismay of many in the Western world, India and Pakistan, historic enemies, conduct independent underground nuclear tests.

Asian currencies and stock markets continue to plunge, creating an economic crisis for the continent.

Steven Spielberg's hit movie Saving Private Ryan brings World War II heroism to the big screen.

258 people are killed when two American embassies are destroyed by terrorist bombings that were allegedly orchestrated by Islamic radical Osama bin Laden. The United States retaliates with air strikes against Afghanistan and Sudan.

As the ruble is devalued, international loans go unpaid, and the meager incomes of Russians continue to drop, the republic experiences its most economically difficult year since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990.

The Clinton sex scandal explodes when the president denies having a sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, prompting Whitewater investigator Kenneth Starr to refocus his investigation. The explicit Starr Report is released in September, and Clinton becomes the second American president to be impeached.

Gerhard Schroeder defeats German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, marking a shift in German politics from conservatism to a more left-of-center orientation.

Hurricane Mitch pounds the Caribbean and Central America, killing thousands and wiping out much of the infrastructure that had taken years to build.

With mediation from United States President Clinton, a meeting in Maryland between Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Yasir Arafat leads to progress in the Middle East peace talks.

St. Louis Cardinal baseball player Mark McGwire breaks Roger Maris' single season home-run world record and finishes the season with 70 victorious homers. Chicago Cub Sammy Sosa also breaks the record with 66 home runs.

The United States and Britain launch air strikes at Iraqi targets in retaliation for its failure to cooperate with the United Nations weapons inspections.