NEWS: 2002

As 2002 begins, it's clear and 22 degrees F at Baltimore's National Weather Service station at BWI Airport. The wind is from the west-northwest at 7 miles an hour.

It's the start of the United Nations Year for Cultural Heritage, the International Year of Mountains, and the International Year of Ecotourism, as proclaimed by the United Nations.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, then mostly cloudy, then clear; breezy form late morning to mid-afternoon; High temp. 34° F; Low temp. 16° F; Precipitation: None.  No snow on the ground.

U.S. Army Special Forces soldier Sergeant 1st Class Nathan Ross Chapman is killed by small-arms fire in Afghanistan, becoming the first American military death from enemy fire in the war against terrorism.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, then partly cloudy, then clear, then mostly cloudy; breezy until mid-afternoon (20 mph sustained wind and 23-mph gust at 1:54 pm); High temp. 39° F; Low temp. 25° F; Precipitation: None.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Rain; High temp. 50° F; Low temp. 43° F; Precip.: 0.11 inch.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during January 2002 is 2.19 inches, including melted snow and ice.

AltaVista shuts down its free email service for good at 9:00 PM Eastern Time. At the time of shutdown, it has about 200,000 active email acounts.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during March 2002 is 3.75 inches.

A very strong tornado strikes La Plata, Maryland, killing 3 people and injuring 122 others. Damage is estimated at $100 million. The tornado's long track extends across the Chesapeake Bay and onto the Eastern Shore of Maryland, where it does more damage.

1.43 inches of precipitation falls in Baltimore, the most in Baltimore on any April 28th (up to this point) since recordkeeping began in 1871.

Aaron Boone hits a pair of homers -- one to tie the game in the ninth inning and one to win it in the 11th inning -- off Pittsburgh Pirates closer Mike Williams as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Pirates 4-3.

With all 14 interleague games -- and one National League game (mentioned above) -- taking place in National League ballparks, the designated hitter is not employed anywhere throughout Major League Baseball.

Mike Mussina of the New York Yankees (and formerly of the Orioles) becomes the seond pitcher in major-league history to give up six doubles in one inning, during the Yankees' 17-6 loss to the Texas Rangers.  (In 1934, Lefty Grove of the Boston Red Sox allowed 6 doubles in one inning against the Washington Senators.)

The total precipitation for Baltimore during July 2002 is 2.26 inches.

The Baltimore Ravens defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars in Baltimore, 17-10. The Ravens are 3-3-0 this season.

U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Ivan Frederick pleads guilty to conspiracy, dereliction of duty, maltreatment of detainees, assault, and committing an indecent act for his actions in the Abu Ghraibl prisoner abuse scandal.  He is the third person to plead guilty in the scandal.

U.S. war planes strike a building in Fallujah, Iraq. Local sources say the strike killed a family of six, including four children. The U.S. military, however, denies a family was killed and issues a statement saying that "intelligence sources indicate a known Zargawi propagandist is passing false reports to the media."

In Samarra, Iraq, two car bombs kill at least eight civilians, including a child, and wound eleven US soldiers. In Baghdad, an adviser to the political party of Iraqi interim Prime Minister Ivad Allawi is killed in a drive-by shooting.

CARE International, a health and water aid agency, announces that it is suspending operations in Iraq. Its local manager, Margaret Hassan, was abducted yesterday. 

Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri resigns and says he will leave the government, ending several weeks of conflict between Hariri and the Syrian-backed President, Emile Lahoud. Lahoud's term in office was extended last month, allegedly as a result of pressure from Syria; in response, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution condemning foreign interference in Lebanon and demanding the withdrawal of foreign troops.

Baltimore weather: Cloudy, High temperature: 58 degrees F, Low temperature: 45 degrees F, Precipitation: None.

Baltimore gets 7.4 inches of snow in a storm that lasts from early morning to mid-afternoon.

BWI Airport gets 7.4 inches of snow, the greatest snowfall on one day for BWI Airport in 2002.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during December 2002 is 4.96 inches, including melted snow and ice.

Total precipitation for Baltimore in 2002 is 39.60 inches, about 2 inches below normal.