2012 in History

Lupu leaves the acting presidency after Nicolae Timofti is sworn in

Pulp release a newly completed version of After You, their first new recording in many years.

Tessy Thomas contributes to the Agni programme as Agni-V completes its first successful flight test.

Citizen-science volunteers begin classifying star clusters in PHAT imagery, extending the catalogue of stellar groupings visible across Andromeda's disk.

Hubble measurements constrain M31's sideways motion against distant background galaxies, enabling a quantitative forecast of its future encounter with the Milky Way.

Traore takes office as interim president under the constitutional transition agreement.

Kabila appoints former finance minister Matata Ponyo to head the government.

Traore appoints Cissoko to form a new transitional government.

Traore appoints Diarra to lead the transitional government.

Promulgates reform introducing automatic electoral registration and voluntary voting.

USADA announces a lifetime ban from competition, applicable to all sports which follow the World Anti-Doping Agency code

Issued a lifetime ban from professional sport

Directs Barbara.

Scores in stoppage time at Camp Nou to confirm Chelsea's place in the final.

Finishes the Bundesliga season as the leading scorer with Schalke.

Real Madrid beat Barcelona at Camp Nou to take a decisive step toward the league title.

Leads M23 forces as the rebellion captures the strategic border town of Bunagana.

Commands M23 forces during their seizure of Goma, the capital of North Kivu.

Pikrammenos leads a caretaker government before the June election.

Vjekoslav Bevanda becomes Chairman of the Council of Ministers

Captains Chelsea to their first Champions League title after a penalty shootout against Bayern Munich.

Saves an extra-time penalty and then two shootout penalties against Bayern Munich.

Guides Chelsea to their first European Cup after taking charge during the season.

Guides Corinthians to victory over Chelsea in the world final.

Samaras forms a coalition government after the second election of 2012.

Flaugher leads the Dark Energy Camera project as DECam obtains official first-light images, preparing the primary instrument for the Dark Energy Survey.

The Supreme Court disqualifies Gillani after his contempt conviction.

Converts Chelsea's decisive shootout penalty after earlier heading the equaliser.

On his first day as President, Putin issued 14 Presidential decrees, which are sometimes called the "May Decrees" by the media, including a lengthy one stating wide-ranging goals for the Russian economy

Signs the agreement giving the Scottish Parliament power to hold an independence referendum.

Putin won the 2012 Russian presidential elections in the first round, with 63.6% of the vote

Members elect Magariaf to lead the General National Congress.

The General National Congress elects Zeidan to form a new government.

O'Neill continues as Prime Minister after the 2012 national election

Presses European partners for tighter long-term limits on European Union spending.

Threatens to veto the EU budget without restraint in spending.

Is named player of the European Championship.

Guides Spain to a four-goal victory over Italy.

Reports to Parliament on European Council discussions about competitiveness, the eurozone and the EU budget.

Is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame again as a member of Faces.

Releases Fire It Up, his final studio album.

Massimov leaves his first term as Prime Minister

Becomes First Secretary of the Workers Party.

Diarra resigns after soldiers arrest him and interfere with the transitional authorities.

Libya holds its first nationwide parliamentary election after the fall of Gaddafi.

The United Nations Secretary-General appoints Brown Special Envoy for Global Education.

Diarra forms a broader government intended to restore national unity and constitutional order.

The vote formalizes the post-Saleh political transition.

Begins the formal transitional presidency.

Supports President Hadi's transitional government.

Apologises after the Hillsborough Independent Panel report exposes failures and altered police statements.

Burnham calls for coordinated and properly resourced investigations following the panel's findings.

Starmer orders prosecutors to review newly disclosed Hillsborough evidence for possible offences.

Burnham welcomes official acknowledgement that Hillsborough victims and supporters were wrongfully blamed.

Illingworth helps assemble the eXtreme Deep Field from a decade of Hubble exposures, revealing thousands of exceptionally faint galaxies.

Brown leads an international petition supporting Malala Yousafzai and universal education.

Is removed from office after a rapid impeachment process.

Putins presidency is inaugurated in the Kremlin

Starmer publishes interim prosecution guidance covering communications made through social media.

Captures video of a brief meteoroid impact flash in Jupiter's atmosphere.

North Korea launches a satellite into orbit.

Scores the opening goal as Real Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao to secure the league title.

Receives the Leveson report into press culture and ethics.

Wins re-election as Mayor of London.

Welcomes the approaching London Olympic and Paralympic Games and highlights Britain's preparations.

Becomes a senior commander of the M23 rebellion formed by former CNDP officers who mutiny from the Congolese army.

On his first day as President, Putin issued 14 Presidential decrees, which are sometimes called the "May Decrees" by the media, including a lengthy one stating wide-ranging goals for the Russian economy

MESSENGER neutron measurements provide compelling evidence that Mercury's permanently shadowed north-polar craters contain abundant water ice.

MESSENGER begins its first extended mission after completing the primary year of orbital observations.

Mission controllers reduce MESSENGER's orbital period to about eight hours, increasing the number of close Mercury passes each day.

Sanogo leads soldiers who seize power shortly before scheduled presidential elections.

Becomes First Chairman of the National Defence Commission.

Rifai participates in national development connected with Jordanian political and historical developments.

Announces the expropriation of a controlling stake in YPF from Repsol

Directs Oh Boy, later released internationally as A Coffee in Berlin.

Greenwich Park hosts Olympic equestrian and modern pentathlon events.

Represents the government during the London Olympic Games as Britain hosts athletes and visitors from around the world.

Perform at the London Olympics closing ceremony.

Real Madrid finish the league season with a then-record 100 points under Mourinho.

The Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury releases a major resolved-star survey of M31 using ultraviolet, optical and near-infrared Hubble observations.

Scores in stoppage time against Queens Park Rangers to give Manchester City the Premier League title.

Ndiaye leaves office after the presidential transition

Wade leaves office after losing the presidential election

Takes office after winning the first competitive presidential election following the 2011 uprising.

Pranab Mukherjee takes office as the thirteenth President of India.

Assumes the presidency after Fernando Lugo is removed from office.

Putins presidency is inaugurated in the Kremlin

Macky Sall becomes President after defeating Abdoulaye Wade

Nicolae Timofti becomes President after parliamentary election

Awards Dylan the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Takes the presidential oath before Parliament.

Raja Pervez Ashraf succeeds Gillani as Prime Minister.

Serik Akhmetov becomes Prime Minister

Abdoul Mbaye becomes Prime Minister under President Macky Sall

Releases Psychedelic Pill with Crazy Horse, featuring long-form electric guitar performances.

Berdymukhamedov wins a second presidential election

Real Madrid defeat Athletic Bilbao to secure the Spanish league championship.

Is reelected vice president with Barack Obama.

Addresses the Republican National Convention during Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.

Toure resigns under an ECOWAS-mediated agreement following the March military coup.

Grants Greenwich royal borough status in the Diamond Jubilee year.

The Scotland Act 2012 receives royal assent.

Captains Spain to victory over Italy in the final.

Returns as prime minister after Smer wins elections.

Cabinet authority continues under the re-elected President

Congress selects Shagur to form a government, but his proposed cabinet later fails.

Completes an unprecedented sequence of three major international titles.

Completes three consecutive major tournament victories for Spain.

Helps Spain defeat Italy by four goals in the final.

Real Madrid defeat Barcelona on away goals to win the Spanish Super Cup.

A Hubble hazard survey discovers Pluto's fifth and smallest known moon, later named Styx.

Releases Take the Crown, restoring his run of solo number one albums.

Releases Tempest.

The National Transitional Council transfers power to the elected General National Congress.

Joins Manchester United from Arsenal ahead of the 2012-13 season.

Pasachoff observes the final transit of Venus of the twenty-first century, an event not repeated until 2117.

Is elected president in the transitional election.

The United Nations selects Muhammad Iqbal Asi of Pakistan to command the UN peacekeeping force in Cote d'Ivoire.

Maintains security and diplomatic cooperation during the political transition.

Ferrari is officially charged by USADA with administration and trafficking of prohibited substances

Issued a lifetime ban from professional sport

Debates Paul Ryan during the 2012 campaign.

Voyager 1 crosses the heliopause and becomes the first human-made object in interstellar space.

Sets out arguments for further welfare reform and a stronger link between support, work and responsibility.

Releases Wrecking Ball, an album shaped by economic anger and social protest.

Dies after a career that made him one of hard rock's most influential keyboard players.

Death of Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong.

Death of Simon Ward