On May 6, 1994, Queen Elizabeth of Britain and President François Mitterrand of France cut red, white, and blue ribbons to celebrate the opening of the Channel Tunnel, or "Chunnel." Elizabeth and Mitterrand meet in Calais, France, and afterward make the 35-minute trip to Folkestone, England — traveling nearly 150 feet below the floor of the English Channel — for another ceremony. The queen declares the direct high-speed rail link between the two countries to be one of the world's great technological achievements, which indeed it is. It is actually three parallel tunnels — two for trains in each direction plus a service corridor — bored by tunneling machines up to two football fields in length. Its casing consists of concrete segments five feet thick. The complex incorporates huge lighting and communications networks and a $200 million air-conditioning system. (Without it, the friction of trains on the tracks could heat the tunnels to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.) It is the largest privately financed infrastructure project in history.

Air Jordan

Michael Jordan elevates the art of basketball — and endorsement contracts — to new heights. With extraordinary athleticism and an ability to hit clutch shots, he leads the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships (1991-93, 1996-98) and also guides the U.S. Olympic Dream Team to a gold medal in 1992.

 

Don't Have a Cow, Man

An underachieving 10-year-old boy and his loser father become unlikely national icons when, in 1990, a half-hour cartoon called The Simpsons takes over American living rooms on Sunday evenings. The animated hit, which began as short fillers on The Tracey Ullman Show in the late 1980s, lampoons American materialism and cultural obsessions — and itself becomes the cultural obsession of 1990. Bart, Homer, Marge, Lisa, and baby Maggie appear on the cover of TV Guide and Rolling Stone, and catchphrases like "D'oh!" and "Eat my shorts" gild enough T-shirts and coffee mugs to bring in $750 million by the end of the year. Cowabunga!

 

Cosmic Ballet

The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis, flying over the Mediterranean Sea at 17,500 mph, approaches the Russian space station Mir on June 29, 1995. Commander Robert "Hoot" Gibson of the Atlantis lines up Mir in his sights and gently guides the two craft together. After equalizing the pressure between Atlantis and Mir, Gibson opens a hatch and shakes hands with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Dezhurov, signaling a new era of scientific cooperation between the former Cold War rivals. Although Atlantis is to deliver fresh water, oxygen, and nitrogen to Mir, the first order of business is a photo opportunity, as 10 American and Russian space travelers pose together. Shortly after, NASA medical examiners conduct the first experiments on the effects of long-term space travel while the subjects are still in space. The mission is deemed a success, proving that the American and Russian teams can work together in space, and reducing the technological risks of building the International Space Station. On July 4, Atlantis departs for Earth. Upon returning, American astronaut Norman Thagard, who had spent 115 days aboard Mir, reports that the craft had the look and feel of a locker room that had been lived in for a decade.

 

Free At Last

After serving 27 years of a life sentence in a South African prison, the world's most famous political prisoner, 71-year-old Nelson Mandela, is released in 1990. South African President F. W. de Klerk calls it "the end of a long chapter." Mandela's release signals an end to years of violence, protests, and international sanctions against South Africa's racially divided apartheid government. He is greeted on his release by his beaming wife, Winnie. In 1993, Mandela and de Klerk share the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1994, Mandela is elected president of South Africa unopposed.

"We place our vision of a new constitutional order for South Africa on the table not as conquerors, prescribing to the conquered," he declares. "We speak as fellow citizens to heal the wounds of the past with the intent of constructing a new order based on justice for all."

Other Memorable Moments

1990 The Hubble Space Telescope is launched, providing the deepest views of the universe to date.

1992 The Mall of America, the largest indoor mall in the U.S., with 520 stores on four levels, opens near Minneapolis

1995 Netscape Navigator debuts, giving computer users one-button access to the Internet.

1995 The Digital Video Disc (DVD) is introduced as the new format for viewing movies at home, replacing video cassette tapes.

1995 Cal Ripken Jr. plays in his 2,131st straight Major League game, breaking Lou Gehrig's record for consecutive games. His streak ends in 1998 after 2,632 games.

1997 Tiger Woods, 21, wins his first Masters golf tournament — by a margin of 12 strokes.

1997 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is published in the U.K. The initial print run is 500 copies.

1998 The first MP3 player is introduced in Asia, followed shortly by the Diamond Rio in the U.S.

1998 Google incorporates in September and sets up shop in a Menlo Park, Calif., garage. In December, PC Magazine names it one of the Top 100 Web sites for the year.

1999 The Y2K scare costs businesses and government millions of dollars as they reprogram computers for the year 2000.

1999 The Euro becomes the official currency of 11 European Union countries.