Mood:
"Global awareness and cooperation expand."
Events: "Live Aid concert raises global famine awareness."
Events: "Live Aid concert raises global famine awareness."
- Mar 11: Mikhail Gorbachev Comes to Power – Following the death of Konstantin Chernenko, Mikhail Gorbachev is swiftly elected General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, initiating sweeping reforms of *glasnost* and *perestroika*.
- May 13: MOVE Bombing in Philadelphia – Philadelphia police drop a military-grade explosive bomb onto a residential compound occupied by the Black liberation group MOVE, sparking a devastating fire that destroys 65 homes.
- Jun 14: Schengen Agreement Signed – Five European Economic Community member states sign the Schengen Agreement in Luxembourg, aiming to gradually abolish systematic border checks across member territories.
- Jul 13: Live Aid Concert – Organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, the massive, simultaneous Live Aid benefit concerts take place in London and Philadelphia, raising millions of dollars for famine relief in Ethiopia.
- Jul 15: Super Mario Bros. Released – Nintendo releases the iconic platform video game *Super Mario Bros.* in Japan for the Family Computer (Famicom), revolutionizing the gaming industry worldwide.
- Aug 2: Delta Air Lines Flight 191 Crashes – Delta Air Lines Flight 191 encounters a severe microburst thunderstorm and crashes while attempting to land at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, killing 137 people.
- Sep 1: Titanic Wreck Discovered – A joint French-American oceanographic expedition led by Jean-Louis Michel and Robert Ballard successfully locates the final resting place of the RMS *Titanic* on the Atlantic ocean floor.
- Nov 19: Geneva Summit – US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev meet for the very first time at a diplomatic summit in Geneva, Switzerland, beginning a crucial thaw in Cold War relations.