The Year in Pictures

Southern Sudanese line up to vote for independence at dawn in the southern capital of Juba, Jan. 9, 2011. (AP)

A protester stands in front of a burning barricade during a demonstration in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 28, 2011. (Reuters)

Iranian women stand on Tehran's telecommunication tower before a ceremony to mark the 32nd anniversary of Iran's Islamic revolution, February 11, 2011. (Reuters)

Anti-government protesters celebrate in Cairo's Tahrir Square after the announcement of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's resignation, Feb. 11, 2011. (Reuters)

Rebels hold a young man at gunpoint, who they accuse of being a loyalist to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, March 3, 2011. (Reuters)

A whirlpool near Oarai City, Ibaraki Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on March 11, 2011, the day a 9.0 magnitude quake struck the region, sparking a massive tsunami. (Reuters)

A wave approaches Miyako City from the Heigawa estuary in Iwate Prefecture, Japan, March 13, 2011. (Reuters)

A woman cries in the destroyed city of Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, northern Japan, March 13, 2011. (Reuters)

Tokyo residents were warned not to give babies tap water because of radiation leaking from a nuclear plant crippled in the earthquake and tsunami. Here a baby is checked for radiation in Fukushima City on March 24, 2011. (Reuters/Kyodo)

The moon rises over the Bronx in New York City March 19, 2011. The "Super Moon" arrived at its closest point to the Earth in 2011, a distance of 356,575 km) away. (Reuters)

A man is pulled across to safety on a rope during a rescue operation in Govindghat in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand as damaged buildings and the Alaknanda river are seen in the background. Flash floods and landslides unleashed by early monsoon rains have killed at least 560 people in Uttarakhand and left tens of thousands missing, officials said.

An illustration shows a projection of binary code on a man holding a laptop computer in an office in Warsaw, Poland.

A police officer walks past a graffiti during a police operation in the Nova Holanda slum, part of the Complexo da Mare, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

A student is hit by a jet of water sprayed by riot police during a protest against the government to demand changes in the public state education system, in Santiago, Chile.

An atmospheric phenomenon known as a "sun dog" is seen in La Paz, El Salvador, June 26, 2013. The rare halo around the sun is caused by the refraction of sunlight by small ice crystal in the atmosphere.

Prince William and his wife, Catherine, leave the 1902 State Landau carriage as they arrive at Buckingham Palace after their wedding, London, England, April 29, 2011. (Reuters)

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, along with with members of the national security team, receive an update on the covert mission against al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden in White House, May 1, 2011. (Pete Souza)

Women sit in Kugulu Park where dozens of Turkish youths continue their protest, in Ankara. Daily life is partly back to normal in Istanbul and the Turkish capital, after nearly three weeks of protests that were sparked by a violent police crackdown on peaceful activists on May 31.

Indian sand artist Sudarshan Pattnaik gives finishing touches to a sand sculpture to mark the killing of Osama bin Laden, in Orissa, India, May 2, 2011. (AP)

Lightning flashes around the ash plume at the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle volcano chain in Chile. The volcano was dormant for decades before it erupted in June, 2011. (Reuters)

During 2011, residents of Athens, Greece, took to the streets dozens of times to protest austerity measures being considered by the government to prop up the country's failing economy. Pictured is a demonstrator detained by riot police, June 29, 2011. (Re

Royal Airforce Red Arrows perform prior to the British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone circuit, Silverstone, England.

Spectators watch space shuttle Atlantis STS-135 lift off at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, July 8, 2011. The 12-day mission to the International Space Station was the last mission in the Space Shuttle program. (Reuters)

The space shuttle Atlantis STS-135 as it lifts off from launch pad 39A, Florida, July 8, 2011. (Reuters)

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves the High Court in London, England, July 13, 2011. (Reuters)

News Corp Chief Executive and Chairman Rupert Murdoch holds a copy of T"he Times" newspaper as he leaves his home in London, England, July 20, 2011. (Reuters)

On July 24, 2011, the first day that gay couples were allowed to legally marry in New York state, John Feinblatt (R) and Jonathan Mintz (L) celebrate their marriage with their daughters. Mayor Michael Bloomberg officiated the wedding. (Reuters)

The arm of Minhaj Gedi Farah, a seven-month-old child, is held by his mother in a field hospital of the International Rescue Committee in Dadaab, Kenya, July 26, 2011. (AP)

As drought grips the Horn of Africa, an aid worker films the rotting carcass of a cow with in iPad near the Kenya-Somalia border, July 23, 2011. (Reuters)

An man carries his malnourished child through the corridors inside Banadir hospital in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, Aug. 9, 2011. (Reuters)

A shop is set on fire as rioters gather in Croydon, south London, England, Aug. 8, 2011. Protests in London broke out against planned public spending cuts by the government. (AP)

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann receives styling during a commercial break during the Republican presidential debate in Ames, Iowa, August 11, 2011. (Reuters)

This NASA satellite image shows Hurricane Irene moving over the U.S. east coast in the Atlantic Ocean, August 27, 2011. (Reuters / NASA-NOAA)

Robert Peraza pauses at his son's name at the North Pool of the 9/11 Memorial during tenth anniversary ceremonies at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, September 11, 2011. (Reuters)

The "Tribute in Lights" is illuminated next to One World Trade Center. marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, New York, Sept. 11, 2011. (Reuters)

A man sets himself on fire outside a bank branch in Thessaloniki, Greece, September 16, 2011. (Reuters)

Anti-Gadhafi fighters fire a multiple rocket launcher near Sirte, one of his last remaining strongholds, September 24, 2011. (Reuters)

Libya's longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed on October 20, 2011, sparking celebrations. (Reuters)

The Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew is shown in this undated handout photo provided by the City of Prescott in Prescott, Arizona July 1, 2013. The elite team of 19 firemen lost their lives battling the fast-moving fire June  30, 2013.

Fans leave condolence notes to pay tribute to Apple founder and former CEO Steve Jobs at an Apple retail store in Hong Kong, Oct. 7, 2011. (AP)

Iranian students form a human chain around the Uranium Conversion facility to show their support for Iran's nuclear program in Isfahan, Iran, November 15, 2011. (Reuters)

A University of California Davis police officer pepper sprays students during "Occupy UCD" demonstration in Davis, California, November 18, 2011. (Reuters)

Aung San Suu Kyi and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speak after meeting at Suu Kyi's residence in Rangoon, Burma, December 2, 2011. (Reuters)

A soldier from the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division carries a mattress while preparing to depart from Iraq at Camp Adder, Iraq, December 17, 2011. (Reuters)

Smoke rises from factories over central Pyongyang, North Korea, Dec. 9, 2011. (AP)

North Koreans mourn the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, North Korean, December 19, 2011. (Reuters / Kyodo)