WHAT HAPPENED IN 1997.
Look what happened the 1997.

Comet Hale–Bopp: Observers in China, Mongolia and eastern Siberia are treated to a rare double feature as an eclipse permits Hale-Bopp to be seen during the day. (9. March 1997)

India's Missionaries of Charity chooses Sister Nirmala to succeed Mother Teresa as its leader. (13. March 1997)

The Phoenix lights are seen over Phoenix, Arizona by hundreds of people, and by millions on television. (13. March 1997)

The tail of a Russian Antonov An-24 charter plane broke off while en route to Turkey causing the plane to crash and killing all 50 people on board and leading to the grounding of all An-24s. (18. March 1997)

Tara Lipinski, age 14 years and 10 months, becomes the youngest champion women's World Figure Skating Champion. (22. March 1997)

The Comet Hale-Bopp has its closest approach to Earth. (22. March 1997)

Thirty-nine bodies are found in the Heaven's Gate cult suicides. (26. March 1997)

Comet Hale-Bopp is seen passing over perihelion. (1. April 1997)

The Thalit massacre begins in Algeria; all but 1 of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas. (3. April 1997)

Tiger Woods becomes the youngest golfer to win the Masters Tournament. (13. April 1997)

The Red River Flood of 1997 overwhelms the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Fire breaks out and spreads in downtown Grand Forks, but high water levels hamper efforts to reach the fire, leading to the destruction of 11 buildings. (19. April 1997)

Haouch Khemisti massacre in Algeria – 93 villagers killed. (22. April 1997)

The Japanese embassy hostage crisis ends in Lima, Peru. (22. April 1997)

Omaria massacre in Algeria: 42 villagers are killed. (23. April 1997)

The Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 enters into force, outlawing the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons by its signatories. (29. April 1997)

The Bank of England is given independence from political control, the most significant change in the bank's 300-year history. (6. May 1997)

A China Southern Airlines Boeing 737 crashes on approach into Bao'an International Airport, killing 35 people. (8. May 1997)

A 7.3 Mw earthquake strikes Iran's Khorasan Province, killing 1,567, injuring over 2,300, leaving 50,000 homeless, and damaging or destroying over 15,000 homes. (10. May 1997)

The Maeslantkering, a storm surge barrier in the Netherlands that is one of the world's largest moving structures, is opened by Queen Beatrix. (10. May 1997)

Deep Blue, a chess-playing supercomputer, defeats Garry Kasparov in the last game of the rematch, becoming the first computer to beat a world-champion chess player in a classic match format. (11. May 1997)