x
Skip Navigation
Breaking News
More () »
Year In Review

2020: A year in photos

A photograph is known to be worth a thousand words, so here’s a look back at the photos that shaped 2020.

More Videos

Next up in 5

Example video title will go here for this video

WASHINGTON — The year 2020 has been nothing short of unprecedented.

A global pandemic upended everyday life, the summer Olympics, professional and collegiate sports seasons, employment, a presidential election, and so much more. More than 72 million people have tested positive for the virus worldwide and 16 million have been killed. In the United States alone, more than 16 million contracted the virus by mid-December with another 1 million being infected every week. At least 300,000 Americans have died from it.

There were record-setting wildfires, hurricanes and tropical storms.

There was turmoil over police brutality in the United States after the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others. It caused protests to erupt across the country and the world to demand change.

Prominent figures like NBA legend Kobe Bryant, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek and "Black Panther" actor Chadwick Boseman died this year.

RELATED: Entertainers we lost in 2020

RELATED: Sports figures we lost in 2020

President Donald Trump was impeached, but acquitted at the beginning of 2020. As the year closed, he lost the presidential race to Joe Biden. The former vice president was last candidate standing in a record field that saw more than 25 Democrats run for the nomination including Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and surprise newcomer Pete Buttigieg.

These are just a few highlights of the events that took place throughout this year.

A photograph is known to be worth a thousand words, so here’s a look back at the photos that shaped 2020.

January 2020

Credit: AP
Debris is seen from a plane crash on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2019. A Ukrainian airplane carrying at least 170 people crashed on Wednesday shortly after takeoff from Tehran’s main airport, killing all onboard, state TV reported. (AP Photos/Mohammad Nasiri)
Credit: AP
Clerk of the House Cheryl Johnson carries the articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump to the Senate, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Credit: AP
Democratic presidential candidates, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2020, during a primary debate in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Credit: AP
United States' Cori "Coco" Gauff reacts during her first round singles match against compatriot Venus Williams at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Credit: Futura Press
Firefighters search for victims near houses destroyed by a landslide after heavy rains in Barreiro, Minas Gerias state, Brazil, Saturday, Jan.25, 2020.
Credit: AP
A bushfire burns in Bodalla, New South Wales, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020. Wildfires destroyed more than 3,000 homes and razed more than 10.6 million hectares since September. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Credit: AP
A fan of the late Kobe Bryant mourns near Staples Center Monday, Jan. 27, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

February 2020

Credit: AP
Shakira and Jennifer Lopez perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 54 football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Feb. 2, 2020, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Credit: AP
Workers arrange beds in a convention center that has been converted into a temporary hospital in Wuhan in central China's Hubei Province, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020. (Chinatopix via AP)
Credit: AP
A small boat navigates near a cruise ship Diamond Princess anchoring off the Yokohama Port Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020, in Yokohama, near Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020. (Doug Mills/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump holds up a newspaper with the headline that reads "ACQUITTED" at the 68th annual National Prayer Breakfast, at the Washington Hilton, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)
Credit: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
The cast and crew of "Parasite" accept the award for best picture at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Credit: AP
Siba, the standard poodle, competes for Best in Show during 144th Westminster Kennel Club dog show, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Credit: AP
Vanessa Bryant speaks during a celebration of life for her husband Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna Monday, Feb. 24, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

March 2020

Credit: AP
Travelers wear protective mask as they walk through in terminal 5 at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Sunday, March 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Credit: AP
People turn their backs on Democratic presidential candidate and former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg as he speaks at Brown Chapel AME church, Sunday, March 1, 2020, in Selma , Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)
Credit: AP
A man looks over buildings destroyed by storms Tuesday, March 3, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. Tornadoes ripped across Tennessee early Tuesday, shredding buildings and killing multiple people. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Credit: AP
A woman walks in St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy, Monday, March 9, 2020. (Anteo Marinoni/LaPresse via AP)
Credit: AP
A protester at left, is held back by Biden adviser Symone Sanders and Jill Biden as former Vice President Joe Biden stands, at right, during a primary election night rally, Tuesday, March 3, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Credit: AP
Parisians, in spirit at least, applaud the caregivers and police for their work, as the coronavirus ravaged communities across the country, in Paris, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)
Credit: AP
The Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort docks in New York, Monday, March 30, 2020.

April 2020

Credit: AP
In this handout photo provided by the National Orchestra of France on Wednesday April 1, 2020, musicians from the National Orchestra of France are shown in the screenshot as a patchwork, each performing parts of "Bolero" alone in lockdown. (National Orchestra of France via AP)
Credit: AP
A person jogs past a sign encouraging social distancing Thursday, April 2, 2020, in St. Louis.
Credit: AP
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' church conference Saturday, April 4, 2020. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints via AP)
Credit: AP
In this Tuesday, April 7, 2020 photo provided by the U.S. Air National Guard, airmen from the 146th Airlift Wing of the California Air National Guard in Oxnard, Calif., deliver 200 ventilators to the New York Air National Guard's 105th Airlift wing at Stewart Air National Guard Base, adjacent to Newburgh, N.Y. (Senior Airman Jonathan Lane/U.S. Air National Guard via AP)
Credit: AP
Worshipers pray at their own vehicles as they attend an outside drive-in Easter service at the Living Word church due to the coronavirus Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Mesa, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Credit: AP
The class of 2020 toss their caps into the air as the Thunderbirds fly over Saturday, April 18, 2020, at the conclusion of the Air Force Academy graduation in Colorado Springs, Colo. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette via AP)
Credit: AP
Tim Baldwin, left, and Bill Merkle work on making protective masks in Warren, Mich., Thursday, April 23, 2020. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Credit: AP
In this April 23, 2020, photo provided by the Washington State Department of Agriculture, a researcher holds a dead Asian giant hornet in Blaine, Wash. (Karla Salp/Washington State Department of Agriculture via AP)

May 2020

Credit: AP
The Blue Angels and Thunderbirds fly over Washington, in a "salute to frontline COVID-19 responders," as seen from the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial that depicts the flag raising over Iwo Jima, in Arlington, Va., Saturday, May 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Credit: AP
A young Nepalese girl is sprayed with disinfectants as she arrives to get free food distributed by social workers during lockdown to control the spread of the new coronavirus in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sunday, May 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)
Credit: AP
People react during a rally to protest the shooting of an unarmed black man, Friday, May 8, 2020, in Brunswick Ga.
Credit: AP
This image released by Guitar Monkey Entertainment shows Keith Urban, center, performing for first responders at the Stardust Drive In Theatre in Watertown, Tenn. on Thursday, May 14, 2020.
Credit: AP
U.S. Air Force Space Command, Chief Master Sgt. Roger Towberman, center, holds the flag as President Donald Trump watches during the presentation of the Space Force Flag in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Credit: AP
Water floods the Midland Area Farmers Market and the bridge along the Tittabawassee River in Midland, Mich. on Tuesday, May 19, 2020. (Kaytie Boomer/MLive.com/The Bay City Times via AP)
Credit: AP
A protester gestures in front of the burning 3rd Precinct building of the Minneapolis Police Department on Thursday, May 28, 2020, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Credit: AP
People hold signs as they march during a protest over the death of George Floyd in Chicago, Saturday, May 30, 2020.
Credit: AP
Police move toward demonstrators, Sunday, May 31, 2020, in Minneapolis. Protests continued following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

June 2020

Credit: AP
President Donald Trump holds a Bible as he visits outside St. John's Church across Lafayette Park from the White House Monday, June 1, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Credit: AP
Demonstrators hold up signs Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in the Venice Beach area of Los Angeles during a protest over the death of George Floyd. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Credit: AP
People wear masks as they wait in line to vote at a voting center during primary voting in Washington, Tuesday, June 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Credit: AP
Pallbearers bring the coffin into The Fountain of Praise church in Houston for the funeral for George Floyd on Tuesday, June 9, 2020. (Godofredo A. Vásquez/Houston Chronicle via AP, Pool)
Credit: AP
Law enforcement officials applaud after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on police reform, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Tuesday, June 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Credit: AP
Driver Bubba Wallace takes a selfie with himself and other drivers that pushed his car to the front in the pits of the Talladega Superspeedway prior to the start of the NASCAR Cup Series auto race.
Credit: AP
Musicians rehearse at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, Spain, Monday, June 22, 2020. (AP)
Credit: AP
A rainbow light display illuminates the night sky in the West Village near The Stonewall Inn, birthplace of the gay rights movement, Saturday, June 27, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

July 2020

Credit: AP
Audrey Strauss, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, speaks during a news conference to announce charges against Ghislaine Maxwell for her alleged role in the sexual exploitation and abuse of multiple minor girls by Jeffrey Epstein, Thursday, July 2, 2020, in New York. (AP)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump watches as planes perform fly-overs of the Mount Rushmore National Monument Friday, July 3, 2020, in Keystone, S.D. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Credit: AP
With most of Southern California's coastline is shut down for the Fourth of July holiday due to a spike in coronavirus cases, the beach in San Clemente, Calif., remains open as crowds, socially distanced, fill the sand Saturday, July 4, 2020. (Mark Rightmire/The Orange County Register via AP)
Credit: AP
In this Saturday, July 11, 2020, file photo, guests wear masks as required to attend the official reopening day of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via AP)
Credit: AP
Captain Sir Thomas Moore receives his knighthood from Britain's Queen Elizabeth, during a ceremony at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, Friday, July 17, 2020.
Credit: AP
Kanye West makes his first presidential campaign appearance, Sunday, July 19, 2020 in North Charleston, S.C. (Lauren Petracca Ipetracca/The Post And Courier via AP)
Credit: AP
San Francisco Giants' manager Gabe Kapler kneels during the national anthem prior to an exhibition baseball game against the Oakland Athletics, Monday, July 20, 2020, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Credit: AP
Mourners stand outside Ebenezer Baptist Church during the funeral for Rep. John Lewis at , Thursday, July 30, 2020, in Atlanta. Lewis, who carried the struggle against racial discrimination from Southern battlegrounds of the 1960s to the halls of Congress, died Friday, July 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

August 2020

Credit: AP
Paul Adams, 7, waits at the bus stop for the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, in Dallas, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Credit: AP
A drone picture shows the scene of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020.
Credit: AP
Thousands of bikers rode through the streets for the opening day of the 80th annual Sturgis Motorcycle rally Friday, Aug. 7, 2020, in Sturgis, S.D. (AP Photo/Stephen Groves)
Credit: AP Photo/Nic Coury
Fire crews work to save a house from the River fire near Salinas, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 16, 2020.
Credit: AP
A team of scientists and local rangers prepare to extract eggs from one of the two remaining female northern white rhinos at an enclosure at Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020. (Rio the Photographer/Ol Pejeta via AP)
Credit: AP
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, and his wife Jill Biden, watch fireworks with Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and her husband Doug Emhoff, during the Democratic National Convention, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Credit: AP
Dustin Amos walks near debris at a gas station on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2020, in Lake Charles, La., after Hurricane Laura moved through the state. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Credit: Amy Harris/Invision/AP
Protesters participate in the Good Trouble Tuesday march for Breonna Taylor, on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Louisville, Ky.(Amy Harris/Invision/AP File)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive on the South Lawn of the White House on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2020, in Washington. (Doug Mills/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

September 2020

Credit: AP
President Donald Trump talks to business owners Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020, as he tours an area damaged during demonstrations after a police officer shot Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Credit: AP
A protester holds a flag during a Black Lives Matter march Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Credit: AP
People stop at Fort Point to take morning pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge covered in smoke from wildfires Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House on Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Credit: AP
People gather at the Supreme Court on the morning after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Credit: Invision/AP
Host Jimmy Kimmel speaks on stage during the 72nd Emmy Awards telecast on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2020. (Invision for the Television Academy/AP)
Credit: AP
Activists from the COVID Memorial Project mark the deaths of 200,000 lives lost in the U.S. to COVID-19 after placing thousands of small American flags on the grounds of the National Mall in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Credit: AP
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg lies in state in Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Friday, Sept. 25, 2020. (Shawn Thew/Pool via AP)
Credit: AP
President Donald Trump walks along the Colonnade with Judge Amy Coney Barrett to a news conference to announce Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court, in the Rose Garden at the White House, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

October 2020

Credit: AP
President Donald Trump boards Marine One as he leaves the White House to go to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after he tested positive for COVID-19, Friday, Oct. 2, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Credit: AP
Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Vice President Mike Pence wave before the vice presidential debate Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020, at Kingsbury Hall on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Credit: AP
Protesters and police line up Friday, Oct. 9, 2020, in Wauwatosa, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Credit: AP
The Los Angeles Lakers players celebrate after the Lakers defeated the Miami Heat 103-88 in Game 6 of basketball's NBA Finals Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Credit: AP
Early voters line up to cast their ballots at the South Regional Library polling location in Durham, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Credit: AP
"I Voted Today" stickers cover a protective plastic cover on the headstone of Susan B. Anthony in Mt. Hope Cemetery, Sunday Oct. 25, 2020. in Rochester, N.Y.
Credit: AP
Police officers move in formation during a protest in response to the police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr., Monday, Oct. 26, 2020, in Philadelphia. (Jessica Griffin/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)
Credit: AP
Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. administers the Judicial Oath to Judge Amy Coney Barrett in the East Conference Room of the Supreme Court Building, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, in Washington as Judge Barrett's husband, Jesse M. Barrett, holds the Bible. (Fred Schilling/Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States via AP)
Credit: AP
Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 to win the baseball World Series in Game 6 Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

November 2020

Credit: AP
Voters wearing masks fill out their ballots inside a polling place at Indian Creek Fire Station #4 in Miami Beach, Fla., on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Credit: AP
Election challengers yell as they look through the windows of the central counting board as police were helping to keep additional challengers from entering due to overcrowding, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
Credit: AP
President-elect Joe Biden is greeted on stage by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris before he gives his victory speech in Wilmington Sat. Nov. 7, 2020
Credit: AP
Lemay Acosta pulls his daughter Layla, 2, and dog Buster on a boat as they tour his flooded neighborhood in Plantation, Fla., on Monday, Nov. 9, 2020, a day after Tropical Storm Eta made landfall in the Florida Keys and flooded parts of South Florida. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)
Credit: AP
Tiger Woods helps Masters' champion Dustin Johnson with his green jacket after his victory at the Masters golf tournament Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Credit: AP
North Dakota National Guard soldiers Spc. Samantha Crabbe, left, and Master Sgt. Melanie Vincent administer COVID-19 tests, Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020, inside the Bismarck Events Center in Bismarck, N.D. (Tom Stromme/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)
Credit: Ravensbeard Wildlife Center
A Saw-whet owl that was found in the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree as it was being transported in November 2020.
Credit: AP
Corn, left, and Cob, two turkeys from Iowa who will attend the annual presidential pardon, hang out inside their hotel room at the Willard Hotel, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

December 2020

Credit: U.S. National Science Foundation
A still image from a video showing the collapse of the radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Dec. 1, 2020.
Credit: AP
Project members celebrate as the success of trajectory control maneuver to withdraw from the Earth's sphere is confirmed, at a control room of JAXA's Sagamihara Campus in Sagamihara, near Tokyo Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020.
Credit: AP
90 year old Margaret Keenan, the first patient in the UK to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, administered by nurse May Parsons at University Hospital, Coventry, England, Tuesday Dec. 8, 2020. (Jacob King/Pool via AP)
Credit: AP
A person wearing a face mask to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walks past holiday decorations at City Hall, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, in Philadelphia. Virtually every state is reporting surges in cases and deaths. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Before You Leave, Check This Out