Terrorism: The U.S. government announced that it had prevented an
al-Qaida attempt to construct and detonate a
radiological weapon (sometimes called a "
dirty bomb") in the United States.
Kashmir crisis:
Pakistan and India appear to have stepped down their rhetoric over the
Kashmir crisis, reducing the threat of
nuclear war in the subcontinent slightly.
Technology - The first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans is carried out by
Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom.
A new terrorist organisation,
Al Qanoon, claimed responsibility for an earlier suicide bomb attack aimed at the US consulate in
Karachi in
Pakistan. 11 people were killed in the bomb attack, and approximately 45 injured. The US has subsequently closed all diplomatic missions in Pakistan.
Astrophysics – An
asteroid (
2002 MN), the size of a
soccer field, passed the
Earth at a distance of about 120,000 km. It was the second closest asteroid approach to Earth in recorded history. The asteroid was first observed three days after its close approach, on June 17, 2002.[2]