:: wikimiki.org ::

2008

2008

2008 (MMVIII) is a Leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. It corresponds to the years 5768 and 5769 in the Hebrew Calendar.

Predicted events

- FIFA will announce the host country to celebrate the 2014 FIFA World Cup
- The FIA will introduce new regulations for the Formula 1 in order to reduce the costs and improve racing.

January-June

- January 15 - NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes the first of three flybys of Mercury.
- January 20 - Scheduled parliamentary elections in the Faroe Islands
- February 1 - Sweden plans to cease analog television broadcasts
- February 3 - Super Bowl XLII to be held in Glendale, Arizona.
- February 7 - Annular solar eclipse
- March 23 - Easter Sunday. Easter has not fallen this early since 1913.
- March - 2008 presidential election to be held in the Republic of China (Taiwan).
- April 5 to April 7 - NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four to be held at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
- May 16 - Presidential election slated in the Dominican Republic.
- June 14 - Expo 2008 scheduled to begin in Zaragoza, Spain.
- June 28 - Schedule remodeling of White House
- June - UEFA Euro 2008 Championship tournament. Joint hosts Switzerland and Austria

July-December

- August 1 - Total solar eclipse: northern Canada, Siberia, Mongolia, northern China
- August 8 - 2008 Summer Olympics scheduled to begin in Beijing, China
- August - World Congress on Philosophy in Seoul, the capital of South Korea
- August 15 to August 20 - World Youth Day 2008 in Homebush, Sydney, Australia
- September 11 - Tentative topping-out of Freedom Tower at World Trade Center site
- October 6 - NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes the second of three flybys of Mercury.
- November 4 - Presidential election slated in the United States to elect the 44th President of the United States.
- November 26 - If still Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair will surpass Margaret Thatcher's length of time in office.
- Expected time for the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince film.

Unknown dates

- The United Nations is to review drug policies around the world.
- http://www.un.org/ga/president/57/pages/speeches/statement030408-Vienna-Narcotics.htm
- http://www.drug-policy.org/modules/countdown_2008
- Both Liverpool (England) and Stavanger (Norway) are European Capital of Culture
- The ECB is expected to issue a new series of euro banknotes, replacing the old series, and should include new security features along with the incorporation of Cyprus on the EU map.
- Tentative year for the completion of the Burj Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and the International Business Center in Seoul, South Korea
- Forecasted year of worldwide production decline in oil given by the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas
- Forecasted year of OPEC oil production exceeding non-OPEC oil production given by "The Peak Of World Oil Production And The Road To The Olduvai Gorge" by Richard C. Duncan
- The United Kingdom plans to begin 5-year process to cease analog television broadcasts region-by-region, starting with Border, Westcountry and HTV Wales.
- According to Paramount, this is the earliest possible year for a new Star Trek TV series.
- Boeing's 787 aircraft will enter service.
- The Rugby League World Cup will be held in Australia.
- Australia plans to cease analogue television broadcasts.
- The Cosmopolitan Resort and Casino will be completed
- A Simpsons film is announced in this year.
- The 178-metre high Singapore Flyer is expected to be completed in the first quarter and could become the tallest observation wheel in the world.
- Peru will host the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
- The Land Before Time gets its theatrical re-release for its 20th anniversary with never-before-seen footage.
- A vaccine to wipe out the virus that causes cervical cancer is expected to be ready this year.
- Burger King will be opening in Kazakhstan, Finland & Russia.
- Singapore's [Changi Airport][http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_Changi_Airport link title] third terminal is due to be completed in this time frame.

Fictional Events

- In the children's book, The Kid Who Ran for President the character Judson Moon runs for President of the United States and wins.
- According to Capcom, the year "200X" in which the original Mega Man takes place is 2008.
- Twisted Metal 3, made in 1998 takes place in this year.
- In the computer game, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Russia attempts to reunite the Soviet Union and invades several Eastern European countries. The UN intervenes with Peace-Keeping Forces. Category:Years in the future ko:2008년 ja:2008年 simple:2008

Leap year starting on Tuesday

This is the calendar for any leap year starting on Tuesday (dominical letter FE), e.g. 2008. Previous year | Next year

Millennium	Century	Year
2nd Millennium:	19th century:	1828	1856	1884
2nd Millennium:	20th century:	1924	1952	1980
3rd Millennium:	21st century:	2008	2036	2064	2092
3rd Millennium:	22nd century:	2104	2132	2160	2188

Category:Tuesday Category:Weeks ko:화요일로 시작하는 윤년 th:ปีอธิกสุรทินที่วันแรกเป็นวันอังคาร

FIFA

right The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, universally known by its acronym FIFA, is the international governing body of football (soccer). Its headquarters are in Zürich, Switzerland and its current president is Sepp Blatter.

History

:Main article: History of FIFA The need for a single body to oversee the worldwide game became apparent at the beginning of the 20th century with the increasing popularity of international fixtures. The English Football Association had chaired many discussions on setting up an international body, but was perceived as making no progress. It fell to seven other European countries to band together to form this association. FIFA was founded in Paris on May 21, 1904 - the French name and acronym persist to this day, even in English-speaking countries. Its first president was Robert Guérin. FIFA presided over its first international competition in 1906, however it met with little approval or success. This, in combination with economic factors, led to the swift replacement of Guérin with Daniel Burley Woolfall from England, by now a member association. The next tournament staged, the football competition for the 1908 Olympics in London was more successful, despite the presence of professional footballers, contrary to the founding principles of FIFA. Membership of FIFA expanded beyond Europe with the application of South Africa in 1909, Argentina in 1912 and the United States in 1913. FIFA however floundered during World War I with many players sent off to war and the possibility of travel for international fixtures severely limited. Post-war, following the death of Woolfall, the organisation fell into the hands of Dutchman Carl Hirschmann. It was saved from extinction, but at the cost of the withdrawal of the Home Nations, who cited an unwillingness to participate in international competitions with their recent World War enemies.

The World Cup

:Main article: Football World CupJules Rimet became the third President of FIFA in 1921. He presided over another two successful Olympic competitions despite the absence of England and Scotland. The success of the competitions, combined with the rising profile of the game, allowed FIFA to seriously consider, for the first time, staging its own regular World Championship. Talks on the matter began in 1928, and the first World Cup took place in Uruguay in 1930 and was won by the home nation. Despite the reluctance of participation from European nations (due to the travel time required and the ongoing economic depression), the tournament was considered a success and plans were laid for the next World Cup in 1934, in Italy. Excluding a break for World War II, the World Cup continues to be held once every four years, with the most recent tournament in 2002 held in Japan and South Korea. The next World Cup will be held in Germany in 2006.

Other tournaments

Aside from the World Cup and Olympic competitions, FIFA organises World Championships for players at under-17 level and youth level. In addition to this, it has introduced the Confederations Cup, a competition for the champions from each confederation (plus the hosts and World Cup Winners), every two years; in the year before a World Cup, it serves as a dry run for that competition, with the World Cup host staging the tournament as a test of facilities. With the development of the women's game, FIFA introduced the Women's World Cup in 1991 and the Women's Under-20 World Championship in 2002. A U-17 women's championship will start in 2008. FIFA's only major club competition is the FIFA Club World Championship. It was slated as the natural progression of the European/South American Cup (which itself ran under a variety of names) to include clubs from all confederations. The tournament was not warmly received on its debut in 2000 and its 2002 edition was cancelled. The tournament, with a shorter revised format, is due to return in Japan in 2005. FIFA also presides over World Cups in modified forms of the game including beach football (the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup and futsal (the FIFA Futsal World Cup).

Laws of the game

The laws of football that govern the game are not solely the responsibility of FIFA; they are maintained by a body called the International Football Association Board (IFAB). FIFA has a 50% representation on its board (four representatives); the other four are provided by the football associations of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, in recognition of the British nations' unique contribution to the creation and history of the game.

Organisation

Northern Ireland Under the auspices of the President, FIFA is split into six confederations which oversee the game in the different continents and regions of the world. National federations must claim membership to both FIFA and the confederation in which their nation is geographically resident for their teams to qualify for entry to FIFA's competitions (with a few geographic exceptions listed below):
- AFC - Asian Football Confederation in Asia
- CAF - Confédération Africaine de Football in Africa
- CONMEBOL - Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol in South America
- CONCACAF - Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football in North America and Central America
- OFC - Oceania Football Confederation in Australia and Oceania
- UEFA - Union of European Football Associations in Europe. Nations straddling the traditional boundary between Europe and Asia have generally had their choice of confederation. As a result, nations including Russia and Turkey have chosen to become part of UEFA despite the bulk of their land area being in Asia. Israel, although lying entirely within Asia, joined UEFA in 1994, after decades of isolation by many of its Middle Eastern neighbors. Kazakhstan were the latest nation to make the move from AFC to UEFA, in 2002. Guyana and Suriname have always been CONCACAF members despite being South American countries. Australia have been given permission to join the AFC instead of the OFC from 2006 onwards. Australia have long lobbied for a change due to its national team's strength, which is disproportionate to the other Oceania teams. No team from the OFC is offered automatic qualification to the World Cup; instead the winner of their section must play a play-off against a CONMEBOL side, a hurdle at which Australia have traditionally fallen. Perhaps ironically, Australia successfully qualified for the by winning just such a playoff in a penalty shootout against Uruguay, just a few months after the clearance to move was granted. In total, FIFA recognises 207 national federations and their associated national teams; see the list of national football teams and their respective country codes. The FIFA World Rankings are updated monthly and rank each team based on their performance in international competitions, qualifiers, and friendly matches. There is also a world ranking for women's football, updated four times a year.

Recognitions and awards

FIFA awards, each year, the title of FIFA World Player of the Year to the most prestigious player of the year, as part of its annual awards ceremony with also recognises team and international football achievements. As part of its centennial celebrations in 2004, FIFA organised a "Match of the Century" between France and Brazil, the most successful national teams of the last decade. In addition, it commissioned arguably the most famous player ever, Pelé, to produce a list of the greatest players of all time. This list, the FIFA 100, included 50 players who were still actively playing at the time of publication (one of whom was female), and 75 retired players (including himself, but not including deceased players, with one woman). The list was originally planned to be just 100 players long but Pelé is understood to have found it too hard to choose just 100.

Commercial activities

FIFA announced in April 2004 that it is expecting to earn $144 million profit on $1.64 billion in revenue between 2003 and 2006. FIFA has licensed its name and copyrighted content to computer game designer EA Sports to provide a number of footballs simulation games for PC and various game consoles. A new instalment in this FIFA series of games is introduced each year, and additional versions are released with World Cup branding to coincide with these tournaments. There was also a one-off "urban football" game (FIFA Street).

External link

- [http://www.fifa.com/ FIFA web site] FIFA zh-min-nan:FIFA ko:국제축구연맹 ja:国際サッカー連盟

FIFA World Cup

The Football World Cup (official name: FIFA World Cup) is the most important competition in international football (soccer). Organised by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's governing body, the World Cup finals tournament is the most widely-viewed and followed sporting event in the world exceeding even the Olympic Games. The finals are held every four years, but the World Cup competition itself takes place over a three-year period. Teams representing 197 (for the 2006 competition) national football associations compete in regional qualifying tournaments for a place in the finals. The finals tournament now involves 32 national teams (increased in 1998 from the previous 24) competing over a 4-week period in a previously nominated host nation. A recent innovation has allowed more than one country to act as joint hosts. In the past, the host country and current world champions automatically qualified for the next World Cup, but from 2006 on only the hosts will get an automatic berth. In all 207 teams have competed to qualify to the World Cup, but only eleven have made it to the final match, and of those eleven only seven teams have actually won. As a consequence of this exclusiveness, the World Cup inspires a great deal of enthusiasm and national pride amongst the tournament's fans. Six of the seven teams that have won a world championship did it at least once while playing in their own homeland, and nations actively lobby to be selected as World Cup hosts. The only previous winner not to have won on home ground is the otherwise extremely successful Brazil, who famously lost the deciding match when they hosted the 1950 tournament. Even traditionally "weaker" nations have been successful during their spell as hosts, most recently South Korea, who made it to the semifinals while hosting the 2002 World Cup. Both England () and France () won their only World Cups whilst playing as host nations. The next football World Cup will be held in Germany in 2006.

History

The World Cup was not the first international football competition. Amateur football became a part of the official Olympic programme for the first time in 1908 (See: Football at the 1908 Summer Olympics). In Turin in 1909, in what is sometimes described as The First World Cup, Sir Thomas Lipton organised a football tournament to contest the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy. Italy, Germany and Switzerland sent their most prestigious professional club sides to the competition but The Football Association of England refused to be associated with it and declined the offer to send a team. Not wishing to have Britain unrepresented in the competition, Lipton invited West Auckland FC, an amateur side from the north-east of England and mostly made up of coal miners, to take part. West Auckland won the tournament and returned to Italy in 1911 to defend their title. In the second competition West Auckland beat Juventus 6-1 in the final and were awarded the trophy outright. In the Olympic games of 1924 and 1928, Uruguay won the football gold medal, in what was considered a proto-world cup. Unofficially, FIFA recognized Uruguay as World Champion. These victories led the FIFA to choose Uruguay as the home of the first FIFA sanctioned World Cup. In 1927, the 1932 Summer Olympics were awarded to Los Angeles in the United States where the popularity of American football far surpassed that of the international game of association football (by then becoming known as soccer in the US). The general lack of interest from the Americans and a disagreement between FIFA and the IOC over the status of amateur players led to football being dropped from the official Olympic programme for the 1932 games. As a consequence, Jules Rimet, who had become president of FIFA in 1921, set about organising the inaugural World Cup tournament, to take place in Uruguay in 1930. The national associations of selected nations were invited to send a team but the choice of Uruguay as a venue for the competition meant a long and costly trip across the Atlantic for European sides and up until two months before the start of the competition no team from that continent had promised to send a team. Rimet eventually persuaded teams representing Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia to make the trip. In total, thirteen nations took part - seven from South America, four from Europe and two from North America. The first ever goal was scored by Lucien Laurent who scored for France against Mexico (match ended 4-1 for France). Uruguay beat Argentina 4-2 in front of crowd of 93,000 in Montevideo to become the first nation to win the the World Cup trophy. In 1946 the World Cup trophy was renamed the Jules Rimet trophy in his honour. In 1970, Brazil's third victory in the tournament entitled them to keep the original trophy and a new trophy was then designed. Argentina, Germany (both times as West Germany) and Brazil have all won the second trophy twice, but the current trophy will not be retired until the name plaque has been entirely filled with the names of winning nations (this will not happen until 2038). Brazil, by a clear margin, is the most successful World Cup team overall, having won the tournament five times in total and finished as runners-up twice. Brazil is also the only nation to have participated in every World Cup so far. Germany, three-time winners (as West Germany) and four-time runners-up (three times as West Germany), are next, while Italy have also won three trophies and two-time runners-up. Argentina and Uruguay are both two-time World Champions. England () and France () have both won the title once. The two countries with the most appearances in the World Cup final match are Germany and Brazil each with 7 appearances in the final match (Brazil won 5 while Germany won 3). To date, the final of the World Cup has only been contested by European and/or South American teams. The greatest success of a North American team was reaching the semi-finals, achieved by the USA at the . The first Asian teams to make it to the semi-finals was at the , when South Korea and Turkey both did this (Turkey is however a member of the UEFA, and thus sometimes considered a European country when it comes to football). Two African teams have reached the quarter-finals: Cameroon at the and Senegal in 2002. The only visits of teams from Oceania in the tournament ended in the first round: Australia at the and New Zealand in the but Australia has now qualified for the 2006 Cup after winning through a play-off with the 5th placed South American side, Uruguay, in November 2005. The next World Cup finals will be held in Germany, in 2006. As indicated below, the 2010 World Cup will be held in South Africa. The 2014 World Cup, which FIFA has earmarked for South America, is expected to be held in Brazil as CONMEBOL, the South American Football Confederation, has already backed it as their choice. For the 2018 finals, Netherlands and Belgium have expressed interest in holding the finals jointly, and England have also expressed a possibility of bidding for the prestigious event.

Début of National Teams

Each successive World Cup has welcomed at least one team qualifying for the first time as detailed below. Brazil holds the honour of being present at each of the World Cups, and in 2005 became the first ever reigning champions to go through qualifying for the World Cup.
- 1930 - ⁽¹⁾
- 1934 - ⁽²⁾⁽⁴⁾
- 1938 -
- 1950 -
- 1954 - ⁽⁴⁾
- 1958 - ⁽³⁾
- 1962 -
- 1966 -
- 1970 -
- 1974 - ⁽⁴⁾
- 1978 -
- 1982 -
- 1986 -
- 1990 -
- 1994 - ⁽⁴⁾⁽³⁾
- 1998 - ⁽¹⁾⁽¹⁾
- 2002 - ⁽¹⁾
- 2006 - ⁽²⁾⁽³⁾

¹ After Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia FYR and Slovenia seceded from Yugoslavia in 1992, Serbia and Montenegro formed the FR Yugoslavia. They competed as Yugoslavia until 2003 when they became Serbia and Montenegro and qualified for the 2006 finals under the new name, while Croatia and Slovenia had previously done the same for the .

² Czechoslovakia was divided into successor states Slovakia and the Czech Republic in 1991. The true debut of both teams was in 1934; however, after the Velvet Divorce they are now considered separate political entities and as such are entitled to a second debut.

³ Russia and Ukraine had qualified originally in the 1958 World Cup united with the other Soviet Republics as the USSR. However after the dissolution of the USSR in 1991 each team is considered to be qualifying for the first time.

⁴ The first appereance of Germany was in 1934. After 1945, Germany was divided into East Germany and West Germany. The 1994 World Cup was the first time a Unified Germany competed in the World Cup since before World War II. Officially, FIFA attributes the three World Cup victories of West Germany to Germany (body Deutscher Fußball Bund).

Teams' Participations

¹Includes one appearance as Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, in 1998.

²Now Democratic Republic of the Congo.

³Now Indonesia.

Football World Cup tournaments

Note: FIFA has not yet specified which continent will host the World Cup in 2018 and 2022.

¹ There was no official World Cup Third Place match in 1930; USA and Yugoslavia lost in the semi-finals.'

² There was no official World Cup final match in 1950. The tournament was decided in a final group contested by four teams. However, Uruguay's 2-1 defeat of Brazil was the decisive match which put them ahead on points and ensured that they finished top of the group as world champions.
Final group standings: 1st: Uruguay; 2nd: Brazil; 3rd: Sweden; 4th: Spain.

World Cup winners ranking

South America holds the most titles at nine, followed by Europe at eight. # Brazil - 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002 (5 titles) # Germany - 1954, 1974, 1990 (3 titles as West Germany)
Italy - 1934, 1938, 1982 (3 titles) # Argentina - 1978, 1986 (2 titles)
Uruguay - 1930, 1950 (2 titles) # England - 1966 (1 title)
France - 1998 (1 title)
- You can have access to a [http://worldcuphistory.free.fr/trophyroom.htm full view of World Cup teams ranking] according to their performance during the 17 World Cups.

World Cup Awards

At the end of each World Cup final tournament, several awards are attributed to the players and teams which have distinguished from the rest, in different aspects of the game. There are currently six awards:
- the Golden Boot for top goal scorer;
- the Golden Ball for best player;
- the Yashin Award for best goalkeeper;
- the FIFA Fair Play Award for the team with the best record of fair play;
- the Most Entertaining Team award.
- the Gillete Best Young Player award.

Golden Boot - Top Goalscorers

The Golden Boot (or Golden Shoe) is awarded to the top goalscorer of the World Cup final tournament. The award was introduced at the 1982 World Cup for the first time.

Adidas Golden Ball

The Golden Ball is an award attributed to the most outstanding player of the World Cup final tournament. FIFA announces a shortlist of ten nominees which is then voted by media representatives. The most voted player is elected to win the Golden Ball, the second most voted player wins the Silver Ball and the third most voted player wins the Bronze Ball. Its awarding is shrouded by allegations of being influenced by diplomacy: the three awards have always been won by players from three different nations.

Yashin Award

The Yashin Award is attributed to the best goalkeeper of the World Cup final tournament. The award is named in honour of the late and legendary Russian goalkeeper, Lev Yashin.

FIFA Fair Play Award

The FIFA Fair Play Award is given to the team with the best record of fair play during the World Cup final tournament. Only teams that qualified for the second round are considered.

Most Entertaining Team

The Most Entertaining Team award is attributed to the team that has entertained the public the most, during the World Cup final tournament. It is always decided through public participation in a poll.

Gillete Best Young Player Award

The Gillete Best Young Player award is attributed to the best player in the tournament under 21 years of age at the start of the calendar year for each World Cup. For the this means that the player has to have born on or after 01 January 1985. It will be awarded for the first time at the in Germany. The election will take place on the FIFA's official world cup site.

Overall Top Goalscorers

14 Goals
- Gerd Müller 13 Goals
- Just Fontaine 12 Goals
- Pelé
- Ronaldo 11 Goals
- Jürgen Klinsmann
- Sándor Kocsis 10 Goals
- Gabriel Batistuta
- Teófilo Cubillas
- Gary Lineker
- Grzegorz Lato
- Helmut Rahn 9 Goals
- Ademir⁽⁴⁾
- Roberto Baggio
- Eusébio
- Jairzinho
- Paolo Rossi
- Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
- Uwe Seeler
- Vavá
- Christian Vieri 8 Goals
- Leônidas
- Diego Maradona
- Omar Oscar Míguez
- Guillermo Stábile
- Rivaldo
- Rudi Völler
-

⁴ There was controversy regarding how many goals Brazilian Ademir Menezes scored in 1950, because of incomplete data concerning the Final Round game Brazil vs. Spain (6:1). The first goal had been credited as an own goal by Spanish defender Parra, and the 5:0 goal had been credited to Jair. However, recently FIFA credited Ademir with both these goals; thus he's the 1950 World Cup top scorer with 9 goals.

Fastest Goals

External links

- [http://www.fifa.com/en/index.html FIFA organization official site]
- [http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/ FIFA World Cup Germany 2006 Official Site]
- [http://www.fifa.com/infoplus/IP-201_02E_WC-origin.pdf FIFA Official Ranking of all Participants at Finals 1930-2002 (PDF)]
- [http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/pwc/index.html FIFA Match Results for all Stages 1930-2002]
- [http://www.world-cup-schedule.com Official World Cup Schedule Information]
- [http://www.worldcup-history.com WorldCup-History.com]
- [http://www.planetworldcup.com Planet World Cup with information on each men's World Cup finals]
- [http://www.2006-world-cup-draw.com Official World Cup Draw Information]
- [http://www.worldcuplatest.com 2006 World Cup news and statistics information]
- [http://odds.bestbetting.co.uk/football/world-cup/winner Bookmakers odds on 2006 World Cup]
- [http://www.world-cup-countries.com Official World Cup Qualified Countries]
- World Cup World Cup ko:축구 월드컵 ja:FIFAワールドカップ simple:FIFA World Cup th:ฟุตบอลโลก

Formula 1

:F1 redirects here. For other uses of the abbreviation, see F1 (disambiguation). Formula One, abbreviated to F1 and also known as Grand Prix racing, is the highest class of single-seat open-wheel formula auto racing. It consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix, held on purpose-built circuits or closed city streets, whose results determine two annual World Championships, one for drivers and one for constructors. The cars race at speeds often in excess of 300 km/h (185 mph) with powerplants that produce, as of 2005, 900 Bhp at 18000 rpm. Europe is Formula One's traditional centre and remains its leading market; however, Grands Prix have been held all over the world, and with new races in Bahrain, China, Malaysia and Turkey, its scope is continually expanding. Formula 1 cars are the most expensive race cars currently in production and the sport is the most expensive as well. As such, its economic impact is significant, and its financial and political battles are widely observed. In recent years, it has also become known for glamour. The sport is regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, whose president is Max Mosley, and is generally promoted and controlled by Bernie Ecclestone through a variety of corporate entities.

History

The Formula One series has its roots in the European Grand Prix motor racing (q.v. for pre-1947 history) of the 1920s and 1930s. A number of Grand Prix racing organisations laid out rules for a World Championship before World War II, but due to the suspension of racing during the war, the World Drivers Championship was not formalised until 1947, and was first run in 1950. A championship for constructors followed in 1958. Non-championship Formula One races were held for many years, but due to the rising cost of competition, the last of these occurred in the early 1980s. The sport's title, Formula One, indicates that it is intended to be the most advanced and most competitive of the many racing formulae.

Early years

racing formulae The inaugural Formula One World Championship was won by Italian Giuseppe Farina in his Alfa Romeo in 1950, barely defeating his Argentine teammate Juan Manuel Fangio. However, Fangio won the title in 1951 and four more in the next six years, his streak interrupted by two-time champion Alberto Ascari of Ferrari. Though Britain's Stirling Moss was able to compete regularly, he was never able to win the World Championship. Fangio is remembered for dominating Formula One's first decade and has long been considered the "grand master" of Formula One. The first major technological development, Cooper's re-introduction of mid-engined cars (following Porsche's pioneering and all-conquering Auto Unions of the 1930s), which evolved from the company's successful Formula 3 designs, occurred in the 1950s. Jack Brabham, champion in 1959 and 1960, soon proved the new design's superiority. By 1961, all competitors had switched to mid-engined cars. The first British World Champion was Mike Hawthorn, who drove a Ferrari to the title in 1958. However, when Colin Chapman entered F1 as a chassis designer and later founder of Lotus, British racing green came to dominate the field for the next decade. Between Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, Jack Brabham, Graham Hill, and Denny Hulme, British teams and Commonwealth drivers won twelve world championships between 1962 and 1973. In 1962, Lotus introduced a car with aluminium sheet chassis called a monocoque in place of the traditional tubular chassis; this proved to be the next major technological breakthrough since the introduction of mid-engined cars. In 1968, Lotus painted an Imperial Tobacco livery on their cars, thus introducing sponsorship to the sport. Aerodynamic downforce slowly gained importance in car design from the appearance of aerofoils in the late 1960s. In the late 1970s Lotus introduced ground effect aerodynamics that provided enormous downforce and greatly increased cornering speeds (though the concept had previously been tested by Jim Hall's Chaparral IndyCar team in the 1960s). The formation of the Federation Internationale du Sport Automobile in 1979 set off the FISA-FOCA War, during which FISA and its president Jean Marie Balestre clashed repeatedly with the Formula One Constructors Association over television profits and technical regulations.

Rise in popularity

1981 saw the signing of the first Concorde Agreement, a contract which bound the teams to compete until its expiration and assured them a share of the profits from the sale of television rights, bringing an end to the FISA-FOCA War and contributing to Bernie Ecclestone's eventual complete financial control of the sport, after much negotiation. The FIA imposed a ban on ground effect aerodynamics in 1983. By then, however, turbocharged engines, which Renault had pioneered in 1977, were producing over 700 bhp (520 kW) and were essential to be competitive. In later years, notably 1987, the Formula One turbo cars produced in excess of 1,000 bhp in racing trim (and perhaps as much as 1,250 bhp in qualifying trim). These cars were and still are the most powerful open-wheel circuit racing cars ever. To reduce engine power output and thus speeds, the FIA limited fuel tank capacity in 1984 and boost pressures in 1988 before banning turbocharged engines in 1989. In the early 1990s, teams started introducing electronic driver aids such as power steering, traction control, and semi-automatic gearboxes. Some were borrowed from contemporary road cars. Some, like active suspension, were primarily developed for the track and later made their way to the showroom. The FIA, due to complaints that technology was determining the outcome of races more than driver skill, banned many such aids in 1994. However, many observers felt that the ban on driver aids was a ban in name only as the FIA did not have the technology or the methods to eliminate these features from competition. The teams signed a second Concorde Agreement in 1992 and a third in 1997, which is due to expire on the last day of 2007. On the track, the McLaren and Williams teams dominated the 1980s and 1990s. Honda and McLaren dominated much of the 1980s, whilst Renault-powered Williams drivers won several world championships in the mid 1990s, with a McLaren comeback in the late 1990s. The rivalry between racing legends Senna and Prost became F1's central focus in 1988, and continued until Prost retired at the end of 1993. Tragically, Ayrton Senna died in a crash at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix having taken over Prost's lead drive at Williams that year. The FIA vowed to improve the sport's safety standards; since that weekend, no driver has died on the track during a race. Drivers from McLaren, Williams, Renault (formerly Benetton) and Ferrari, dubbed the "Big Four", have won every World Championship from 1984 to the present day. Due to the technological advances of the 1990s, the cost of competing in Formula One rose dramatically. This increased financial burden, combined with four teams' dominance (largely funded by big car manufacturers such as DaimlerChrysler), caused the poorer independent teams to struggle not only to remain competitive, but to stay in business. Financial troubles forced several teams to withdraw. Since 1990, 28 teams have pulled out of Formula One. This has prompted former Jordan owner Eddie Jordan to say that the days of competitive privateers are over.

Modern F1

Eddie Jordan Eddie Jordan Many records have been broken in the 21st century especially in the hands of German Michael Schumacher and recently the young Spaniard Fernando Alonso. The early 2000s were dominated by Michael Schumacher and a resurgent Ferrari. In 2001, Schumacher set the new record for the most Grands Prix ever won; the earlier record holder was Alain Prost, with 51 wins to his name. In 2002, Schumacher also set a new record by claiming the championship earlier in the season than any previous driver by winning the French Grand Prix in July that year. In 2003, Schumacher claimed his sixth championship title, beating the earlier record-holder, Juan Manuel Fangio with five championships. His record now stands at 7 championships. In 2003 Fernando Alonso became the youngest ever pole sitter by qualifying first at Malaysia. Later that year he became the youngest ever winner of a Grand Prix when he took the chequered flag in Hungary. Despite Ferrari's dominance, Kimi Räikkönen had a theoretical chance of claiming the championship in 2003 right until the end of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix. Juan Pablo Montoya also came close in 2003. Ferrari's championship streak finally came to an end on September 25, 2005 when Fernando Alonso clinched the 2005 championship with a third place finish at the Brazilian Grand Prix to become the youngest champion to date, replacing previous record holder Emerson Fittipaldi of Brazil. Michael Schumacher had been world champion for more than 1,800 days. In the rulebook, several driver aids returned due in part to developments that allowed teams to evade the FIA "restrictions". Meanwhile, several changes to the rules were made in a bid to improve the on-track action and cut spiralling costs. Most notably, the qualifying format has changed several times since 2003. Another new regulation made drivers start each race with the same level of fuel they had during qualifying, introducing a new tactical element to each team's strategy. Other new restrictions included one making it mandatory for each engine to last two races; a driver that had to have his engine replaced would be penalised by starting at a lower position in the starting grid of the race. Drivers are also no longer allowed to change tires during the race, unless the tires are deemed to be dangerously worn. The first few years of the 21st century in F1 also saw some controversies and scandals. At the Austrian Grand Prix in 2002, Rubens Barrichello, Schumacher's teammate at Ferrari who was leading the race, was ordered to allow Schumacher to overtake him. The ensuing scandal saw Ferrari slapped with a fine by the FIA, who also banned any further use of team orders in the new rules and regulations. In 2005, the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis saw only three out of ten teams race in a bizarre mishap when it turned out that the Michelin tires for the other seven teams could not be safely used on the surface of the track, causing them to pull out when the FIA refused a change for safety reasons, insisting on keeping to the letter of the regulations. During the early 2000s, Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Administration created a number of trademarks, an official logo, and an official website for the sport in an attempt to give it a corporate identity. Ecclestone experimented with a digital television package, known colloquially as Bernievision, by which a fan could purchase an entire F1 season, but after poor viewing figures in 2002 the program was discontinued. The year 2005 marks the end of an era, the end of the 10 cylinder powerplants which saw both normally aspirated and supercharged engines being deployed in F1 cars for more than two decades. At the end the statistics show a raw supremacy of the Renault engines having clinched several championships as engine suppliers and their first ever Drivers and Constructors Championships in a 100% Renault car in 2005. Renault was innovative during this period producing out of the standard designs as the 111º 10 cylinder engine for the 2003 RS23. but not only Renault was successful, Ferrari and specially Honda enjoyed great success with multiple championships with several teams, most notable McLaren and by a lesser extent Williams with whom Honda engines reached the highest levels of power in F1 history in the late 80's exceeding, in some circumstances, the 1200 bhp limit in qualifying. Other Championship winning engines are those from Mercedes Benz, Porsche and Ford Cosworth. The new 2.4 litre 8 Cylinder Formula is set to be introduced as early as the beginning of 2006 season allowing smaller teams to run rpm-limited V10 3-litre engines. The effects on the already low viewing figures are to be seen as the sound produced by V8 engines is expected to be different and perhaps not as loud as their V10 counterparts.

Racing and strategy

Main Articles: Formula One racing, Formula One regulations A Formula One Grand Prix event spans an entire weekend, beginning with two free practices on Friday, and two free practices on Saturday. Third drivers are allowed to run on Fridays for teams that finished the preceding season in 5th place or lower. After these practice sessions, a qualifying session consisting of one "flying lap" (whereby the driver is given an empty track to set his time on, with time measured from a rolling start) determines a driver's position on the starting grid for Sunday's race, with the fastest driver during qualifying given "pole position" and the slowest driver starting last. The race begins with a warm-up formation lap, after which the cars assemble on the starting grid in the order they qualified. If a driver stalls before the parade lap, and the rest of the field passes him, then he must start from the back of the grid. As long as he moves off and at least one car is behind him, he can retake his original position. A light system above the track then signals the start of the race. Races are a little over 300 kilometres (180 miles) long and are limited to two hours, though in practice they usually last about ninety minutes. Throughout the race, drivers may make one or more pit stops in order to refuel, although they are currently not allowed to change tires unless the change is essential (for instance, due to a puncture). The FIA awards points to the top eight drivers and their respective teams of a grand prix on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis (the race winner receives ten points, the first runner-up eight, and so on). The winner of the two annual championships are the driver and the team who have accumulated the most points at the end of the season.

Drivers and constructors

FIA have each won their respective World Championships a record number of times.]] See also: List of Formula One constructors, List of Formula One drivers, List of Formula One people, List of Formula One World Champions Formula One teams must build the chassis in which they compete, and consequently the terms "team" and "constructor" are more or less interchangeable. This requirement distinguishes the sport from series such as IRL, Champ Cars, and NASCAR, which allow teams to purchase chassis, and "spec series" such as GP2, which require all cars be kept to an identical specification. In its early years, Formula One teams sometimes also built their engines, though this became less common with the increased involvement of major car manufacturers such as BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Renault, Toyota, and Honda, whose large budgets rendered privately built engines less competitive (and redundant). Early manufacturer involvement came in the form of a "factory team", i.e. one owned and staffed by a major car company, such as those of Alfa Romeo, Peugeot or Renault. Companies such as Climax, Repco, Cosworth, Judd and Supertec, which had no direct team affiliation, often sold engines to teams who could not afford to manufacture them. As the manufacturers' deep pockets and engineering ability took over, these collaborations largely died out in favour of the present system in which a manufacturer supports a single team. After having virtually disappeared by the early 1980s, factory teams made a comeback in the 1990s and 2000s, with Toyota, Ferrari (FIAT), and Renault owning their own teams and BMW following suit by purchasing another team. Honda has also recently gained control over what was once British American Racing. Others, such as DaimlerChrysler, provide engines and sponsorship for privately owned teams in return for prominent advertisement on their team clothing and car livery. The only remaining commercial engine manufacturer is Cosworth. The sport's 1950 debut season saw eighteen teams compete, but due to high costs many dropped out quickly. In fact, such was the scarcity of competitive cars for much of the first decade of Formula One that Formula Two cars were admitted to fill the grids. Ferrari is the only still-active team which competed in 1950, and as of 2005 only ten teams remain on the grid, each fielding two cars. Although teams rarely disclose information about their budgets, it is estimated that they range from US$75 million to US$500 million each. Entering a new team in the Formula One World Championship requires a £25 million (about US$50 million) up-front payment to the FIA, which is then repaid to the team over the course of the season. As a consequence, constructors desiring to enter Formula One often prefer to buy an existing team: B.A.R.'s purchase of Tyrrell and Midland's purchase of Jordan allowed both of these teams to sidestep the large deposit. Each car is assigned a number. The previous season's World Drivers' Champion is designated number 1, with his teammate given number 2. Numbers are then assigned according to each team's position in the previous season's World Constructors' Championship. There have been exceptions to this rule, such as in 1993 and 1994, when the current World Drivers' Champion was no longer competing in Formula One. In this case the drivers for the team of the previous year's champion are given numbers 0 and 2. The number 13 has not been used since 1974, before which it was occasionally assigned at the discretion of individual race organizers. Before 1996, only the world championship winning driver and his team generally swapped numbers with the previous champion – the remainder held their numbers from prior years, as they had been originally set at the start of the 1974 season. For many years, for example, Ferrari held numbers 27 & 28, regardless of their finishing position in the world championship. As privateer teams quickly folded in the early 1990s, numbers were frequently shuffled around, until the current system was adopted in 1996. Michael Schumacher holds the record for having won the most Drivers' Championships (seven) and Ferrari holds the record for having won the most Constructors' Championships (fourteen). Jochen Rindt has the distinction of having been the only posthumous World Champion.

Grands Prix

Jochen Rindt United States Grand Prix]] See also: List of Formula One Grands Prix The number of Grands Prix held in a season has varied over the years. Only seven races comprised the inaugural 1950 season; over the years the calendar has more than doubled in size. Though the number of races had stayed at sixteen or seventeen since the 1980s, it reached nineteen in 2005. Six of the original seven races took place in Europe; the only non-European race in 1950 was the Indianapolis 500, which, due to lack of participation by F1 teams, was later replaced by the United States Grand Prix. The F1 championship gradually expanded to other non-European countries as well. Argentina hosted the first South American grand prix in 1953, and Morocco hosted the first African World Championship race in 1958. Asia (Japan in 1976) and Oceania (Australia in 1985) followed. The current nineteen races are spread over the continents of Europe, Asia, Oceania, North America, and South America. Traditionally, each nation has hosted a single grand prix that carries the name of the country. If a single country hosts multiple grands prix in a year, they receive different names. For example, every year two grands prix take place in Germany, one of which is known as the European Grand Prix. The grands prix, some of which have a history that predates the Formula One World Championship, are not always held on the same circuit every year. The British Grand Prix, for example, though held every year since 1950, alternated between Brands Hatch and Silverstone from 1963 to 1986. The only other race to have been included in every World Championship season is the Italian Grand Prix. It has always taken place at Monza, with one exception in 1980 when it took place at Imola (which now hosts the San Marino Grand Prix). One of the newest races on the Grand Prix, held in Bahrain, represents Formula One's first penetration into the Middle East with a high tech purpose-built desert track. The Bahrain Grand Prix, along with other new races in China and Turkey, present new opportunities for the growth and evolution of the Formula One Grand Prix franchise whilst new facilities also raise the bar for other Formula One racing venues around the world.

Circuits

Bahrain Grand Prix, is one of the oldest-used circuits in Formula One.]] Bahrain Grand Prix]] See also: List of Formula One circuits A typical circuit usually features a stretch of straight road on which the starting grid is situated. The pit lane, where the drivers stop for fuel during the race, and where the teams work on the cars before the race, is normally located next to the starting grid. The layout of the rest of the circuit varies widely, although in most cases the circuit runs in a clockwise direction. Those few circuits that run anticlockwise (and therefore have predominantly left handed corners) can cause drivers neck problems due to the enormous lateral forces generated by F1 cars pulling their heads in the opposite direction to normal. Many corners have become well known in their own right, such as the high-speed Eau Rouge at Spa-Francorchamps, and before the addition of chicanes to tame it, the Tamburello corner at Imola and the Curva Grande at Monza, as well as in recent years the thirteenth turn at Indianapolis (road course configuration), known as the fastest corner in the sport. Also particularly lamented are the circuits at Zandvoort in the Netherlands and Kyalami in South Africa, neither of which are now used by F1. Most of the circuits currently in use are specially constructed for competition. The only real street circuit is the Circuit de Monaco, used for the Monaco Grand Prix, although races in other urban locations come and go (Las Vegas and Detroit, for example) and proposals for such races are often discussed – most recently for London. Several other circuits are also completely or partially laid out on public roads, such as Spa-Francorchamps. The glamour and history of the Monaco race are the primary reasons why the circuit is still in use, since it is thought not to meet the strict safety requirements imposed on other tracks. Three-time World champion Nelson Piquet famously described racing in Monaco as "riding a bicycle around your living room." Circuit design to protect the safety of drivers is becoming increasingly sophisticated, as exemplified by the new track in Bahrain, designed – like most of F1's new circuits – by Hermann Tilke. Whereas in the 1950s a driver was lucky to find a strategically placed bale of straw to absorb an impact, modern Formula One circuits feature large run-off areas, gravel traps and tire barriers to reduce the risk of injury in crashes. This is an ongoing task – after the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger at Imola during the 1994 season, the FIA mandated further changes to circuits. These were mostly aimed at better matching the speed of a car with both the available space to slow down in before reaching a barrier and the ability of those barriers to safely absorb the energy of a crash. An ongoing complaint of long time F1 fans is the emasculation of the world's greatest circuits in order to satisfy sometimes arbitrary demands from the FIA. Whilst circuit safety is of prime importance, this can often be achieved without the reduction of the modern circuit to parade route status.

The future of Formula One

FIAMain Article: Future of Formula One Formula One went through a difficult period in the early 2000s. Viewing figures dropped, and fans expressed their loss of interest due to the dominance of Michael Schumacher and Ferrari. At present, the FIA has been taxed with the responsibility of making rules to combat the spiralling costs which affect the smaller teams and to ensure that the sport remains as safe as possible. The sport's rapid expansion into new areas of the globe also leaves some question as to which races will be cut.

Venue changes

In the interest of making the sport truer to its designation as a World Championship, FOM president Bernie Ecclestone has initiated and organized a number of Grands Prix in new countries and continues to discuss new future races. As of 2005, this expansion has resulted in the disappearance of only one race, the Austrian Grand Prix, which was last held in 2003; however, several teams have expressed their preference for a shorter calendar, and the future of such races as the British, French and San Marino Grands Prix has recently fallen into doubt. The inaugural Turkish Grand Prix took place in 2005 in IstanbulPark, a Mexican Grand Prix has been planned for 2006, and Ecclestone has asserted publicly that F1 will return to South Africa within five years. He has also expressed interest in a Russian Grand Prix in Moscow or St Petersburg in the near future. The European Union's ratification of laws prohibiting tobacco advertising went into effect on July 31, 2005, providing another incentive for the heavily tobacco-sponsored sport to find venues outside of Europe. The future of the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is also in doubt after only six cars started the 2005 race due to concerns about the safety of the supplied Michelin tyres. The US Grand Prix has been offically scheduled to occur again at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 2, 2006.

Rule changes

In the interest of safety, the FIA instituted a number of rule changes at the start of the 2005 season, including restrictions on the changing of tyres, downforce, and limiting the top speed to 250mph. In an attempt to reduce costs, a new rule requires each engine to be used for two consecutive races. These two issues, safety and cost, are paramount in all rule-change discussions, and the FIA has made public its intention to continue to modify the rules with these goals in mind. The current qualifying format, a single flying lap on race fuel, replaced one which was used for the first part of the 2005 season (until the 2005 European Grand Prix) which involved two separate sessions, one on Saturday and a second on Sunday morning, with the starting grid drawn up according to the fastest aggregate time of each driver. This was ditched after complaints from spectators, who felt that the Saturday session was meaningless, and broadcasters, who did not want to broadcast so much Formula One on a Sunday. Both the teams and the drivers are still unhappy with the qualifying system, however, and several alternative formats have been suggested for use from 2006 onwards. Beginning with the 2006 season, engine displacement will be decreased, a 2.4L V8 replacing the current 3.0L V10. However, some teams will be allowed to continue using the V10 with a rev limiter in order to cut costs. In the long run, the FIA intends to introduce greater restrictions on testing and the introduction of standardised electronic units and tires. Over the coming years, radical changes will be made to the rules. In 2005-10-05, the FIA proposal of enhancing overtaking won the support of the teams by agreeing about the new rear wing concept -that would eliminate the current single rear wing and replace it with two box-like wings, one behind each rear wheel. These changes are due in 2007. [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=aT4_0uPwjwvI&refer=uk] Also, in 2005-10-24, the Formula One commission decided to switch the competition to the "KO" system. All cars are permitted on the track. At the end of the first 15-minute period the slowest five cars can take no further part in qualifying. These cars will make up the last five grid positions in the order of their times, the fastest occupying 16th position. The times for the fifteen remaining cars are reset for the next session. At the end of the second 15-minute period the slowest five cars can take no further part in qualifying. These cars will make up the grid in positions eleven to fifteen in the order of their times, the fastest occupying 11th position. The times for the ten remaining cars will be reset for the next session. For the final period, lasting 20 minutes, the cars will be arranged on the grid in positions one to ten in the order of their times, the fastest occupying pole position. These changes will be applicable for the 2006 season. [http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view.asp?cid=1&nid=121280] Also,the 2006 season will see the return of the tyre changes during the pitstops.The thinking behind this is that the reduced engine size will offset any performance gain. Drivers also have access to slightly more tyres than in 2005 - seven sets of dry-weather, four sets of wet-weather and three sets of extreme-weather. Drivers must make a final choice of dry-weather compound ahead of qualifying.

Small teams

The Ford Motor Company's decision to pull out of Formula One exposed the vulnerabilities of some small teams. Jaguar Racing was sold to Red Bull and is now known as Red Bull Racing. Jordan and Minardi both relied on Ford's Cosworth engines. Jordan now has a deal to use Toyota engines, while Minardi continues to use Cosworth engines under Cosworth's new owners. For 2006, Jordan will be rebadged as Midland F1. In June 2005, BMW bought a majority stake in Sauber and intends to run the team as a factory entry in 2006. The Williams team will cease their partnership with BMW as a result, instead opting to run Cosworth engines for 2006. Arguably, the final small team disappeared with the September 2005 purchase of Minardi by Red Bull. In 2006, the Faenza-based team will be run as a junior team named Scuderia Toro Rosso (initially known as Squadra Toro Rosso), though separate, team to Red Bull Racing.

Notes

# [http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns15578.html Red Bull confirms Minardi purchase] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33854 Jordan: Privateer era is over] # [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/2141834.stm Schumacher makes history] # [http://www.sportstaronnet.com/tss2552/stories/20021228004509100.htm It was Ferrari all the way] # [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/4109292.stm Seven teams boycott US Grand Prix] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=31568 Sauber: 19 races is too many] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32086 Mexican GP back on track] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=31507 Bernie in South Africa pledge] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32153 Bernie promises Russian race] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32007 Confusion over tobacco laws] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33729 Bernie confident of Indy future] # [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33754 Drivers suggest qualifying plan]

References

- Arron, Simon & Hughes, Mark (2003). [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?link_code=ur2&camp=1789&tag=averyws-20&creative=9325&path=ASIN/0760316880/qid=1119374338/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1 The Complete Book of Formula One]. Motorbooks International.
- Bernie confident of Indy future (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33729 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Bernie in South Africa pledge (2004). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=31507 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Bernie promises Russian race (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32153 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Confusion over tobacco laws (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32007 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Drivers suggest qualifying plan (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33754 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- FIA Archive. (2004). [http://www.fia.com/archive/index_1024.html Federation Internationale de l'Automobile]. Retrieved 25 October 2004.
- Formula One Regulations. (2004). [http://www.fia.com/sport/Regulations/f1regs.html Federation Internationale de l'Automobile]. Retrieved 23 October 2004.
- Gross, Nigel et al (1999). Grand Prix Motor Racing. In, 100 Years of Change: Speed and Power (pp. 55-84). Parragon.
- Insight. (2004). [http://www.formula1.com/insight/ The Official Formula 1 Website]. Retrieved 25 October 2004.
- Jones, Bruce (1997). The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Formula One. Hodder & Stoughton.
- Jones, Bruce (1998). Formula One: The Complete Stats and Records of Grand Prix Racing. Parragon.
- Jones, Bruce (2003). [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?link_code=ur2&camp=1789&tag=averyws-20&creative=9325&path=tg/detail/-/1842228137/qid=1119374619/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14?v=glance%26s=books%26n=507846 The Official ITV Sport Guide: Formula One Grand Prix 2003]. Carlton. Includes foreword by Martin Brundle.
- Jordan: Privateer era is over (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33854 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Jones, Bruce (2005). [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?link_code=ur2&camp=1789&tag=averyws-20&creative=9325&path=tg/detail/-/1844425088/qid=1119374828/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2?v=glance%26s=books The Guide to 2005 FIA Formula One World Championship : The World's Bestselling Grand Prix Guide]. Carlton.
- Mexican GP back on track (2005). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=32086 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Rajan, Sanjay. (Dec. 28, 2002). [http://www.sportstaronnet.com/tss2552/stories/20021228004509100.htm It was Ferrari all the way]. The Sportstar.
- Sauber: 19 races is too many (2004). [http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=31568 itv.com/f1]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- Schumacher makes history (2002). [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/2141834.stm BBC Sport]. Retrieved 1 September 2005.
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/4109292.stm Seven teams boycott US Grand Prix]. (June 19, 2005). BBC Sport.
- Tremayne, David & Hughes, Mark (1999). The Concise Encyclopedia of Formula One. Parragon.

External links

; Official sites
- [http://www.formula1.com Formula1.com] — The official site of Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management; contains schedules, statistics, race results, live timing during each race, and some news
- [http://www.fia.com/sport/Regulations/f1regs.html Current regulations] from the [http://www.fia.com/ FIA website] ; News and reference
- [http://www.grandprix.com GrandPrix.com] — F1 news and a Grand Prix encyclopedia
- [http://www.itv-f1.com ITV.com/f1] — News, pictures, and commentary from ITV, F1's British broadcasters; also from Matt Bishop and F1 Racing magazine
- [http://www.pitpass.com/ Pitpass] — In-depth news
- [http://www.planet-f1.com/ Planet-F1] — F1 news, fun, results and features
- [http://www.formula1review.com/ Formula 1 Review] — F1 news, results, statistics, forum and features
- [http://www.f1db.de/ F1DB] — F1 database and statistics ; IRC
- [irc://irc.quakenet.org/f1 #F1] -- Formula 1 support channel in QuakeNet IRC Network. You can find from there GP weekend commentary, the newest news, pics, gossips and much more. Category:Auto racing
- ja:フォーミュラ1

NASA

] The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which was established in 1958, is the agency responsible for the public space program of the United States of America. It is also responsible for long-term civilian and military aerospace research.

Vision and mission

NASA's vision is "to improve life here, extend life to there, and to find life beyond." Its mission is "to understand and protect our home planet; to explore the Universe and search for life; and to inspire the next generation of explorers."

History

Space Race

:For additional background, please see the Space Race articleSpace Race launch of Redstone rocket and NASA's Mercury 3 capsule Freedom 7 with Alan Shepard Jr. on the United States' first human flight into sub-orbital space. (Atlas rockets were used to launch Mercury's orbital missions.)]] Following the Soviet space program's launch of the world's first man-made satellite (Sputnik 1) on October 4, 1957, the attention of the United States turned toward its own fledgling space efforts. The U.S. Congress, alarmed by the perceived threat to U.S. security and technological leadership, urged immediate and swift action; President Dwight D. Eisenhower and his advisers counseled more deliberate measures. Several months of debate produced agreement that a new federal agency was needed to conduct all nonmilitary activity in space. On July 29, 1958, President Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). When it began operations on October 1, 1958, NASA consisted mainly of the four laboratories and some 8,000 employees of the government's 46-year-old research agency for aeronautics, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), though the probably most important contribution actually had its roots in the German rocket program led by Wernher von Braun, who is today regarded as the father of the United States space program. NASA's early programs were research into human spaceflight, and were conducted under the pressure of the competition between the USA and the USSR (the Space Race) that existed during the Cold War. The Mercury program, initiated in 1958, started NASA down the path of human space exploration with missions designed to discover simply if man could survive in space. Representatives from the U.S. Army (M.L. Raines, LTC, USA), Navy (P.L. Havenstein, CDR, USN) and Air Force (K.G. Lindell, COL, USAF) were selected/requested to provide assistance to the NASA Space Task Group through coordination with the existing U.S. military research and defense contracting infrastructure, and technical assistance resulting from experimental aircraft (and the associated military test pilot pool) development in the 1950s. On May 5, 1961, astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. became the first American in space when he piloted Freedom 7 on a 15-minute suborbital flight. John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth on February 20, 1962 during the 5-hour flight of Friendship 7. Once the Mercury project proved that human spaceflight was possible, project Gemini was launched to conduct experiments and work out issues relating to a moon mission. The first Gemini flight with astronauts on board, Gemini III, was flown by Virgil "Gus" Grissom and John W. Young on March 23, 1965. Nine other missions followed, showing that long-duration human space flight was possible, proving that rendezvous and docking with another vehicle in space was possible, and gathering medical data on the effects of weightlessness on humans.

Apollo program

Following the success of the Mercury and Gemini programs, the Apollo program was launched to try to do interesting work in space and possibly put men around (but not on) the Moon. The direction of the Apollo program was radically altered following President John F. Kennedy's announcement on May 25, 1961 that the United States should commit itself to "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" by 1970. Thus Apollo became a program to land men on the Moon. The Gemini program was started shortly thereafter to provide an interim spacecraft to prove techniques needed for the now much more complicated Apollo missions. Gemini program.]] After eight years of preliminary missions, including NASA's first loss of astronauts with the Apollo 1 launch pad fire, and the first spacecraft to orbit the Moon (Apollo 8) at the end of 1968, the Apollo program achieved its goals with Apollo 11 which landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon's surface on July 20, 1969 and returned them to Earth safely on July 24. Armstrong's first words upon stepping out of the Eagle lander captured the momentousness of the occasion: "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind." Twelve men would set foot on the Moon by the end of the Apollo program in December 1972. NASA had won the moon race, and in some senses this left it without direction, or at the very least without the public attention and interest that was necessary to guarantee large budgets from Congress. After President Lyndon Johnson left office, NASA lost its main political supporter, and rocket scientist Wernher von Braun was moved to a position lobbying in Washington. Plans for ambitious follow-on projects to construct a space station, establish a lunar base and launch a human mission to Mars by 1990 were proposed but with the end to procurement of Saturn and Apollo hardware, there was no capability to support these. The near-disaster of Apollo 13, where an oxygen tank explosion nearly doomed all three astronauts, helped to recapture national attention and concern. Although missions up to Apollo 20 were planned, Apollo 17 was the last mission to fly under the Apollo banner. The program ended because of budget cuts (in part due to the Vietnam War) and the desire to develop a reusable space vehicle.

Other early missions

Although the vast majority of NASA's budget has been spent on human spaceflight, there have been many robotic missions instigated by the space agency. In 1962 the Mariner 2 mission was launched and became the first spacecraft to make a flyby of another planet – in this case Venus. The Ranger, Surveyor, and Lunar Orbiter missions were essential to assessing lunar conditions before attempting Apollo landings with humans on board. Later, the two Viking probes landed on the surface of Mars and sent color images back to Earth, but perhaps more impressive were the Pioneer and particularly Voyager missions that visited Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune sending back scientific information and color images. Having lost the moon race, the Soviet Union had, along with the USA, changed its approach. On July 17, 1975 an Apollo craft (finding a new use after the cancelling of planned lunar flights) was docked to the Soviet Soyuz 19 spacecraft, in the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. Although the Cold War would last many more years, this was a critical point in NASA's history and much of the international co-operation in space exploration that exists today has its genesis with this mission. America's first space station, Skylab, occupied NASA from the end of Apollo until the late 1970s.

Shuttle era

Skylab 1981 ]] The space shuttle became the major focus of NASA in the late 1970s and the 1980s. Planned to be a frequently launchable and mostly reusable vehicle, four space shuttles were built by 1985. The first to launch, Columbia did so on April 12, 1981. The shuttle was not all good news for NASA – flights were much more expensive than initially projected, and even after the 1986 Challenger disaster highlighted the risks of space flight, the public again lost interest as missions appeared to become mundane. Work began on Space Station Freedom as a focus for the manned space programme but within NASA there was argument that these projects came at the expense of more inspiring unmanned missions such as the Voyager probes. The Challenger disaster aside the late 1980s marked a low point for NASA. Nonetheless, the shuttle has been used to launch milestone projects like the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The HST was created with a relatively small budget of $2 billion but has continued operation since 1990 and has delighted both scientists and the public. Some of the images it has returned have become near-legendary, such as the groundbreaking Hubble Deep Field images. The HST is a joint project between ESA and NASA, and its success has paved the way for greater collaboration between the agencies. In 1995 Russian-American interaction would again be achieved as the Shuttle-Mir missions began, and once more a Russian craft (this time a full-fledged space station) docked with an American vehicle. This cooperation continues to the present day, with Russia and America the two biggest partners in the largest space station ever built – the International Space Station (ISS). The strength of their cooperation on this project was even more evident when NASA began relying on Russian launch vehicles to service the ISS following the