In contemporary history, the 3rd (third) millennium is the current millennium in the Anno Domini or Common Era, under the Gregorian calendar. It began on 1 January 2001 (MMI) and will end on 31 December 3000 (MMM), spanning the 21st to 30th centuries.
Ongoing futures studies seek to understand what will likely continue and what could plausibly change in this period and beyond.
Predictions and forecasts not included on this timeline
List of future astronomical events
List of lunar eclipses in the 21st century
List of solar eclipses in the 21st century
Projections of population growth
Climate change
Representative Concentration Pathway
Shared Socioeconomic Pathways
Extinction
List of dates predicted for apocalyptic events
Predictions and claims for the Second Coming
Near future in fiction
Works falling into the public domain in the United States
List of time capsules
21st century
2000s
See: 2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010s
See: 2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020s
See: 2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030s
2040s
2041: The Antarctic treaty is scheduled to come under review. 2042: September 17: a common computing representation of date and time on IBM mainframe systems will overflow with potential results similar to the year 2000 problem. 2047: On July 1, the present "one country, two systems" arrangement in Hong Kong is scheduled to end, as it was guaranteed for 50 years starting from July 1, 1997, provided under the Hong Kong Basic Law. The agreement was raised by Deng Xiaoping to deal with Hong Kong's reunification with the People's Republic of China in 1997, and stipulated in the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984. What will be done is not stated in any document. 2048: On January 14, the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty is scheduled to come up for review. 2049: December 20: The present "One country, two systems" with Macau, guaranteed for 50 years starting from 20 December 1999, provided under the Basic Law and the Joint Declaration on the Question of Macau, will expire.
2050s
2050: Three-North Shelter Forest Program is expected to be completed. The case files surrounding the 1943 death of the former lieutenant general of the Polish Army and first Prime Minister of the Polish government in exile, Władysław Sikorski, is expected to be declassified this year by the British government. Due to tensions between The United Kingdom, The Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany, the circumstances of his death has led to disputes over whether the crash was deliberate or not. The official conclusion by the British government is that the crash was accidental. However, the Polish government refused to endorse this report on the basis of a lack of conclusive findings and contradictions within the British evidence. In 2008 an investigation was opened by the Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation of the Institute of National Remembrance, and concluded in 2013 that there is not enough evidence to prove or disprove the sabotage theory. 2051: April: One of the METI messages Cosmic Call 1 sent from the 70-meter Eupatoria Planetary Radar in 1999 arrives at its destination, Gliese 777 star. 2054: Hawksbill Creek Agreement granting tax exemptions and special economic status for Freeport, Bahamas, is set to expire.
2060s
2060: The Chinese government aims for China to be carbon neutral. 2061: December 31: Expiration of the Singapore-Malaysia Water Agreement. All 6 reactors from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant are planned to be decommissioned by this time. (30 to 40 years from 2021) However, according to a 2023 report by Voice of America, some experts have said "it would be impossible to remove all the melted fuel debris by 2051 and would take 50-100 years, if achieved at all." 2065: The process of cleanup and decommissioning the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, following the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, is projected to be finished.
2070s
2070: According to an announcement made by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in 2021, India will be carbon neutral. 2079: For computer software using unsigned 16-bit binary day counts and an epoch of 1 January 1900, the counts will overflow after 65,536 (216) days, which will occur on 6 June 2079.