The World in 1991 the year the Soviet Union ended
16MMobile phones
1stGSM phone call, in Finland
$1.14Gallon of gas (US)
$4.25US minimum wage per hour
29ยขUS stamp, from February
1stDow close above 3,000 (US)
1stSonic the Hedgehog (Japan)
4Nations in a Brazil trade bloc
0.5ยฐCGlobal cooling after Pinatubo
The Soviet Union covered about a sixth of the land on Earth. By the last week of December it was gone, replaced by 15 separate countries.
Life back then

Almost no one had an email address, and phone calls still tied you to a wall. The World Wide Web quietly went public this year, though hardly anyone noticed. Teens taped songs off the radio, and grunge flannel started pushing out 80s neon. When Queen's singer Freddie Mercury died in November, fans left flowers outside his London home. A mobile phone was a pricey brick that mostly lived in cars.
The year in 8 events
- ๐ชJan 17 The Gulf War begins as coalition planes strike Iraq. Millions watch it live on CNN.
- ๐นMar 3 A man in Los Angeles films police beating Rodney King. The tape is shown around the world.
- ๐Jun 15 Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Philippines, the second biggest eruption of the century.
- ๐บ๏ธJun 25 Slovenia and Croatia declare independence from Yugoslavia. Fighting starts within days.
- ๐๏ธAug 19 Hardliners try to overthrow Gorbachev in Moscow. The coup collapses within days.
- ๐ธSep 24 The American band Nirvana releases Nevermind. Grunge is about to take over rock music.
- ๐Nov 7 Magic Johnson says he has HIV and retires from basketball. The news changes how Americans talk about AIDS.
- ๐บ๏ธDec 25 Gorbachev resigns and the Soviet flag comes down over the Kremlin. The USSR is gone.