The third millennium of the Anno Domini or Common Era is the current millennium spanning the years 2001 to 3000. It began on January 1, 2001 (MMI) and will end on December 31, 3000 (MMM), (21st to 30th centuries; in astronomy: JD – ).
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
21st century
2000s
2010s
2020s
2030s
2040s
- 2040: End year of the Baku City Master Plan implementation.
- 2041:
- The Antarctic treaty is scheduled to come under review.
- 2042:
- 17 September: a common computing representation of date and time on IBM mainframe systems will overflow with potential results similar to the year 2000 problem.
- 2045:
- September 2: 100th anniversary of the end of World War II
- 31 December: Gates Foundation is scheduled to cease operations, as announced by Bill Gates in 2025.
- 2047: On 1 July, the "one country, two systems" principle's guarantee in Hong Kong is scheduled to end, as it was guaranteed for 50 years starting from 1 July 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. However, in February 2024, Xia Baolong, the head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, said that the system would be kept permanently.
- 2048: On 14 January, the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty is scheduled to come up for review.
- 2049:
- October 1: Scheduled completion of the Belt and Road Initiative, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.
- On 20 December, the "one country, two systems" arrangement 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.
- The embargoed 37-million-word diary of Robert Shields will become available to read and count words.
2050s
- 2050:
- The United Kingdom aims to reach net-zero carbon emissions in accordance with the Climate Change Act 2008.
- Three-North Shelter Forest Program is expected to be completed.
- Under a plan announced in July 2016, New Zealand aims to eradicate all non-native rats, possums, and mustelids by this year.
- 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, WÃ
ÂadysÃ
Âaw Sikorski, are 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, the Gliese 777 system.
- 2054:
- Hawksbill Creek Agreement granting tax exemptions and special economic status for Freeport, Bahamas, is set to expire.
2060s
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 (2<sup>16</sup>) days, which will occur on 6 June 2079.
2080s
- 2085: The "secret" letter of Queen Elizabeth II will be opened in Sydney, Australia.
- 2089: During the months of May and June, insect Magicicada broods X (17-year) and XIX (13-year) will emerge simultaneously. This will be the first time this will occur since 1868; next time will be in 2310. This event occurs only once in every 221 years.
2090s
22nd century
2100s
2110s
2140s
- : All of the roughly 21 million Bitcoins are expected to be mined.
2150s
- 2155: The year type in MySQL supports dates up to 31 December 2155.
2160s
2170s
- 2178: On 23 March, Pluto will have completed its first full orbit since its discovery in 1930.
2180s
- 2182: On 24 September, asteroid 101955 Bennu has a 1-in-2,700 chance of impacting Earth.
2190s
- : The Vanguard I satellite, launched in 1958, is expected to re-enter the atmosphere and burn up due to orbital decay assuming it is not retrieved or collides with another object.
23rd century
24th century
- 2333: It is projected that the Dounreay nuclear site will be safe to use for other purposes.
- 2386: If not repealed or otherwise voided, the Treaty of Windsor (1386) between England and Portugal, as of 2025 the oldest military alliance still in effect, will have stood for one thousand years.
25th century
- 2425: The annual funding increase of $325 per student to Wisconsin public schools, which began in 2023, is set to end.
- : The "Across the Universe" message broadcast by NASA in 2008 will reach Polaris.
26th century
- : Climate projections predict a barren landscape for the Amazon rainforest amid low water levels due to vegetation decline.
- : Professor Hiroshi Yoshida of Tohoku University conducted a study in 2024 which suggests every Japanese person will have the surname "SatÃ
Â" if a law regulating couples to a single surname is not changed before this time.
27th century
28th century
- Earth will experience 241 lunar eclipses.
29th century
30th century
- : The SNAP-10A nuclear satellite, launched in 1965 into an orbit above Earth, is expected to return to Earth's surface.
- 2999: The Longplayer composition is planned to finish on 31 December of that year, marking the end of the thousand-year piece of music.
- The time capsule in Chinook Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada is scheduled to be opened on the same date after being sealed in 1999.
See also
Notes
References