Text written in Mario World font, "2023 Year in Review"

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2023 Year In Review

Before you welcome in 2024, take a look back at five big events from 2023.

Messi Made Us Cheer

David Jensen/Icon Sportswire via AP Images

In June, the biggest soccer star in the world shocked fans. Lionel Messi would be joining a soccer team called Inter Miami CF. Why is that a big deal? He had spent 20 years playing on teams in Europe and for his home country, Argentina. This was the first time he played for a U.S. team. 

We Watched the Mario Bros. Movie

Illumination Entertainment/Nintendo/Universal Pictures/Album/Alamy Stock Photo

In April, two brothers brought the Mushroom Kingdom to movie theaters. The Super Mario Bros. Movie made more than $1.3 billion. That’s more than any other movie based on a video game.  

India Went to the Moon

Pallava Bagla/Corbis via Getty Images

This is an artist’s idea of what India’s moon landing looked like.

In August, India became the fourth nation to land on the moon. A spacecraft with no crew landed near the lunar south pole. 

Other countries, including the U.S., are planning missions to the moon’s south pole. Holes in the surface there are filled with frozen water. Astronauts might use that water on future missions.

Wildfires Destroyed a Town in Hawaii

Matthew Thayer/The Maui News via AP Images

A wildfire burned down a church in Lahaina on August 8.

On August 8, tragedy struck the island of Maui in Hawaii. Wildfires destroyed much of the town of Lahaina. The disaster began when fallen power lines started a small fire. Strong winds helped spread the flames. The fire quickly swept across the town. Some people ran into the ocean to avoid the heat and flames.

Sadly, at least 99 people were killed. The fires took more lives than any other in the U.S. since 1918. More than 2,000 buildings, mostly homes and businesses, were destroyed. 

We Spotted a Spotless Giraffe

Brights Zoo/Cover Images via AP Images

Giraffes are covered in spots. The markings help them hide from predators, or animals that hunt them. But on July 31, a giraffe surprised workers at a zoo in Tennessee. It was born without any spots! The giraffe was named Kipekee, which means unique in the Swahili language.

  1. Why are countries interested in exploring the moon’s south pole?
  2. Why was it a big deal when soccer star Lionel Messi joined Inter Miami CF?
  3. Based on the article, how do giraffes’ spots help them?
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