The 2020s (pronounced "twenty-twenties") is a decade of the Gregorian calendar. It will begin on January 1, 2020 and will end on December 31, 2029.
Two pronunciations are used to mention specific years of the 21st century in English. For example, 2026 is either pronounced "twenty-twenty-six" or "two thousand (and) twenty-six" with more emphasis being put on the first pronunciation..
Notable predictions and known events
The interaction of the three main decadal solar cycles suggests an upcoming reduction in solar activity, with a low-energy period centered on 2020. As suggested by John Maddox of Nature, this might mitigate the global warming (at least temporarily) in the 2010s and 2020s.
Assuming that the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation runs through a 70-year quasi-cycle (after peaks in 1880 and 1950), its current warm phase is likely to reach its peak.
The ESA (Europe), CNSA (China), FKA (Russia), and ISRO (India) each plan to send a manned mission to the Moon.
According to a 2008 report released by the National Intelligence Council, the United States will experience the relative decline of its economic and military power, driven both by the rise of new behemoths such as China, India, and the EU and by domestic constraints on its global leadership.
Voyager 2 is expected to stop transmitting back to Earth in the 2020s.
In 2008, futurist Ray Kurzweil put 2029 as the year most likely for a breakthrough in Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). He expects that around this time, computers will reach human intelligence levels, and shortly thereafter surpass the capabilities of the human brain.
In 2008, Intel predicted that the performance of supercomputers will reach zettaflops scale by 2029.
Near-Earth asteroid 99942 Apophis will pass Earth within the orbits of geosynchronous communication satellites on Friday, April 13, 2029.
By the end of the 2020s, the world population is projected to surpass 8 billion people, half a billion more than 2020, representing a slowdown in growth from the decade of the 2010s, which is expected to see an increase in the world population by 700 million.
By the mid-2020s, India is projected to surpass China as the most populous country.
The Mars-Grunt sample return mission is proposed to launch in the mid-2020s.
China's coal production will peak and then rapidly decline in the year 2027 (prediction in 2011).
The television series Sealab 2021 takes place in the year 2021.
The anime series Deadman Wonderland takes place in the year 2022.
The anime series Sword Art Online initially takes place on November 6, 2022.
The Disney Channel sitcom Good Luck Charlie featured an episode, "Future Drama" 10 years into the future (2023).
The majority of the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine two-part story "Past Tense" takes place between August 30 and September 3, 2024.
One of the two storylines in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 takes place in the year 2025.
The film Pacific Rim takes place in 2025.
The Phineas and Ferb (season 4) episode "Act Your Age" takes place in 2025.
Power Rangers SPD takes place in the year 2025.
The science fiction series Fringe season three finale "The Day We Died" takes place around May 20, 2026.
Capcom games Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies takes place in 2026 and 2027, respectively.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution takes place in the year 2027, and the sequel, Mankind Divided, takes place two years later.
Call of Duty: Ghosts also takes place in 2027.
The story of the video game Half-Life 2 takes place between May 15, 202X and May 30, 202X. (The "202X" convention is meant to indicate that it could be any year between 2020 and 2029.)
