November 13, 2008 (Thursday)
- Blizzard Entertainment launched the latest expansion pack to the highly popular computer game MMORPG World of Warcraft, entitled Wrath of the Lich King.
- Josef Fritzl is charged with murder, rape and enslavement after allegedly sexually abusing and incarcerating his daughter in the cellar of his home, where one of the children she was forced to bear died due to lack of medical attention. (Reuters)
- Three planets orbiting HR 8799 and one planet orbiting Fomalhaut are visually verified by telescopes, the first extrasolar planets whose existence have been confirmed via direct imaging. (CNN)
- 2008 Russian financial crisis:
- The Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange falls 5% as trade resumes after a one-day limit-down halt, prompting confusing suspension announcements and orders to the contrary from the Federal Financial Markets Service. (The Guardian)
- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin questions the commitment of the European Union to the construction of the Nord Stream pipeline to establish a natural gas delivery network from his country to Europe. A European Commission spokesman responds, "The EU continues to strongly support the Nord Stream pipeline". (The Wall Street Journal)