- Fall of Kabul (2021)
- 2021 Sudanese coup d'état
- 2021 Suez Canal obstruction
- James Webb Space Telescope
- 2021 Myanmar coup d'état
- January 6 United States Capitol attack
- Ingenuity (helicopter) / Perseverance (rover)
- Tiangong space station / Tianhe core module
- February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm / 2021 Texas power crisis
- 2021 Haiti earthquake
- 2020 Summer Olympics
- Surfside condominium collapse
- 2021 Western North America heat wave
- 2021 European floods
- Assassination of Jovenel Moïse
- 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis