COVER

The Year in Pictures 2009

We greeted a U.S. President and said goodbye to the King of Pop. We saw a miracle on a river, faces of war, and the world through the eyes of a whale calf. From Iran and China, a U.S. Senator's graveside and the rings of Saturn come the most striking images of 2009, described by the photographers and citizen journalists who produced them

SPECIAL SECTION

The Best of 2009

From animated artistry on the big screen to favorite fiction (and nonfiction) to cerebral country music, TIME's top picks of the year

ESSAY

GLOBAL ADVISER

LETTERS