April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian calendar, the fifth in the early Julian and one of four months with a length of 30 days. April is commonly associated with the season of spring in parts of the Northern hemisphere and autumn in parts of the Southern hemisphere, where it is the seasonal equivalent to October in the Northern hemisphere and vice versa.
April symbols: The birthstone for April is the diamond. The birth flower is typically listed as either the Daisy (Bellis perennis) or the Sweet Pea. The zodiac signs for the month of April are Aries (until April 20) and Taurus (April 21 onwards).
Historical Events for April, 1997
Day of Week 1st » Comet Hale-Bopp is seen passing over perihelion.
Day of Week 3rd » The Thalit massacre begins in Algeria; all but one of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas.
Day of Week 13th » Tiger Woods becomes the youngest golfer to win the Masters Tournament.
Day of Week 19th » The Red River Flood of 1997 overwhelms the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Fire breaks out and spreads in downtown Grand Forks, but high water levels hamper efforts to reach the fire, leading to the destruction of 11 buildings.
Day of Week 22nd » Haouch Khemisti massacre in Algeria 93 villagers killed.
22nd » The Japanese embassy hostage crisis ends in Lima, Peru.
Day of Week 23rd » Omaria massacre in Algeria: Forty-two villagers are killed.
Day of Week 29th » The Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 enters into force, outlawing the production, stockpiling and use of Chemical warfare known as chemical weapons by its signatories.