Well, that’s it.
For better or worse 2015 is done and dusted -- gone in a smattering of sparkles seen around the world.
And while we looked back at the year that was -- in world events, Australian politics, and sport -- there’s much to look forward to ahead.
So what does the new year have in store?
Rio Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics, held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, will take place from the 5th to the 21st of August.
It’ll see the debut of rugby sevens and golf as Olympic sports -- and will also be the first time a South American city has hosted a summer Olympics.
Much like the 2014 FIFA World Cup, it’s also sure to be the biggest party in the Southern Hemisphere. Let’s just hope we don’t see the return of 2010’s vuvuzela.
The US election
Given the form of the candidates thus far, there’s no telling just how bizarre the U.S. presidential election could be. Hillary Clinton appears a favourite for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, though Bernie Sanders has a growing young, college-educated voter base.
For the Republican Party, previous President George W. Bush’s younger brother Jeb is campaigning hard out of Florida, but the man who has consistently stolen media headlines continues to be American businessman Donald Trump -- more often than not for widely condemned statements on women, Muslims, Latinos, and other minority groups in America.
Fasten your seatbelts.
Film fanaticism
It’s already been and gone with The Force Awakens but expect more of the same fan-frenzy in 2016.
Among the films expected to knock the doors and windows out of the box office are Harry Potter spin off Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, Finding Dory, and -- yes -- another Star Wars film. This time it’s spin off Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Juno to Jupiter
Spacecraft Juno will be just the second craft to ever enter Jupiter’s orbit when it arrives at the planet in early July. It’s a journey five years in the making -- the intrepid explorer was launched back in August 2011.
The craft will take a look at the planet’s composition and gravity with a view to determining how exactly how the biggest sphere in our solar system was formed.
An election of our own
Yes indeed, another one.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is set to go head-to-head with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten in an election this year that will reportedly be fought tooth-and-nail on trade union reform.
“Bring it on,” Mr Shorten said in a tweet on Wednesday.
New laws
2016 will bring change in a number of policy areas that have received significant public pressure in recent years.
Chief among these will be medical cannabis trials in New South Wales and Victoria, as well as no-jab-no-play laws that came into effect on Friday. These laws will prevent parents from accessing some family tax benefits unless their child is immunised.
