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Fireworks explode next to the Arc de Triomphe with "2023" projected on the building, at the Avenue des Champs-Elysees during New Year celebrations in Paris.
Updated January 1, 2023 at 12:57 AM ET
The year 2022 turned to 2023 in time zones across the world, starting in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Some of the first people who celebrated 2023 live in Kiribati, an island country in the Pacific Ocean, with a population of less than 122,000 people.
Australia, which is one of the first big countries to begin the year, started 2023 with a bang — 7,000 fireworks were launched from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and another 2,000 from the nearby Sydney Opera House, The Associated Press reported.
"Happy New Years, Australia, wishing you all the best for the year ahead," the country's prime minister, Anthony Albanese, tweeted.
Here's a look at how people are celebrating the new year in various countries.
Australia
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Fireworks can be seen over the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Sydney, Australia.
Japan
Richard A. Brooks / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
People try to cross the street shortly before midnight for New Year's celebrations in the Shibuya area of Tokyo.
Philippines
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Fireworks explode over buildings during New Year's celebrations in Manila, Philippines.
India
Punit Paranjpe / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
People celebrate at the sea promenade in Mumbai, India.
Indonesia
Adek Berry / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
Revelers celebrate the New Year at the Selamat Datang Monument at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Thailand
Lauren DeCicca / Getty Images
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Getty Images
Fireworks explode over the King Taksin Bridge in Bangkok, Thailand.
Pakistan
Rizwan Tabassum / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
People watch a fireworks show in Karachi.
Kenya
Yasuyoshi Chiba / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
People look at fireworks launching from the building of Old Mutual Tower to celebrate the new year in Nairobi.
Ivory Coast
Sia Kambou / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
Fireworks are set off over the Ebrie Lagoon and the General de Gaulle bridge during the New Year's celebration in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
Ukraine
Air raid sirens went off as Russian missiles rained down on several cities on New Year's Eve. The streets of Kyiv were deserted by midnight, the AP reported, as the city remains under an 11 p.m. curfew. Still, some managed to gather earlier.
Spencer Platt / Getty Images
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People gather near a Christmas tree decorated in the colors of the Ukrainian flag in a Kyiv square on New Year's Eve. Many residents are without power or water as the Russian missile assault continues throughout the country.
France
Germany
Adam Berry / Getty Images
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Visitors celebrate the new year at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany.
U.K.
Carl Court / Getty Images
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Getty Images
Fireworks and a drone show paying tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II light up the London skyline to celebrate the New Year. London's New Year's Eve firework display returned this year after it was canceled over pandemic concerns.
Brazil
Mario Tama / Getty Images
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Brazilians celebrate during fireworks marking the start of the New Year at Gonzaga beach on Jan. 1, 2023 in Santos, Brazil.
U.S.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
Yuki Iwamura / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
People kiss as confetti fills the air to mark the beginning of the new year, in Times Square, New York City, on Jan. 1, 2023.
Giulia Heyward is a weekend reporter for Digital News, based out of New York. She previously covered education and other national news as a reporting fellow at The New York Times and as the national education reporter at Capital B News. She interned for POLITICO, where she covered criminal justice reform in Florida, and CNN, as a writer for the trends & culture team. Her work has also been published in The Atlantic, HuffPost and The New Republic.
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