2006 North Korean missile test, Background
The North Korean missile test came after weeks of speculation that North Korea was poised to launch a missile, but neither their quantity nor their launch site were definitively anticipated. The U.S., Japan, and others warned North Korea prior to the incident that such a test would be construed by those nations as a provocative act. North Korea responded to such words by threatening an "annihilating" nuclear strike if the United States attacks or any other nation preemptively tried to destroy the missile before or after it launched.


2006 North Korean missile test, Background
The United States Northern Command, NORAD and the Federal Aviation Administration had, in previous days, placed restrictions on commercial and civil flight operations in the areas surrounding Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, and Fort Greely, Alaska, homes of U.S. Interceptor missiles.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response
The test came on the heels of the Six-party talks between North Korea, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States. Asian stocks and currencies slid along with European and United States stocks, while gold, silver, and oil rose amid news of the North Korean missiles.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response
No country proposed military action in response to the test fire. All calls for action have been diplomatic or economic.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, China
On July 5, 2006, the Foreign Ministry of China expressed concern over the North Korean missile tests. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao repeated calls for calm and restraint from "all parties involved". He pleaded for all sides to refrain from any actions that will further complicate the situation in the Korean Peninsula.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, China
In New York, the Chinese ambassador to the UN said North Korea's missile tests were "regrettable".


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Japan
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was notified of the firings on July 5 at 3:52 am, local time. Top Japanese officials, including Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe and Defense Agency chief Fukushiro Nukaga, each were notified at about the same time. By 4:50 am they had met at the prime minister's official residence to discuss a Japanese response. Junichiro Koizumi entered his office at 6:30 am, and U.S. ambassador J. Thomas Schieffer arrived twenty minutes later for discussions.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Japan
Meanwhile, Japanese foreign minister Taro Aso held a phone conversation with his American counterpart, Condoleezza Rice, in which they agreed to take up the matter with the UN Security Council. Abe also later announced that Japan would bring the launch issue before the UN Security Council, and it was agreed an emergency session would be held at 1400 GMT.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Japan
A few hours following the missile launches, Japan began economic sanctions of North Korea by banning the entry of North Korean officials, ship crews, chartered flights and the only direct passenger link between the two countries, the ferry Mangyongbong-92. Japan's agriculture minister, Shoichi Nakagawa, announced that Japan would not provide food aid to North Korea, and that agricultural trade restrictions between the two countries would be considered.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Japan
All Japanese Self-Defense Force branches were set on higher alert.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Japan
Shinzo Abe and Taro Aso subsequently talked about Japan's option on attacking bases in foreign soil in public, which were reported as plans for 'pre-emptive' strike and quickly denounced by South Korea and China as being belligerent.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Russia
According to Russia's Foreign Ministry official representative Mikhail Kaminin, the test-launch is "an act of provocation" which will impede the Six-party talks and further "complicate situation around North Korean nuclear program". [ sic]


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, Russia
However, President Putin has been quoted as saying that, while he was disappointed by the test firings, the North Koreans were right in their assertion that they had the legal right to perform such tests.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, South Korea
Unification Minister Lee Jong-Seok convened an emergency meeting to determine the objective of the missile launch, which is expected to prompt the U.S. and its allies to take punitive actions such as harsher economic sanctions against North Korea, ministry officials said. However, on July 17, 2006, Chosunilbo reported that unless further tests are conducted, government is not planning any measures as all of its economic support are within the sanction passed by U.N.Small groups of South Korean citizens set fire to North Korean flags and a picture of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, United States
President Bush was briefed on the activity around 4:40 pm CDT (21:40 UTC). He spoke in the Oval Office on the tests on July 5, 2006 and stated that the tests only "isolated Korea". Bush has said that America would continue to encourage six-party talks, rather than be drawn into one-on-one negotiations with North Korea.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, United States
Christopher Hill, the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, is set to head to the region on Wednesday, July 5, 2006. National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley described the tests as "provocative behavior". George Bush met Stephen Hadley, defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as the tests were going on. Condoleezza Rice had spoken via phone with four of her counterparts in the six-party talks, including Taro Aso, as mentioned earlier. Condoleezza Rice and Stephen Hadley later met South Korea's national security advisor to discuss the launch.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Members of the six-party talks, United States
NORAD was put on heightened alert in the past two weeks and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency told CNN that two missiles for interception of ballistic missiles were activated in California prior to North Korea's launch.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Other UN Security Council members, UN Security Council
The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting for Wednesday, July 5, 2006. The council members agreed that they should do something about the missile test and that they should meet again later to discuss the possibility of issuing a Council resolution.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Other UN Security Council members, UN Security Council
Japan, with the support of the United States and the United Kingdom, introduced a measure that would have restricted countries from transferring funds, material, or technology to North Korea. Russia and China, with veto power, resisted the resolution, saying a press statement should be issued. In an informal media conference, Russian UN ambassador Vitaly I. Churkin stated that, rather than sanctions, it may be more appropriate for the President of the United Nations Security Council to issue a condemning statement similar to what was done after the North Korean missile firing in 1998.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Other UN Security Council members, Argentina
Argentina's foreign ministry issued a communique expressing its "serious concern over the missile test launches" and urging the North Korean state to "renew diplomatic dialogue and return to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty". The Argentine ambassador to the UN, and its representative in the UN Security Council, César Mayoral, considered that the missile tests are "threatening world peace and security". The Argentine government has expressed, however, its reluctance to the possibility of imposing economic sanctions, emphasizing instead its desire to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Other UN Security Council members, United Kingdom and the European Union
The UK branded North Korea's actions "irresponsible". Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said: "These tests are provocative, and only serve to raise tensions in the region."


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Other UN Security Council members, United Kingdom and the European Union
The current EU president condemned the 'provocative' missile test. According to it the test places additional strains on the regional stability 'at a time when the unresolved nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula requires mutual confidence building'.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Australia
Australia's Prime Minister John Howard called the test "extremely provocative" and also stated "I hope that what North Korea has done is condemned as provocative not only by Australia and Japan but also by other countries in the six-power group."


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Australia
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer expressed his displeasure to the North Korean Ambassador to Australia, Chon Jae Hong. Australia cancelled a planned diplomatic visit to North Korea amid the news.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Canada
Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay added Canada's voice to the world condemnation on Wednesday, calling the launches a "major threat" to stability in the region that undermine efforts to halt the spread of weapons of mass destruction.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Canada
MacKay chided Pyongyang for its use of brinkmanship in dealing with the international community.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Canada
"Canada believes that such tactics are counterproductive and ultimately destined to fail", he said in a news release posted on the Foreign Affairs Department's website. "Such actions can only diminish North Korea's security, not enhance it."


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Czech Republic
The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its "deep concern" over the tests, describing them as a "serious threat to the international community". It called on North Korea to return to the six-party Talks.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Hungary
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary issued this statement on July 5, 2006:


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Hungary
Hungary definitely condemns the missile experiments carried out by the People's Democratic Republic of Korea on the July 4. In our view, this step gravely endangers the stability and the security of the region. We find it an especially unfortunate development that the experiment was carried out in spite of the repeated warning of the international community. North Korea’s step jeopardises the renewal of the six-nation talks set up to solve the North Korean nuclear question. Hungary finds it necessary for the People's Democratic Republic of Korea to terminate its activity aimed at the development of long-range missiles, to respect the self-imposed moratorium on missile experiments and to return to the six-nation talks as a constructive partner as soon as possible.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Malaysia
Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar expressed his country's "deep concern" over the tests and urged all parties to show restraint and resume negotiations.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, New Zealand
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark urged the United Nations to bring its full weight to bear on North Korea after it announced it had conducted the underground nuclear test. Clark condemned the test, Clark also said "it will back whatever measures the U.N. Security Council decides on". Winston Peters, the Foreign Minister of New Zealand, condemned North Korea's missile tests on behalf of his government, describing them as showing "wanton disregard" for the warnings issued beforehand by the international community. He expressed his hope that North Korea would "step back now from taking any more rash steps" and resume negotiations.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Norway
Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre condemned the tests as "highly regrettable" and stated his belief that they further escalate regional tension. He affirmed that Norway continues "to be deeply worried over North Korea's nuclear weapons programme".


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Philippines
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo condemned the tests, saying that the "world has had enough of weapons of mass destruction", urging the reclusive state to resume six-party talks at once.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Philippines
In addition, Philippine military and defense officials have said a potential North Korean missile attack against Philippine soil cannot be intercepted, calling for the swift modernization of the Philippine military.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Singapore
Singaporean representatives, through the foreign ministry, sharply rebuked North Korean officials for launching the missiles, calling it a "provocative move". It warned that any future moves similar to what happened a few days ago will only lead to trouble in the Asian region instead of stability and called on Kim Jong-il to return to six-party talks at once.


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Sweden
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Eliasson articulated the regret of the Swedish government and noted that the DPRK ambassador in Stockholm had been summoned to the Foreign Ministry to hear Sweden's "concern over the missile tests and the risk of a nuclear arms race in East Asia".


2006 North Korean missile test, International response, Others, Thailand
Thailand's Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon expressed concern Wednesday over North Korea's long-range missile test, warning the move will lead to regional distrust and threaten world peace, and he plans to raise the issue with his US counterpart early next week. Mr Kantathi urged the communist country to return to the six-party talks. Thailand has been playing an informal role in the talk to push for the progress of the negotiations among the principal parties – North Korea, South Korea, Japan, China, Russia and the United States.


2006 North Korean nuclear test
The 2006 North Korean nuclear test was the detonation of a nuclear device conducted by North Korea on October 9, 2006.


2006 North Korean nuclear test
On October 3, 2006, North Korea announced its intention to conduct a nuclear test. The blast is generally estimated to have had an explosive force of less than one kiloton, and some radioactive output was detected. United States officials suggested the device may have been a nuclear explosive that misfired.


2006 North Korean nuclear test
An anonymous official at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing told a South Korean newspaper that the explosive output was smaller than expected. Because of the secretive nature of North Korea and small yield of the test, there remains some question as to whether it was a successful test of an unusually small device (which would have required sophisticated technology), or a partially failed "fizzle" or dud. A scientific paper later estimated the yield as 0.48 kilotons.


2006 North Korean nuclear test
It was reported that the government of the People's Republic of China was given a 20-minute advance warning that the test was about to occur. China sent an emergency alert to Washington, D.C., through the U.S. embassy in Beijing at which time President George W. Bush was told by National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley "shortly after" 10 p.m. (UTC-5) that a test was imminent.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
North Korea had been suspected of maintaining a clandestine nuclear weapons development program since the early 1980s when it constructed a plutonium-producing Magnox nuclear reactor at Yongbyon, and various diplomatic means had been used by the international community to attempt to limit North Korea's nuclear work to peaceful and scientific means and encouraging North Korea to participate in international treaties.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
In 1994, the United States and North Korea signed the "Agreed Framework", whereby North Korea agreed to freeze its graphite moderated reactor program in exchange for fuel, moves toward normalization of political and economic relations, and the construction of two modern nuclear power plants powered by light-water reactors. Eventually, North Korea's existing nuclear facilities were to be dismantled, and the spent reactor fuel taken out of the country.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
However, in 2002, rumors circulated that North Korea was pursuing both uranium enrichment technology and plutonium reprocessing technologies in defiance of the Agreed Framework. North Korea reportedly told American diplomats in private that they were in possession of nuclear weapons, citing American failures to uphold their own end of the "Agreed Framework" as a motivating force. North Korea later clarified that it did not possess weapons yet, but that it had a right to possess them.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
In late 2002 and early 2003, North Korea began to take steps to eject International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors while re-routing spent fuel rods for plutonium reprocessing for weapons purposes. Throughout the course of 2003, North Korean and American officials exchanged harsh words and staged military exercises which were interpreted by the other party to be aggressive.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
As late as the end of 2003, North Korea claimed that it would freeze its nuclear program in exchange for American concessions – in particular a non-aggression treaty – but a final agreement was not reached and talks continued to be cancelled or fall through. North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 2003 after not receiving light-water reactors promised by the United States which were going to be delivered in exchange for North Korea not developing their own power plants, as understood in the "Agreed Framework".


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
In early 2004 former Los Alamos National Laboratory director Siegfried S. Hecker, as part of an unofficial U.S. delegation, was allowed to inspect North Korea's plutonium production facilities. Hecker later testified before the United States Congress that while North Korea seems to have successfully extracted plutonium from the spent fuel rods, he saw no evidence at the time that they had actually produced a workable weapon. In 2007, the former senior scientist of Pakistan, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan claimed that North Korea's nuclear program was well advanced before his visit in 1993 with Benazir Bhutto, former prime minister.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
In September 2004, though, North Korean officials announced they had successfully processed Yongbyon plutonium into a workable nuclear deterrent. Through 2005 more diplomatic talks were attempted between the United States, North Korea, South Korea, China, Japan, and Russia (the six-party talks) but little concrete change occurred.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
Because North Korea had not conducted a successful test of a nuclear device, the extent of its nuclear weapons program remained ambiguous through 2005 and much of 2006. Though North Korea conducted numerous missile tests (some of which were branded failures by international experts), the question of whether they had actually mastered all aspects of nuclear weapons technology – ranging from material production to complex nuclear weapon design needed to produce the final detonation – remained unanswered.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Background
As of 2013 there was agreement in the U.S. intelligence community that North Korea could build a "modest" bomb with a yield of between 6 and 10 kilotons, but disagreement between Defense Intelligence Agency, CIA and the United States State Department over whether it could deploy a miniaturized warhead on a missile.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
Rumours of an impending nuclear test circulated during 2005 and early 2006, though none came to immediate fruition. On October 3, 2006, however, North Korea claimed that it would soon conduct a nuclear test, and on October 9, 2006, the state claimed to have successfully conducted a test. The Korean Central News Agency, the state's news agency, issued the following statement:


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
The field of scientific research in the DPRK successfully conducted an underground nuclear test under secure conditions on October 9, Juche 95 (2006), at a stirring time when all the people of the country are making a great leap forward in the building of a great, prosperous, powerful socialist nation.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
It has been confirmed that there was no such danger as radioactive emission in the course of the nuclear test as it was carried out under scientific consideration and careful calculation.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
The nuclear test was conducted with indigenous wisdom and technology 100 percent. It marks an historic event as it greatly encouraged and pleased the KPA and people that have wished to have powerful self-reliant defence capability.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
It will contribute to defending the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the area around it.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements
Later, the North Korean envoy to the U.N. said it would be better for the Security Council to offer its congratulations rather than pass "useless" resolutions.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Threats of war
On October 10, 2006, an unnamed North Korean official was quoted as saying that North Korea could launch a nuclear missile unless the United States would sit down for face-to-face talks. However, few, if any, military and defense experts believed that the North Koreans possessed the technology to mount a nuclear warhead to a ballistic missile.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Threats of war
On October 11, the Associated Press reported that North Korea had threatened war if attempts would be made to penalize them through further sanctions. This statement occurred even as Japan moved to tighten sanctions on the country. South Korea said they were ensuring their troops were prepared for nuclear war.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Threats of war
A U.S. Army major, stationed along the border between North and South Korea, said that the overall situation was "calm" but that "Communist troops were more boldly trying to provoke their southern counterparts: spitting across the demarcation line, making throat-slashing hand gestures, flashing their middle fingers and trying to talk to the troops."


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Threats of war
On the day of the test, the North Korean Foreign Ministry stated that "if the U.S. keeps pestering us and increases pressure, we will regard it as a declaration of war and will take a series of physical corresponding measures".


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Threats of war
On October 17, North Korea denounced UN sanctions over its nuclear test as a declaration of war and the United States and other nations suspected that North Korea was seeking to conduct a second nuclear test despite international pressure.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Kim Jong-il's alleged apology
On October 20, 2006, Kim Jong-il allegedly said that he was "sorry" over his country's nuclear test, and wished to return to talk with the United Nations. According to a Chinese envoy, Kim Jong-il said,


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Kim Jong-il's alleged apology
If the U.S. makes a concession to some degree, we will also make a concession to some degree, whether it be bilateral talks or six-party talks


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Kim Jong-il's alleged apology
Kim Jong-Il also stated that he had no future plans to test another nuclear device; the U.S. State Department discounted this report.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, North Korean statements, Return to six-party talks
On October 31, 2006, North Korea agreed to rejoin six-nation disarmament talks. The agreement was struck in a day of unpublicized discussions between the senior envoys from the United States, China and North Korea at a government guesthouse in Beijing. The talks resumed on December 18, 2006.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
The low yield of the test initially raised questions as to whether it was a nuclear explosion but detection of airborne radioactive isotopes by a United States military aircraft confirmed that it was a nuclear explosion. Radioactive isotopes of the element xenon are produced by the atom splitting that takes place in nuclear explosions and readily seeps out even from underground tests. The advance warning of the test sent to the Chinese government reportedly said that the planned test yield was to be equivalent to approximately four kilotons in strength, but most outside estimates, based largely on seismic readings, put the yield at much less.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
At a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov stated that "the power of the tests carried out was 5 to 15 kilotons", though this early estimate is much higher than any other international estimate. An early report by the Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources of South Korea said the blast was equivalent to an earthquake registering 3.58 on the Richter scale, which corresponds to the explosion of 100 tons of TNT. This was later revised to at least 800 tons, corresponding to a blast wave of 4.2. The U.S. Geological Survey also estimates the blast wave at 4.2. (Note that 4.2 is considerably more powerful than 3.58 because the Richter scale is a logarithmic scale.)


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
According to Jane's Defence Weekly, "initial and unconfirmed South Korean reports indicate that the test was a fission device with a yield of 0.55 kT ... The figure of 0.55 kT, however, seems too low given the 4.2 register on the Richter scale. This could suggest – depending upon the geological make-up of the test site – a yield of 2–12 kT".


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
An official in France's Atomic Energy Commission reported that they estimated the blast was "about or less than a kiloton" and expressed uncertainty about whether or not the blast was actually nuclear. There have been various large planned and unplanned non-nuclear explosions comparable in yield to small nuclear detonations, such as the U.S. "Minor Scale" explosion from 1985, which used conventional explosives to simulate a 4 kiloton detonation.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
According to the Washington Times anonymous U.S. intelligence sources speculated there "was a seismic event that registered about 4 on the Richter scale, but it still isn't clear if it was a nuclear test. You can get that kind of seismic reading from high explosives". The Wall Street Journal explains that this blast was equivalent to the explosive force of about US$100,000 worth of ammonium nitrate. International experts have said that it will take some time to confirm whether it was a successful nuclear test, as North Korea claimed, or an unsuccessful one ("fizzle"), or perhaps not even a nuclear test at all.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
However 7 years later, after the 2013 nuclear test, the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, a state-run geology research institute in Germany, estimated the yield ranging at minimum of 700 tons to the max of 2 kilotons and the 2009 test ranges from minimum of 5 kilotons to the max of 12 kilotons instead with relevant statistics.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
By comparison, the first plutonium core nuclear device tested by the United States (Trinity test) had a yield of 20 kilotons of TNT, and the first nuclear device detonated by India in 1974, though of primitive design, had a yield in the region of 8 kilotons of TNT. If the North Korean nuclear test is less than even a kiloton in yield, it would be a historically small inaugural nuclear test.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
Even if it were as many as the reported intentional yield of 4 kt it would be the smallest nuclear test ever conducted by a state as a first test. Some advanced nuclear powers have produced very small tactical nuclear weapons in the low-kiloton range, but their development is far more technologically challenging than that of weapons in the 15–20 kiloton range, requiring advanced weapons materials and core geometries.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
If the North Korean device was significantly short of its predicted yield, it could be classified as a "fizzle" indicating that some aspect of the nuclear weapon design or material production did not function correctly. In a fizzle the warhead blows itself apart too fast for the nuclear reactions to generate a large amount of energy, or fails to form a supercritical mass for some other reason. A fizzle can result from predetonation, insufficient precision in the explosive lenses used to compress the plutonium core, or impurities in the plutonium itself, among other factors. A fizzle can also result from the use of reactor grade plutonium rather than weapons-grade material.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
On October 13, 2006, CNN reported that two U.S. government officials with access to classified information stated that the initial air sampling over North Korea shows no indication of radioactive debris from the event that North Korea says was an underground nuclear test. Some hours later, the report was reversed and stated there was evidence of radiation, though not enough data has been collected yet to be conclusive. The newspaper Hankyoreh reported an unnamed North Korean diplomat had acknowledged that the actual yield was smaller than expected.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
On October 16, 2006, the United States government reported that a test had found radioactive gas compatible with a nuclear explosion.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
The office of John Negroponte, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence confirmed that the size of the explosion was less than 1 kiloton.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Yield estimates and authenticity
The explosion was also recorded worldwide by the global monitoring system operated by the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). Two weeks after the detonation, a CTBTO radionuclide monitoring station in northern Canada detected traces of the radioactive noble gas xenon in the air. Backtracking calculations by analysts at the CTBTO indicated that the xenon particles originated from North Korea and that the explosion had been nuclear in nature.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Test site location
According to initial reports from South Korean government sources, the test was carried out at a mountain in Musadan-ri in Hwadae-kun, near the city of Kilchu, in North Hamgyŏng province on the northeast coast. However, later reports from the state National Intelligence Service identified the site as being a place in Sangpyong-ri, about 15 km from the coastal city of Kimchaek and about 50 km west of Musadan-ri.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Test site location
The Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources reported seismic waves measuring 3.58 on the Richter scale. The United States Geological Survey reported that a seismic event occurred at 01:35:28 UTC (10:35:28 am local time, UTC+9) on October 9, 2006, and measured 4.3 on the Richter scale. It occurred at the geographic coordinates  with a horizontal location uncertainty of ±9.6 km (6.0 miles). This is near Mantapsan, 73 km (45 mi) north of Kimchaek, 90 km (56 mi) southwest of Chongjin, 180 km (110 mi) south of Yanji, and 385 km (239 mi) northeast of Pyongyang.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, International reaction
International condemnation of the tests by governments has been nearly unanimous, including from North Korea's close ally and benefactor, the People's Republic of China. All five veto-wielding permanent members of the United Nations Security Council condemned the nuclear test. On October 10, however, South Korean Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook told Parliament that South Korea will not support any United Nations resolution containing military measures against North Korea in retaliation for its nuclear test.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Economic impact
Negative economic effects were seen throughout the region after the test. South Korea's KOSPI index fell 2.4% to 1319.4, forcing the Korea Exchange to suspend trading for five minutes upon receiving the news. The Japanese and Taiwanese stock exchanges were closed for a market holiday on the day of the test. The Japanese yen also fell to a seven-month low against the United States dollar while oil on the world market rose above US$60 a barrel. Gold prices rose 1% as a safe haven investment.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, Economic impact
Several stock markets in Asia from the Singapore Exchange to the Philippine Stock Exchange have traded lower, possibly due to the tests. American stock markets were mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down at its open the next day; however, at 10:30 am EDT, the Dow rebounded and concluded the day with an increase of 7.60 points (+0.06%). NSE and BSE of India, however, showed some strength.


2006 North Korean nuclear test, United Nations' response
On October 14, 2006, the UN Security Council unanimously approved limited military and economic sanctions against North Korea. All five permanent members stated that the sanctions, set out in UNSC Resolution 1718, were intended to penalize the country's regime, not inhabitants. They also stated that if North Korea were willing to cooperate and complied with all the measures contained in the resolution, the sanctions would be lifted. The United States compromised on its initial desire to block all imports of military equipment, and to have an unlimited reference to Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter so providing a legal justification for future military action, in order to gain full support for the resolution.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season
The 2006 North Queensland Cowboys season was the 12th in the club's history. Coached by Graham Murray and captained by Travis Norton, they competed in the NRL's 2006 Telstra Premiership.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season, Season summary
Coming off the back of their maiden Grand Final appearance, the Cowboys were strong premiership favourites heading into the 2006 season. They looked like they would be living up to those expectations, with a six-game winning streak to start the season. It wouldn't last though, as the club would lose eight of their next 10, including a six-game losing streak which left them outside the Top 8 halfway through the season.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season, Season summary
A win against arch-rivals Brisbane in the Queensland derby put them into 6th place with six games remaining but they would lose Johnathan Thurston to injury and another losing streak followed, dashing their finals aspirations. Wins over South Sydney and Parramatta ended their season a good note but it wasn't enough, the pre-season title favourites finishing the season in 9th.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season, Season summary
Despite the disappointing season, 2006 saw the debut of club legend Gavin Cooper, who made his debut in Round 2. Cooper would leave the club at the end of the year, spending two seasons with the Gold Coast Titans and two with the Penrith Panthers before rejoining the Cowboys in 2011. Cooper would become an integral part of the club, starting in their 2015 NRL Grand Final and 2016 World Club Challenge winning sides.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season, Season summary
2006 was also the final season for club stalwarts Travis Norton and Matt Sing. Norton, who captained the side from 2004 to 2007, and Sing, who scored 73 tries for the club and rejuvenated his career in the process, were key figures in the club's transformation from cellar dwellers into a credible premiership threat. In 2015, Sing was one of the two inaugural inductees into the Cowboys Hall of Fame.


2006 North Queensland Cowboys season, Ladder
1 The Melbourne Storm were later stripped of this minor premiership due to gross salary cap breaches. 2 The New Zealand Warriors were deducted 4 competition points due to gross salary cap breaches.


2006 North Texas Mean Green football team
The 2006 North Texas Mean Green football team represented the University of North Texas (UNT) during the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Mean Green played their home games at Fouts Field in Denton, Texas, competing in the Sun Belt Conference. The team was led by Darrell Dickey in his ninth and final season as the program's head coach, finishing with an overall record of 3–9, going 2–5 in conference play, finishing in 7th place in the Sun Belt.


2006 North Texas Mean Green football team
Following the season, Dickey was fired. He finished at UNT with an overall record of 42–64.


2006 North Texas Mean Green football team, Game summaries, Florida International
The Mean Green's contest with the Florida International Golden Panthers lasted seven overtime periods before North Texas kicker Denis Hopovac made his fifth field goal of the night to bring the team ahead 25–22. Hopovac's nine attempts tied an NCAA FBS record for field goal attempts in a game. Hopovac and FIU kicker Dustin Rivest combined for eight missed field goals.


2006 North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council election
Elections to North Tyneside Metropolitan Council took place on 4 May 2006 on the same day as other local council elections in England.


2006 North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council election
North Tyneside Council is elected "in thirds" which means one councillor from each three-member ward is elected each year for the first three years with a fourth year when the mayoral election takes place.


2006 North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council election, Benton
A further by-election was held on 28 September 2006. Details of this can be found here.


2006 North West 200 Races
The 2006 North West 200 Races took place on Saturday 13 May 2006 at the 8.966 mile circuit, dubbed "The Triangle", based around the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush, in Northern Ireland.


2006 North West 200 Races
Steve Plater and Bruce Anstey both scored double victories at the meeting. Robert Dunlop also recorded the last of his 15 victories, winning the 125 cc event. The current course lap record was set by Steve Plater at 124.109 mph (199.734 km/h) during the Supersport race.


2006 Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament
The 2006 Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament began on May 25 and ended on May 27, 2006, at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, New Jersey. The league's top four teams competed in the double elimination tournament. Fourth-seeded Sacred Heart won their first tournament championship and earned the Northeast Conference's automatic bid to the 2006 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament.


2006 Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament, Seeding and format
The top four finishers were seeded one through four based on conference regular-season winning percentage.


2006 Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament, All-Tournament Team, Most Valuable Player
Bobby McKee of Sacred Heart was named Tournament Most Valuable Player.


2006 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2006 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament was held in March. The tournament featured the league's top eight seeds. Monmouth won the championship, its first, and received the conferences automatic bid to the 2006 NCAA Tournament.


2006 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, Format
For the second straight year, the NEC Men’s Basketball Tournament will consist of an eight-team playoff format with all games played at the home of the higher seed. After the quarterfinals, the teams will be reseeded so the highest remaining seed plays the lowest remaining seed in the semifinals.


2006 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, All-tournament team
Marques Alston, MUChris Kenny, MUAndrea Crosariol, FDUChad Timberlake, FDUJeremy Chappell, RMU


2006 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team
The 2006 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team was an American football team that represented Northern Arizona University (NAU) as a member of the Big Sky Conference (Big Sky) during the 2006 NCAA Division I FCS football season. In their ninth year under head coach Jerome Souers, the Lumberjacks compiled a 6–5 record (5–3 against conference opponents), outscored opponents by a total of 378 to 296, and finished fourth out of nine teams in the Big Sky.


2006 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team
The team played its home games at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome, commonly known as the Walkup Skydome, in Flagstaff, Arizona.


2006 Northern Illinois Huskies football team
The 2006 Northern Illinois Huskies football team represented Northern Illinois University during the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Northern Illinois competed as a member of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). They were coached by Joe Novak.


2006 Northern Iowa Panthers football team
The 2006 Northern Iowa Panthers football team represented the University of Northern Iowa in the 2006 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The team was coached by fifth-year head coach Mark Farley and played their home games in the UNI-Dome.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy
The 2006 Northern Ireland Trophy was the 2006 edition of the Northern Ireland Trophy snooker tournament, held from 13 to 20 August 2006, at the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland. Ding Junhui defeated Ronnie O'Sullivan by nine frames to six (9–6) in the final to lift his third ranking title whilst still a teenager. In the semi-finals, Ding defeated Stephen Lee 6–1, and O'Sullivan beat Dominic Dale 6–0. O'Sullivan made the highest break with his 140. The defending champion, Matthew Stevens, lost in round 3. The tournament, consisting of the top 32 and 16 qualifiers, was the first of seven WPBSA ranking events in the 2006/2007 season, preceding the Grand Prix.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary
The Northern Ireland Trophy was first staged in 2005 at the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland, as a non-ranking tournament featuring the top 16 and four wildcards, generally Irish. In the following year, it was granted ranking status and took the form of a regular tournament.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary
The 2006 tournament was the first of seven World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) ranking events in the 2006/2007 season, preceding the Grand Prix, and the first event since last season's World Championship won by Graeme Dott, who defeated Peter Ebdon 18–14 in the final. The defending champion was Matthew Stevens, who defeated Stephen Hendry 9–7 in the previous year's final.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary
Going into the tournament, Joe Swail, provisionally ranked number 13, said he was targeting a place in the top 16; and Dott, the World Champion, said interest in his results would increase, and that he felt capable of winning more tournaments. Shaun Murphy, the 2005 World Champion, said the pressure would be off him in the 2006/2007 season.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Qualifying
The qualifying stage took place between players ranked from 33 to 48 and those lower for one of 16 places in the final stage between 29 and 31 July 2006 at Pontin's Snooker Centre, Prestatyn, Wales. The matches were best-of-9 frames until the semi-finals. Successful qualifiers in this round included Northern Irish player Mark Allen, who defeated Tom Ford 5–3, and said the Waterfront—where he made his professional debut last year—was the best venue he had played at. Gerard Greene defeated Judd Trump 5–2, and Dominic Dale beat Dermot McGlinchey 5–1. Jimmy White, who had slipped from 8th to 35th in the rankings, lost 3–5 to Jimmy Michie, and said he was "match-shy" rather than nervous. Irish players Joe Delaney and Fergal O'Brien lost to Rod Lawler and Paul Davies respectively, both 3–5.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
In round 1 the 16 qualifiers went through to face players ranked 17–32. Swail lost 1–5 to Greene, who said the crowd was on his opponent's side. Tied at 3–3 Mark Selby won the seventh frame after Tony Drago missed a pink, eventually winning the match 5–4. Jamie Burnett made breaks of 117, 77, and 55 in defeating David Gray 5–2.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
Allen lost 1–5 to Ryan Day, a match in which Day made breaks of 79, 73, 56, and 91, after which Day said, "as soon as I started knocking in some breaks they went a bit quiet", in reference to the crowd. Michael Holt lost 2–5 to Mike Dunn, a player ranked 34 places below him. James Wattana defeated Michie 5–4 in a match that lasted over three hours. Michie was 1–3 down but went on to lead 4–3 and 30–0 points before he missed a straightforward pot, eventually losing the frame. Michie had the first chance in the next but also lost that frame. Tian Pengfei, on his 19th birthday, made breaks of 50, 62, and 115 in defeating Andy Hicks.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
. RTÉ Sport. 14 August 2006. Retrieved 9 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
Dee, John. . The Nation. p. 32. 16 August 2006. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
(in Chinese) (). My Billiards Online (via Sohu). 14 August 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
. (in Chinese) (). My Billiards Online (via Sohu). 14 August 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 1
. Lancashire Evening Post. 14 August 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 2
. BBC Sport. 15 August 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 2
. BBC Sport. 16 August 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 2
Marshall, Alan. . Daily Record. 14 August 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 2
. Irish Examiner. 15 August 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 3
. BBC Sport. 17 August 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 3
. RTÉ Sport. 17 August 2006. Retrieved 13 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Round 3
Yates, Phil. . Irish Independent. 17 August 2006. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Quarter-finals
. BBC Sport. 18 August 2010. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Semi-finals
. BBC Sport. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 8 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Final
In the best-of-17 final Ding defeated O'Sullivan to lift his third ranking title whilst still a teenager.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Tournament summary, Final
. RTÉ Sport. 20 August 2006. Retrieved 14 October 2010.


2006 Northern Ireland Trophy, Prize fund
The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below:


2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team
The 2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University in the Big Ten Conference during the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Head coach Randy Walker died unexpectedly on June 29, 2006 of an apparent heart attack at the age of 52. Pat Fitzgerald, seen by many before the tragedy as Walker's eventual successor, was promoted from linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator to head coach on July 7. The Wildcats also had to replace their offensive coordinator, offensive line coach, and Brett Basanez, the team's former four-year starter at quarterback and holder of dozens of school records. Not surprisingly, the 2006 season was not as successful as previous years.


2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team
Northwestern began their season with a win at Miami, Walker's alma mater, in an emotional game that featured several tributes to the late coach. However, the season went downhill from there. The second game was a blowout loss to I-AA New Hampshire. The low point of the season came on October 21 with a home loss to Michigan State in which the Spartans staged the largest comeback in Division I-A history. A win against Illinois in the final game gave the Wildcats a 4–8 record for the year and saved them from finishing last in the Big Ten.


2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team
The high point of the season, despite coming in defeat, was Northwestern's surprisingly close and competitive play against undefeated and #3 ranked Michigan. Despite being held to -13 rushing yards, the Wildcats came within one-possession of tying the game early in the third quarter and prevented the Wolverines from scoring in the fourth quarter en route to a 17–3 final.


2006 Norwegian Figure Skating Championships
The 2006 Norwegian Figure Skating Championships was held in Trondheim on January 28–29, 2006. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's and ladies' singles. The results were used to choose the teams to the 2006 World Championships, the 2006 European Championships, the 2006 Nordic Championships, and the 2006 World Junior Championships.


2006 Norwegian First Division
The 2006 1. divisjon season (referred to as Adeccoligaen for sponsorship reasons) was a Norwegian second-tier football season. The season kicked off on April 9, 2006, with eleven rounds being played before the World Cup break on June 5. The league resumed on July 2 and the final round was played on November 5, 2006.


2006 Norwegian First Division
Strømsgodset were promoted to the Tippeligaen as First Division winners, along with Aalesund who finished second. Strømsgodset will be playing in the top division for the first time since 2001. Aalesund, meanwhile, return to Tippeligaen after being relegated in 2005.


2006 Norwegian First Division, Relegated teams
These two teams were relegated from the Tippeligaen in 2005. 12th-place finishers Molde defeated Moss in the playoff to retain their spot in the highest division.


2006 Norwegian First Division, Promoted teams
These four teams were promoted from the 2. divisjon in 2005:


2006 Norwegian Football Cup
The 2006 Norwegian Football Cup was the 101st edition of the Norwegian annual football knock-out tournament. The tournament started on 10 May and was contested by 128 teams, going through 7 rounds before a winner could be declared. The final match was played on 12 November at Ullevaal Stadium, and marked the end of the 2006 Norwegian football season.


2006 Norwegian Football Cup, Third round
This was the last round in which the Norwegian FA determined match-ups.


2006 Norwegian Football Cup Final
The 2006 Norwegian Football Cup Final was the final match of the 2006 Norwegian Football Cup, the 101st season of the Norwegian Football Cup, the premier Norwegian football cup competition organized by the Football Association of Norway (NFF). The match was played on 12 November 2006 at the Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, and opposed two Tippeligaen sides Fredrikstad and Sandefjord. Fredrikstad defeated Sandefjord 3–0 to claim the Norwegian Cup for an eleventh time in their history.


2006 Norwich City Council election
The 2006 Norwich City Council election took place on 6 May 2006 to elect members of Norwich City Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections. One third of the council seats were up for election. The council remained under no overall control, with the Labour Party overtaking the Liberal Democrats as the largest party.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
The 2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Charlie Weis and played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana. The team completed the season with a record of ten wins and three losses that culminated in a post-season appearance in the 2007 Sugar Bowl and a number 19 ranking in the nation.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Pre-season
After finishing 9–3 in 2005, Notre Dame began the 2006 season ranked No. 3 in the USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 2 in the Associated Press Poll. These were Notre Dame's highest preseason rankings since 1994, when they occupied the same positions in both polls.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Pre-season, Roster changes
The Irish lost nine former starters to graduation and the NFL after the 2005 season, including five offensive starters, three defensive, and placekicker D.J. Fitzpatrick. However, the Irish returned many key players such as quarterback Brady Quinn, wide receiver Jeff Samardzija, running back Darius Walker, and safety Tom Zbikowski from the previous year's squad, Notre Dame received much pre-season hype as a possible national championship contender.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Pre-season, Recruits
In Weis' first full year of recruiting, the Irish signed 28 recruits. The top ten ranked recruiting class, included three five star recruits on offense and 14 four star recruits with eight on offense and six on defense.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Pre-season, Award candidates
Quinn also entered the season as one of the favorites to win the coveted Heisman Trophy. Along with Quinn, the following Fighting Irish football players were named to national award watchlists for the 2006 season:


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Pre-season, Award candidates
Notre Dame's three players on the Maxwell Award watchlist tied Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, and USC for most nominees.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech drew first blood when quarterback Reggie Ball connected on a four-yard touchdown pass with receiver Calvin Johnson at the end of the first quarter. Georgia Tech's defense continued to menace 3rd-ranked Notre Dame's offense, while a Travis Bell field goal increased Tech's lead to 10–0. It was the last time Georgia Tech would score, however. Notre Dame orchestrated a 14-play, 80-yard drive right before the half, punctuated by a five-yard rushing touchdown from Brady Quinn, to close the score to 10–7 at the half.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Georgia Tech
Coach Charlie Weis adjusted at halftime and began the second half determined to establish the Irish running game. The move paid off when running back Darius Walker hit paydirt on Notre Dame's first drive of the second half, scoring on a 13-yard touchdown run to put the Irish ahead for the first time in 2006, 14–10. Both defenses tightened, as the teams traded punts.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Georgia Tech
With Notre Dame facing a 4th-and-1 at the Georgia Tech 47-yard line with 1:10 left to play in the game, Georgia Tech appeared to be on the verge of getting the ball back with a chance to win the game. However, Weis gambled and elected to go for the first down rather than punt. Weis' gamble was rewarded when Quinn picked up the yard on a quarterback sneak, giving Notre Dame the first down and enabling them to run the clock out for the 14–10 victory.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Georgia Tech
Quinn completed 23 of 38 passes for 246 yards. Quinn rushed for a score, but was held without a passing touchdown. Walker rushed 22 times for 99 yards and one touchdown, while Rhema McKnight was Notre Dame's leading receiver with 8 receptions for 108 yards. Despite being confounded by Georgia Tech's defense all night, Notre Dame was able to seize control during the second half and walk away with the victory in its 2006 season opener.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Georgia Tech
Both teams notably had a player who would go on to be better known in a different sport, for Notre Dame wide receiver Jeff Samardzija would join Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs and Georgia Tech defensive lineman Joe Anoa'i would sign with WWE and become a multi-time world champion as Roman Reigns.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Penn State
Penn State came to Notre Dame for the first time since the 1992 Snow Bowl game between the two. The game began as a defensive battle with Notre Dame scoring the only points of the first quarter on a field goal. However, the Irish offense picked up in the second quarter as quarterback Brady Quinn threw two touchdown passes (his first of the season) to Jeff Samardzija and Rhema McKnight. With another field goal, Notre Dame led 20–0 at the half.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Penn State
In the third quarter Penn State quarterback, Anthony Morelli fumbled the ball during a lateral pass as he ran an option play. Tom Zbikowski picked up the fumble and ran it for a touchdown. Penn State would score their first points later in the quarter on a 28-yard field goal by Kevin Kelly, but the Irish scored again on a 1-yard touchdown run by Travis Thomas. In the fourth quarter Brady Quinn threw a third touchdown to Darius Walker, Morelli threw his only touchdown of the day to Deon Butler, and Penn State running back Daryll Clark ran a 5-yard touchdown with time running out. The game ended with Notre Dame winning 41–17.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan
The Michigan Wolverines came to Notre Dame having lost three of the last four games to the Irish and having not won at Notre Dame since 1994, the year before Lloyd Carr became head coach. The game began with Notre Dame receiving the ball on the opening kickoff. On the second play, Brady Quinn's pass was intercepted by Prescott Burgess who ran it back for a 21-yard touchdown to put Michigan ahead 7–0.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan
After a punt on Notre Dame's next drive Michigan quarterback Chad Henne threw an interception to Chinedum Ndukwe which was returned to the 4-yard line to set up a Brady Quinn touchdown pass to Ashley McConnell. Michigan would score the next 27 points with three touchdown passes by Henne to Mario Manningham and a run by Mike Hart. The Irish would score with a touchdown pass to Jeff Samardzija before halftime to leave the score 34–14. In the third quarter Michigan kicked two more field goals, one after Brady Quinn's second interception in the game.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan
Brady Quinn threw a touchdown in the fourth quarter to Rhema McKnight to end the Irish scoring. The Wolverines ended any chance of a comeback when, while being sacked, Quinn's fumble was returned for a 54-yard touchdown by LaMarr Woodley. The game ended as a Wolverine blowout of 47–21, giving Lloyd Carr his first win in Notre Dame.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
The game between Notre Dame and Michigan State in East Lansing seemed doomed to be overshadowed by pregame hype. A controversial incident where Spartan players planted a flag in Notre Dame's field after Michigan State's 2005 win was talked about in the week leading up to the game. Spartan officials said the incident occurred because Notre Dame didn't present the Megaphone Trophy after the game and players needed to celebrate. Irish officials stated that they never presented rivalry trophies after games, but sent them later in the week.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
More controversy was sparked when it was reported that Irish head coach Charlie Weis told a group of Notre Dame alumni during the summer of 2006 that he would never lose to Michigan State again as head coach. Weis denied it, but nevertheless Spartans used it as motivation. Added to these controversies was the fact that 2006 marks the 40th anniversary of the Game of the Century between the teams. Before the game Michigan State brought back players from that team and retired Bubba Smith's jersey.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
The controversies continued into the game when a late hit on Michigan State's quarterback by the Notre Dame bench lead to a scuffle between the teams and Charlie Weis claiming an MSU player slapped him in the face. This claim brought a penalty from the officials, and after the game John L. Smith implied that Charlie Weis had lied about a slap that could not be seen on any replay footage.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
The game was played in windy and rainy conditions for most of the night. Notre Dame won the coin toss and took the ball as Charlie Weis normally does. Michigan State chose to play with the wind at their backs for the first quarter. The commentators for the game, especially Bob Davie, questioned Weis' decision, believing that the windy conditions would affect play significantly.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
It seemed to as Notre Dame was held without a score for the entire first quarter, while the Spartans threw two quick touchdowns, one after a fumble on a punt return by Tom Zbikowski, and added a field goal before having to change sides. In the second quarter Notre Dame switched to a no-huddle offense with worked to confuse the Spartan defense for a drive allowing Brady Quinn to throw a 32-yard touchdown to Rhema McKnight.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
On their next drive, however, Quinn threw an interception to Ervin Baldwin which was returned for a 19-yard touchdown to give the Spartans a 24–7 lead. Quinn would throw another touchdown to Jeff Samardzija and Spartan quarterback Drew Stanton would add another touchdown pass to Kerry Reed to end the half with the Spartans leading 31–14.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
The second half began with a defensive stop by the Irish which allowed Quinn to throw a third touchdown of 62-yards to John Carlson to cut the Spartan lead to 10. However, later in the quarter Michigan State's Jehuu Caulcrick would run for a 30-yard touchdown. The Spartans failed in a two-point conversion attempt leaving the score 37–21 at the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, Michigan State had the ball at the Notre Dame 42-yard line and looked to score again.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
However a series of miscues and holding penalties halted the Spartan drive and forced them to punt. Quinn took advantage and threw a fourth touchdown to Jeff Samardzija. The Irish attempted a two-point conversion to make their deficit only 8, but failed, leaving the score 37–27 with 8 minutes left in the game. On the ensuing drive, a Stanton fumble was recovered by the Irish on the Spartan 24-yard line. Aided by a pass interference call on 3rd down and 25-yards to go, Quinn would throw his fifth touchdown pass of the evening to Rhema McKnight.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Michigan State
The extra point was missed leaving the Spartans ahead 37–33. On the next drive, Stanton threw an interception to Terrail Lambert which was returned 23-yards for the go-ahead touchdown. The Irish led 40–37 with almost 3 minutes left. Stanton would take the Spartans to the Notre Dame 44-yard line before throwing a pass which was tipped twice and which Terrail Lambert would catch off of the back of a Spartan wide receiver to end the game, with the Irish winning 40–37.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Purdue
The Purdue Boilermakers came to Notre Dame undefeated, but still underdogs to the Irish. Notre Dame started the scoring with a 70-yard opening drive capped with an 11-yard run by George West for a touchdown, their first opening drive touchdown of the year. Purdue tied the game later in the quarter with a 7-yard run by Kory Sheets. However, the Irish completed another long drive with a 14-yard touchdown run by Darius Walker to put them in the lead 14–7 at the end of the first quarter.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Purdue
Brady Quinn threw his first touchdown of the game to Rhema McKnight for 6-yards halfway through the second quarter. With a little over a minute remaining before halftime, the Irish faked a field goal and Jeff Samardzija, the holder, ran for a 5-yard touchdown. However, 30 seconds later, Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter threw an 88-yard touchdown pass to Selwyn Lymon to put the halftime score at 28–14, in favor of Notre Dame.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Purdue
The only score in the third quarter was a 12-yard touchdown pass by Brady Quinn to Rhema McKnight to give the Irish a 21-point lead. In the fourth quarter, Curtis Painter threw a 9-yard touchdown to Selwyn Lymon to give the final score of 35–21, Notre Dame winning. At the end of the game, Lymon had 238 receiving yards, the second most yards ever for a Purdue receiver and the most receiving yards ever against the Irish. The teams combined for 955 total yards, and only 242-yards were from rushing. Darius Walker ran for 146 of those yards himself.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Stanford
The Stanford Cardinal came to Notre Dame winless and big underdogs. However, in the first half the Cardinal kept the game closer than expected. The Irish started the game taking their opening drive for a touchdown. Brady Quinn threw an 8-yard pass to Jeff Samardzija to cap off a 91-yard drive which consumed more than seven minutes off the clock. The Cardinal's opening possession took advantage of a porous Irish defense which was without linebacker Travis Thomas and safety Tom Zbikowski, both out with injuries.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Stanford
Stanford drove to the Irish 3-yard line before being forced to kick a field goal after a sure touchdown was dropped. The Cardinal took six minutes off the clock themselves and the first quarter ended with Notre Dame winning 7–3. The second quarter was uneventful until the Notre Dame's final drive, which began with just over two minutes left in the half. Brady Quinn orchestrated a 72-yard drive which resulted in a 16-yard pass to Rhema McKnight to put the Irish up 14–3 at halftime.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Stanford
In the third quarter the Irish began to pull away. Darius Walker ran for a 32-yard touchdown, his longest run of the season, to give the Irish an 18-point lead. Later in the quarter, Carl Gioia added a 32-yard field goal to put the Irish up 24–3 at the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter the Cardinal used a trick play to get on the scoreboard again. On a toss play to running back Anthony Kimble, Kimble threw a 57-yard touchdown to a wide open Kelton Lynn. The score brought the Cardinal within 14. Later in the quarter, Brady Quinn would throw his third touchdown of the game to tight end John Carlson to give the final margin of victory, 31–10, in favor of the Irish.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
After trailing UCLA for most of the game, Brady Quinn was able to lead Notre Dame to a miraculous last minute comeback that may have saved Notre Dame's BCS hopes, as well as Quinn's Heisman candidacy.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
Notre Dame got on the board first when Quinn capped a 7-play, 44-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Samardzija. UCLA would roar back, however, scoring fourteen unanswered second quarter points before Notre Dame would add a field goal as the quarter expired. Down 14–10 heading into the locker room at halftime, the situation looked grim for the Irish, who were unable to deal with the relentless UCLA defense.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
Notre Dame would cut the Bruins' lead to one when Carl Gioia capped a long, 14-play, 60-yard drive with a 33-yard field goal near the end of the third quarter. UCLA would answer with a field goal of its own midway through the fourth quarter to push its lead to 17–13.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
The UCLA defense continued to frustrate the Notre Dame offense, and it appeared the Bruins had the game won after stopping Notre Dame on a fourth-and-1 attempt from the UCLA 35 with 2:25 remaining in the game. UCLA, though, was unable to run the clock out. UCLA was forced to punt after running three straight running plays that netted 6 yards. UCLA was only able to take 1:19 off the clock with its three running plays.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
After Aaron Perez's 59-yard punt resulted in a touchback, Notre Dame took over on its own 20-yard line with :55 remaining in the game, needing a touchdown to avoid its second loss of the season. Rather than blitz Quinn, UCLA head coach Karl Dorrell opted to rush only his four down linemen. UCLA was unable to generate any kind of a pass rush against the Notre Dame offensive line, allowing the masterful Quinn to pick apart the Bruin defense with surgical precision.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
On the first play of the drive, Quinn dropped back deep, but was initially unable to find an open man. Quinn started to roll out to his right before he spotted Samardzija along the right sideline and fired a 21-yard strike that moved the Irish to the Notre Dame 41-yard line. Quinn picked up 14 yards on the next play with a completion to wide receiver David Grimes, bringing Notre Dame to the UCLA 45.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
Before the Bruins knew what hit them, Notre Dame had taken the lead. After taking a five step drop, Quinn pump-faked and began to roll to his right in search of an open receiver. Quinn spotted Samardzija open on the right side of the field and delivered a bullet to the Irish receiver. Samardzija caught the ball at the 30-yard line and then jutted towards the middle of the field, weaving in and out of Bruin defenders before momentarily losing his balance after taking a hit from UCLA safety Dennis Keyes near the 15-yard line. Samardzija was quickly able to regain his footing, jumping the final yard into the end zone and scoring the winning touchdown with the ball raised aloft.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
The touchdown, which came with just :27 left in the game, was only the third game-winning touchdown in Notre Dame history come with less than :30 remaining in the game, the other two occurring in the 1979 Cotton Bowl Classic and a 1992 game against Penn State.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, UCLA
Quinn finished the game 27 of 45 for 304 yards and 2 touchdowns, thrusting himself back into the forefront of the Heisman race with his late game heroics. With the victory, Notre Dame improved its record to 6–1 on the season.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Navy
Brady Quinn has put himself back in Heisman contention after a fantastic performance against Navy. He made 18 of 25 passes and threw for 296 yards making 3 TD passes. He also showed his footwork by taking a TD in from 19 yards out.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Navy
The Irish started out their scoring quickly with Carl Gioia hitting a 40-yard FG, 3:15 into the game putting them up 3–0 and ended the 1st quarter with a 36-yard pass from Quinn to WR David Grimes to make it a 10–0 game with 1:32 left.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Navy
Navy got back in the game  quickly with a 1-yd run by Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada to make 10–7 with 11:39 left in the half, but the Irish came back quickly with Travis Thomas running in a ball 16 yards to make it a 17–7 game with 8 min. left in the half. But Kaheaku-Enhada once again got Navy back in the game with another 1-yard run to make 17–14 with 2:43 left in the half giving Navy only a 3 pt deficit. Quinn turned right around and hit hitting Rhema McKnight with a 33-yard pass and his 2nd TD pass with a 1:19 left to give Notre Dame a 24–14 lead heading into halftime.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Navy
Quinn continued his dominance in the second half leading 3 strong drives two of them scoring TDs. With 8:10 left in the 3rd, Quinn ran in a TD from 19 yards out to give the Irish a 31–14 lead the drive was helped out by a late hit call on 3rd and 19 that allowed Quinn to make the play. The second drive stalled at the 1 when the Midshipmen's defense held. The third drive however ended with Quinn hitting McKnight with a 6-yard pass and his 2nd TD catch and Quinn's 3rd TD pass with 9:36 left in the game, to give the Irish a 38–14 final.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, North Carolina
Notre Dame gets another win and Brady Quinn makes another case for the Heisman Trophy going 23 of 35 for 346 yards and 4 TDs. The game started with Brady Quinn hitting Rhema McKnight for a 7-yd TD pass and giving Notre Dame a 7–0 lead. But UNC came back with Joe Dailey throwing a 12-yd TD pass to Jesse Holley to knot up the score 7–7. But Notre Dame came back with Quinn throwing an 11-yd strike to John Carlson to close out the 1st quarter 14–7.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, North Carolina
The 2nd quarter started like the 1st with Quinn hitting McKnight for a 14-yd TD pass putting the Irish up 21–7 and Carl Gioia hit a 27-yd kick to make it 24–7 but UNC's Brandon Tate would return the kickoff 90-yds for a TD, the only saving grace being that the XP was blocked making the score 24–13. The half closed out with Tom Zbikowski returning a punt 52 yds for a TD and increasing the lead to 31–13 going into the half.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, North Carolina
Joe Dailey would start off the scoring in the second half with a 13-yd pass to Hakeem Nicks but the Irish defense would block another XP attempt making the score 31–19. The Irish would strike back with Quinn hitting Jeff Samardzija with a 42-yd pass to make the score 38–19. UNC would repeat their earlier tandem with Dailey throwing a 72-yd pass to Nicks to cut the deficit to 38–26. But that would be UNC's last hurrah in this game as the Irish defense would prevent anymore scoring and the lone score of the 4th quarter was Darius Walker's 1-yd run to give 45–26 final.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Air Force
Less Than a minute into the game Brady Quinn proved just why he's one of the top QBs in College Football today and he didn't stop there going 14 of 19 for 207 yards passing and 4 TDs. At :54 seconds Quinn hit Jeff Samardzija for a 51-yd TD pass and a 7–0 lead. Less than five minutes later he threw a 1-yd pass to John Carlson to put Notre Dame up 14–0. At 8:40 into the game Air Force got on the board when Zach Sasser kicked a 32-yd field goal to shrink the deficit to 14–3.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Air Force
But Quinn would respond with a 24-yd pass to Rhema McKnight. Air Force was able to block the Extra Point Attempt and Notre Dame was now up 20–3 to finish up the 1st quarter. The second quarter showed off a lot of good defense including a blocked FG attempt that saw Terrail Lambert return the blocked kick 76-yds for a TD to put Notre Dame up 27–3 at the half.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Air Force
Brady Quinn came out of halftime and with 8:33 left in the quarter threw a 23-yd pass to Marcus Freeman, but Air Force once again block Carl Gioia's XP attempt putting Notre Dame up 33–3. And with :17 seconds left in the quarter Shaun Carney threw a 12-yd pass to Beau Suder to make it 33–10 to close out the 3rd quarter of play. The 4th quarter saw Darius Walker run in a TD from 4-yds out with Gioia missing the XP attempt giving Notre Dame a 39–10 lead. Carney then hit Jacobe Kendrick for a 7-yd TD to give the game a 39–17 final.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Army
In the final home game for the team's senior class, the Irish took the field donning their special green jerseys. The first quarter of the game featured good defense by both teams including a stop on 4th down by the Irish and a pick that led to 3 by Army to give the Black Knights an early 3–0 lead. But in the second quarter the Irish came out firing and less than a minute into the 2nd Brady Quinn handed the ball to Darius Walker and he ran it in 10-yds for the Touchdown making it 7–3 Notre Dame.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Army
After a Defensive stop by the Irish they got the ball back and on 9 plays drove down field topping it off with Quinn throwing a 13-yd pass to Jeff Samardzija for the Irish's 2nd TD, but Gioia missed the PAT making the score 13–3 Notre Dame. With just over a minute left in the 1st half Brady Quinn hooked up with Rhema McKnight for an 8-yd touchdown reception and this time Carl Gioia hit the PAT giving Notre Dame a 20–3 lead going into halftime.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Army
The Irish kept up the offensive onslaught to start off the 2nd half, scoring a touchdown when receiver David Grimes recovered teammate Darius Walker's fumble in the endzone to give Notre Dame a 27–3 lead. The next Black Knights drive saw an interception by the Irish which led to a 24-yd pass from Quinn to McKnight for a TD extending their lead to 34–3. 4 minutes into the 4th quarter Notre Dame struck again with Darius Walker taking it in from 8-yds out to make it a 41–3 lead for Notre Dame.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, Army
The drive started out with great field position due to Michael Richardson's 2nd pick of the day. On the last play of the game with no time left on the clock Army was finally able to make it into the endzone on a 12-yd pass from David Pevoto to Tim Dunn to make it a 41–9 final.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
Notre Dame visited the Coliseum with a four-game losing streak to the Trojans. After the epic 2005 game, the Irish were hopeful that they could end their losing streak. The Trojans, however, knew that with a win they would still be in the national title hunt. The game started with the Irish receiving the ball and Brady Quinn throwing a quick 38-yard pass to Rhema McKnight. The Irish drive stalled afterwards and turned the ball over after Quinn's fourth down pass flew errantly into the endzone.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
The Trojans took over and quarterback John David Booty led them on a 61-yard drive that ended with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Jarrett. After the next Irish drive ended with a punt and a return by the Trojans to the Irish 26, Booty completed another touchdown pass to Jarrett to put the Trojans ahead 14–0. On the ensuing Irish drive, Quinn and Darius Walker brought the Irish downfield, allowing Carl Gioia to kick a field goal. The first quarter ended with the Trojans winning 14–3.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
In the first drive of the second quarter, Booty led the Trojans to the Irish 1-yard line where he sneaked the ball in for USC's third touchdown of the game. On the ensuing drive for the Irish, on a third down, Quinn scrambled for 59-yards, Notre Dame's longest run of the season, to bring the Irish to the USC 17-yard line. Four plays later, a Darius Walker fumble was recovered by the Trojans giving them the ball back. The Irish defense, however, held the Trojans for the first time forcing a punt.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
The punt was partially blocked giving the Irish the ball back on the 7-yard line. On the next play, Quinn threw a touchdown to Marcus Freeman. The next two drives by the Trojans both ended when Booty threw an interception, but the Irish couldn't capitalize on either, turning the ball over on downs two more times. The half ended with the Trojans leading 21–10.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
The second half began with a Trojan drive of 65-yards capped with a Chauncey Washington 2-yard touchdown run. The only other score of the third quarter came on Notre Dame's second drive of 58-yards, when Quinn hit Rhema McKnight for a 2-yard touchdown pass on fourth down. The fourth quarter began with the Trojans driving to an eventual 32-yard field goal by Mario Danelo. After the Irish were held, Booty threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Jarrett to give the Trojans a 37–17 lead (Danelo missed the extra point).


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Game summaries, USC
Quinn drove the Irish 78-yards and threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Samardzija to put the Irish deficit to 13 points. However, the onside kick attempt, was recovered by Brian Cushing, who ran it back to give the Trojans a 20-point lead again. Notre Dame's last drive would end on another failed fourth down attempt, giving the Trojans the 44–24 win.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Post-season, Awards
After the season, a four Irish players were nominated for or won postseason awards. Geoff Price, was named as a Ray Guy Award semi-finalist, Tom Zbikowski was named as a Jim Thorpe Award semi-finalist, and John Carlson was named as a John Mackey Award finalist. Brady Quinn, after finishing third in balloting for the Heisman Trophy, was named a finalist to two top quarterbacking awards, the Johnny Unitas Award and the Davey O'Brien Award, and won two player of the year awards, the Maxwell Award and the Cingular All-American Player of the Year.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Post-season, Awards
Along with the award winners, six Irish players were named to All-American lists. Sam Young was named by The Sporting News as a first team freshman All-American. Five players were named by Sports Illustrated, including Quinn on the second team, and Jeff Samardzija, Rhema McKnight, John Carlson, and Geoff Price as honorable mentions. The AP named Quinn and Samardzija on their second team and Tom Zbikowski on their third team, while Samardzija and Zbikowski were named by the Walter Camp Football Foundation on their second team. Finally, Samardzija was named by the Football Writers Association of America on their first team as well as being named, for the second time, as a Consensus All-American by the NCAA.


2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, Post-season, NFL Draft
In the 2007 NFL Draft seven players were taken, including offensive starters Quinn, Ryan Harris and Dan Santucci and defensive starters Victor Abiamiri, Derek Landri, Mike Richardson and Chinedum Ndukwe. Five others also signed contracts with NFL teams, while Samardzija signed a deal with the Chicago Cubs as a baseball pitcher.


2006 Nottingham Open
The 2006 Nottingham Open was the 2006 edition of the Nottingham Open men's tennis tournament and played on outdoor grass courts. The tournament was part of the International Series of the 2006 ATP Tour. It was the 17th edition of the tournament and was held from 19 June through 24 June 2006. Richard Gasquet won the singles title.


2006 Nottingham Open, Finals, Doubles
Jonathan Erlich /  Andy Ram defeated  Igor Kunitsyn /  Dmitry Tursunov 6–3, 6–2


2006 Nottingham Open – Doubles
Erlich and Ram successfully defended their title, defeating Igor Kunitsyn and Dmitry Tursunov 6–3, 6–2 in the final.


2006 Nottingham Open – Singles
Gasquet successfully defended his title, defeating Jonas Björkman 6–4, 6–3 in the final.


2006 Nova Scotia general election
The 2006 Nova Scotia general election was held on June 13, 2006 to elect members of the 60th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada.


2006 Nova Scotia general election
Premier Rodney MacDonald, who led a Progressive Conservative minority government in the legislature, called for the election on May 13, 2006, hoping for a majority government to better advance his agenda and a clear mandate for himself as he had not yet fought an election as leader.


2006 Nova Scotia general election
Ultimately, MacDonald was returned to power leading another, slightly smaller, minority government against a strengthened New Democratic Party sitting as the Official Opposition and a weakened Liberal Party. Liberal leader Francis MacKenzie was defeated in his riding of Bedford.


2006 Nova Scotia general election, Campaign
MacKenzie was an outspoken critic of the governing Tories and accused them of living in a "fantasy world" due to their promise to cut taxes and increase spending in the 2006-07 budget.


2006 Nova Scotia general election, Campaign
No single issue dominated the election campaign, with all parties offering up various promises for university students to seniors.


2006 Nova Scotia general election, Opinion polling
A March 2006 poll by Corporate Research Associates asked voters who they would prefer as premier, 36 per cent of respondents picked Premier Rodney MacDonald, compared to 23 per cent for Darrell Dexter and 16 per cent for Francis MacKenzie. The same poll showed the Progressive Conservatives in the lead with 36 percent of voters compared to 29 percent for the New Democrats and 27 percent for the Liberals.


2006 Nova Scotia general election, Results
The Progressive Conservatives gained several points in the popular vote, but made a net loss of two seats, with losses to the NDP partially countered by the PCs doubling their representation on MacDonald's native Cape Breton Island at the expense of the Liberals. The gap between the Liberals and NDP also significantly increased, in both the popular vote and seat count; while the Liberals and NDP had previously been nearly even, the NDP gained a significant advantage on the Liberals and moved into position as the primary opposition to the governing PCs.


2006 Nova Scotia general election, Results, Results by party
* The Green Party did not contest the 2003 election.


2006 Nuevo León state election
A local election  was scheduled to be held in the Mexican state of Nuevo León on Sunday, July 2, 2006. Voters will go to the polls to elect, on the local level:


2006 Nuevo León state election, Municipal elections
The following table shows candidates by party to the municipalities within the Monterrey metropolitan area.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots
The 2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, also known as the Tongan riots, started on 16 November, in the Tongan capital of Nukuʻalofa. The Legislative Assembly of Tonga was due to adjourn for the year and despite promises of action, had done little to advance democracy in the government. A mixed crowd of democracy advocates took to the streets in protest. The riots saw a number of cases of robbery, looting, vehicle theft, arson and various property damage.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
Riots broke out around 3:30 pm TOT as rioters threw stones, broke windows, and looted. By about 6:00 pm, rioters started setting buildings on fire. The first targets of the rioters were government buildings. Then they attacked enterprises, including some that were leased to ANZ Bank and those owned by the Prime Minister Feleti Sevele.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
A private shop selling mobile telephones and advertising for Tonfön (part of the Shoreline Group of Companies owned, at the time, by the royal family) was next. Rioters also attacked and burned the main office of the Shoreline Group of Companies, which was located one kilometer away from the small central business district.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
Several of the larger Chinese shops were targeted for looting and burning. Other shops, including one owned by ethnic Indians, were burned as well, but it is not clear if they were intentionally set on fire or caught fire from surrounding buildings.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
At about 6:00 PM TOT rioters torched the Royal Pacific hotel (owned by the Shoreline Group of Companies). The hotel was located on one of the main roads into the city. There are many commercial buildings on the thoroughfare, and the fire spread to some of those buildings as well.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
According to an article in Tonga Now, normally law-abiding Tongans of both sexes and all ages were participating avidly in the looting. However, some photos would seem to indicate that the car-tipping and arson were the work of young men. This conception would be reinforced after a destroyed Chinese shop was vandalized with graffiti.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Targets of riots
At nightfall, the police and the Tonga Defence Services regained control of the central business district and were turning away anyone who tried to enter.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath
Estimates of the damage varied. Some estimates said that 60 to 80% of the central business district was destroyed.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 17 November
It was announced that eight bodies had been found in charred ruins. Since most of the employees of the affected businesses managed to reach safety, news reports speculated that the dead were likely looters. It is not clear if the deceased have been identified or if identified, when their names will be released.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 17 November
The Tongan government declared a state of emergency. Only firefighters, police, utility workers, etc. were allowed inside a perimeter defined by Vuna road, ʻAlipate road, Mateialona road, and Tupoulahi road. Residents of that area could enter only after being searched. For the next month, gatherings of more than five persons were illegal in that area. Emergency laws gave security forces the right to stop and search people without a warrant.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 17 November
The Tongan government promised reform. Popular elections were held in 2008, in which a majority of the Legislative Assembly were elected by popular vote.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 17 November
The Chinese embassy chartered an airplane to evacuate Chinese nationals.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 18 November
110 soldiers and 44 police officers from Australia and New Zealand arrived to help the local police to establish order. The New Zealand army was to be in charge of airport security and the police were to protect the High Commission. The Australian contingent from the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment were to assist and relieve exhausted Tongan police.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 19 November
A leader of the Tongan pro-democracy movement, MP 'Akilisi Pohiva, has criticised the intervention of Australian and New Zealand peacekeepers following the riots.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 20 November
Some businesses had temporarily relocated to the suburbs. Some looted items were returned. Police were guarding the telecommunications center and investigating mobile call logs. According to the Matangi Tonga newspaper, twenty-six arrests had been made and the number of deaths had been revised down to six.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 22 November
Nukuʻalofa was by now largely peaceful. The town center was still cordoned off and heavily patrolled, but local shop owners and the like could easily get permission to enter the restricted area. Some Chinese shops which escaped damage were now open again. Major shops and banks, however, were still operating from temporary locations in the suburbs.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 1 December
Peace was believed to be restored and foreign forces began leaving. The forbidden area in town was reduced. Police had made 571 arrests.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 2007
The first business to rebuild and reopen was the Fung Shin supermarket, which opened in new premises on 19 December 2007.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 2008
In November 2008, rebuilding began with an anticipated three years of work for the infrastructure to be complete. Roads, footpaths, drainage and more were planned by Minister Paul Karalus. Funding was provided by low-interest Chinese government loans amounting to $US55 million.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, 2018
In July 2018, Tonga was expected to begin the repayments that ended up being US$100 million+ from the Chinese government. The commitment to begin this process was made by  'Akilisi Pohiva.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, Maintaining the state of emergency
In late January 2008, the Tongan authorities renewed a Proclamation of Public Order for the sixteenth month running, a lingering aftermath of the riots. The statement reads: "It is hereby proclaimed that there continues to exist a state of danger" in central Nukuʻalofa. According to the Proclamation, the area will remain "controlled and maintained by the Tonga Police Force and Tonga Defence Services for the sole purpose of maintaining public order for all people of the country". Tongan information minister Afualo Matoto announced that the state of emergency would probably be maintained for another three months (i.e., until the end of April). This was criticised by Tongan pro-democracy advocate Akilisi Pohiva: "I don’t see any reason for government to continue to hold on to the emergency power."


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Aftermath, Maintaining the state of emergency
The state of emergency was lifted in August 2008. Member of Parliament 'Akilisi Pohiva noted that the government had probably chosen to wait until after the coronation of King George Tupou V to put an end to it. It was, however, re-imposed in September, despite the objections of pro-democracy members of Parliament.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Operation Kaliloa
A joint investigation into the riots by the Tonga police, Australian Federal Police and New Zealand Police, codenamed Operation Kaliloa, began. 678 people were arrested, some under controversial circumstances, with former Police Minister Clive Edwards was also charged after claiming that soldiers had engaged in indiscriminate beatings. Democratic leader ʻAkilisi Pōhiva was arrested on charges of sedition, along with Edwards and a number of other pro-democracy MPs and activists. In total there were 320 prosecutions related to the riots. No-one was convicted of any political charge.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Operation Kaliloa
Most non-sedition charges against MPs were withdrawn in September 2007, and all were ultimately acquitted in March 2009. Democracy campaigner Sione Halafuka Vea was acquitted in July 2007. Charges against businesswoman 'Ofa Simiki, who the government had claimed masterminded the riots, were withdrawn in April 2008. MP ʻIsileli Pulu was acquitted on charges of abetting murder and arson in July 2008. Sedition charges against broadcaster Sione Sangster Saulala were also dismissed that month. Charges against Edwards were dismissed in May 2010.


2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, Operation Kaliloa
The state of emergency declared on 17 November 2006 was extended several times. It was finally ended in January 2011 once the new Prime Minister took office following the 2010 election.


2006 Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council election
Elections to Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council were held on 4 May 2006. Half of the council was up for election and the Labour Party retained control of the council.


2006 Nyköping municipal election
Nyköping Municipality in Sweden held a municipal election on 17 September 2006.


2006 Nyköping municipal election, Results
The number of seats remained at 61 with the Social Democrats winning the most at 26, a drop of three from 2002. The number of valid ballots cast were 31,589.


2006 Nyköping municipal election, Electoral wards
There were three constituencies: Eastern, Northern and Western. Helgona, Herrhagen, Högbrunn and Väster hade some sparsely populated rural areas part of the districts, but were all majority urban.


2006 O'Byrne Cup
The 2006 O'Byrne Cup was a Gaelic football competition played by the teams of Leinster GAA. The competition differs from the Leinster Senior Football Championship as it also features further education colleges.


2006 O'Hare International Airport UFO sighting
The Chicago O'Hare UFO sighting occurred  on November 7, 2006, around 4:15 p.m. when 12 United Airlines employees and Andres, a witness from Torreon outside the airport at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, reported a UFO sighting. The Federal Aviation Administration declined to investigate the incident because the UFO was not seen on radar and called it a "weather phenomenon".


2006 O'Hare International Airport UFO sighting, The sighting
At approximately 16:15 CST on November 7, 2006, federal authorities at Chicago O'Hare International Airport received a report that a group of twelve airport employees were witnessing a metallic, saucer-shaped craft hovering over Gate C-17.