World welcomes 2015

 A dazzling display of fireworks lit up Sydney Harbour on Thursday as Australia's biggest city welcomed the New Year in spectacular style.

From Hong Kong to London and New York to Rio, millions around the world will celebrate when the clock ticks past midnight, ringing in 2015 with massive fireworks displays, concerts and light shows.

In Sydney, tonnes of fireworks exploded over the harbour watched by a crowd estimated at more than one million.

Fireworks light up the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the annual fireworks display to usher in the new year, early January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.6 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported.  REUTERS

"We are celebrating that we are a multicultural, harmonious community but we will be thinking about what happened," Lord Mayor Clover Moore said in reference to the incident in which two hostages and the gunman died.
In the aftermath of the siege, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said security agencies had picked up a heightened level of "terrorist chatter" and warned that "the terror threat remains high and... at this level, an attack is likely".

But the fireworks display went ahead without incident.

New Year's Eve fireworks erupt over Sydney's iconic Harbour Bridge and Opera House during the traditional fireworks show held at midnight on December 31, 2014. AFP

Brilliant bursts of colour lit up the harbour in spectacular fashion in the midnight showpiece, with fireworks cascading off the Harbour Bridge, shooting off the Opera House and streaming across the sky in one of the world's first major celebrations to ring in 2015.

Remembrance for lost AirAsia flight

Across Asia, millions will be partying, with Hong Kong's dazzling skyline along Victoria Harbour set to light up during an eight-minute pyrotechnic display.

New Year's Eve fireworks erupt over Sydney's iconic Harbour Bridge and Opera House during the traditional fireworks show held at midnight on December 31, 2014. AFP

In China, Beijing's bid to stage the 2022 Winter Olympics was to be the theme of celebrations. Concert pianist Lang Lang will be the star performer at an extravaganza at Olympic Park.

The Chinese capital has held New Year countdowns at the historic Temple of Heaven since 2011, but has moved the event to the site of the 2008 summer games to raise the profile of its winter Olympics bid. 

Fireworks light up the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the annual fireworks display to usher in the new year, early January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.6 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported.  REUTERS

In Taiwan the landmark skyscraper Taipei 101 will be at the centre of celebrations, with performances by pop singers and a firework display at midnight expected to attract hundreds of thousands.

And in Japan, the Meiji Jingu shrine in Tokyo brought out stocks of lucky charms and set up large offertory boxes as it prepared to welcome a huge wave of worshippers overnight. The huge shrine expects three million visitors in the first three days of the new year. 

Crowds watch as fireworks light up the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the annual fireworks display January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.2 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported. REUTERS

But in Malaysia, a sombre mood prevailed after the crash of AirAsia Flight QZ8501 carrying 162 people in Indonesia and flooding in the country's northeast which has displaced almost 250,000 people.

Year-end countdown celebrations have been cancelled, with many companies instead launching fundraising campaigns for flood victims.

In Indonesia, Surabaya was holding a candlelight vigil in the hours leading up till midnight to remember the people on the plane which departed that city on Sunday.

Crowds watch as fireworks light up the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the annual fireworks display January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.2 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported. REUTERS

The end of another era will be remembered in Berlin with ‘Baywatch’ star David Hasselhoff joining a huge open air concert in front of the Brandenburg Gate, where he famously sang for freedom after the Berlin Wall fell 25 years ago.
Dubai has promised to dazzle again with a pyrotechnic and lights show at Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower.

In Paris, the Champs-Elysees will be reserved for pedestrians to let them watch a visual spectacle projected onto the Arc de Triomphe 15 minutes before the start of the new year.

A light bulb motif made from LED lights is pictured on the side of the  Sydney Harbour Bridge following the annual fireworks display to usher in the new year, early January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.6 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported.  REUTERS

The ticking of the clock past midnight will be significant for Lithuania as it adopts the euro. Another Baltic state, Latvia, takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union, putting it on the front line of negotiations with neighbouring Russia over the crisis in Ukraine.

In Spain, millions of revellers will descend on Madrid's Puerta del Sol while in Barcelona a massive fireworks display will be held.

New Year's Eve fireworks erupt over Sydney's iconic Harbour Bridge and Opera House during the traditional fireworks show held at midnight on December 31, 2014. AFP

London stages New Year's Eve fireworks along the Thames and Edinburgh will be holding its traditional Hogmanay street party.

Marking 2015 on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, more than two million people are expected to attend a huge fireworks show that will open celebrations marking 450 years since the founding of the city.

And in New York about one million revellers are expected to descend on Times Square to watch the New Year's Eve Ball Drop.

Spectators on boats are silhouetted as fireworks shower down from the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the annual fireworks display to usher in the new year, early January 1, 2015. More than 10,000 aerial fireworks, 25,000 shooting comets and 100,000 pyrotechnic effects were used during the annual Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve show, with an estimated 1.6 million people watching from along the harbour foreshore, local media reported.  REUTERS

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