1981
- January - President Reagan issues a top secret executive order authorizing the FBI to use whatever means necessary to neutralize Soviet agents operating within the United States. ("Pilot")
- January 7 - The Washington Capitals play the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-4 tie. ("Pilot")
- March 11 - Meeting between Caspar Weinberger, Margaret Thatcher and John Nott. ("The Clock")
- March 30 – President Reagan shot by John Hinckley Jr. ("In Control")
- April 26 - Game 7 of the National Hockey League's Eastern Quarterfinals, Calgary Flames vs. Philadelphia Flyers, played in Philadelphia. ("Safe House")
- April 30 - Philip watches game 2 of the Stanley Cup Semi-finals between the NY Rangers and the NY Islanders in his motel room. The Islanders won 7-3 and eventually swept the series. ("Only You")
- May 21 - Game 5 of the Stanley Cup, Minnesota North Stars vs. New York Islanders, played in New York. ("The Colonel")
- December 23 - President Reagan's address to the nation about Christmas and the situation in Poland. ("Duty and Honor")
1982
- January 6 - California "Freeway Killer" William Bonin was convicted in Los Angeles County of murdering 10 people. Newspaper headline. ("Comrades")
- January 18 - Time Magazine publishes its "Gronk! Flash! Zap!" cover on video games ("Cardinal")
- January 30 - Oleg invites Nina to a Washington Capitals vs Chicago Blackhawks game. ("The Walk In")
- March 5 - Actor/Comedian John Belushi dies. Referenced by Matthew and Sandra Beeman. ("Behind the Red Door")
- March 17 - The Washington Capitals tie the Vancouver Canucks 6-6. ("New Car")
- June 4 - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan opens in theaters. Referenced by Henry. ("Operation Chronicle")
- October 1 - EPCOT Center opens in Bay Lake, FL. ("Experimental Prototype City of Tomorrow")
- November 3 - Salang Tunnel Fire. ("Salang Pass")
- November 10 - Leonid Brezhnev passes away. ("EST Men")
- November 14 - Reagan visits the Soviet Embassy to pay his respects to Brezhnev. ("Baggage")
- November 22 - Time Magazine lead article on Andropov. ("Open House")
- November 23-28 - Trade conference in Geneva, attended by 88 nations. ("Open House")
- December 21, 1982 - First Boland Amendment, restricting US support of the Contras, signed into law by Ronald Reagan. ("Salang Pass")
1983
- January 17 - Japanese prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone arrives in the US for trade talks with Reagan. ("Walter Taffet (Episode)")
- February 28 - The final episode of M*A*S*H aired. ("I Am Abassin Zadran")
- March 8 - President Reagan gave his famous speech in which he condemned the Soviet Union as an “evil empire.” ("March 8, 1983")
- March 20 - Charles, Prince of Wales, Diana, Princess of Wales, and their son Prince William, arrive in Australia for an official visit. ("The Rat")
- March 29 - Michael Jordan wins the 1982 NCAA Championship over Georgetown. ("Clark's Place")
- April 8 - Illusionist David Copperfield makes the Statue of Liberty disappear. ("The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears")
- June - The video game Lode Runner is released. ("The Day After")
- September 26 - Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov averted nuclear war by disobeying orders and declining to tell his superiors about what appeared on radar to be five incoming missiles from the US; they turned out to be sunlight reflections on a cloud. ("The Day After")
- November 20 – The television movie "The Day After" aired. ("The Day After")
1984
- January 22 - Super Bowl XVIII was played between the Washington Redskins and the Los Angeles Raiders. The Raiders defeated the Redskins 38–9. ("Persona Non Grata")
- February - The 1984 Winter Olympics, took place from February 8-19, in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Yugoslavia. It was the first Winter Olympics held in a socialist state. ("Amber Waves")
- April 23 - Time Magazine publishes its "Mining Nicaragua's Harbors: Policy Collision" cover ("IHOP")
- August 11 - As Reagan prepared to make a speech, he joked with radio technicians, stating "My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. [We] begin bombing in five minutes". This microphone gaffe was not broadcast over the air, but rather leaked later to the general populace. The Soviet reaction, and mild confusion it created, was covered by NBC news anchor Tom Brokaw. ("The Soviet Division")
1986
- January 28 - The NASA Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39 EST (16:39 UTC). The disintegration of the vehicle began after an O-ring seal failed at liftoff. The crew compartment and many other vehicle fragments were eventually recovered from the ocean floor. The exact timing of the death of the crew is unknown; several crew members are known to have survived the initial breakup of the spacecraft. The disaster resulted in a 32-month hiatus in the shuttle program. ("A Roy Rogers in Franconia")
- September 15 - Team Canada beats the Soviet National hockey team to win the 1987 Canada Cup. ("Urban Transport Planning")
- October 4 - The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves 5-4. ("Tchaikovsky")
- October 24 - The Minnesota Twins beat the St. Louis Cardinals 11-5 in Game 6 of the 1987 World Series. ("Mr. and Mrs. Teacup")
- November 17 - The Detroit Red Wings beat the Washington Capitals 1-0 on a goal by Steve Yzerman. ("The Great Patriotic War")
- November 26 - American Thanksgiving. ("Rififi")
- December 8-10 - The Washington Summit of 1987 was a meeting between United States president Ronald Reagan and General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev. Reagan and Gorbachev discussed regional conflicts in Afghanistan, Central America, and Southern Africa, chemical weapons and human rights. A notable accomplishment of the Washington Summit was the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.