18 June 2002

The Titan submersible imploded during a dive to the RMS Titanic wreck, killing all five people aboard.

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was appointed the crown prince of Saudi Arabia.

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was appointed the crown prince of Saudi Arabia.

The Troubles: Ulster Volunteer Force members attacked a crowded bar in Loughinisland, Northern Ireland, with assault rifles, killing six people.

Iranian teenager Mona Mahmudnizhad and nine other women were hanged in Shiraz because of their membership in the Baháʼí Faith.

Aboard Space Shuttle Challenger, astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman and third one overall in space.

The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, the first operational aircraft to be designed around stealth technology, made its maiden flight.

British European Airways Flight 548 crashed near Staines-upon-Thames less than three minutes after departing from Heathrow Airport in London, killing all 118 people aboard in the worst air accident in the UK.

American musician Jimi Hendrix burned his guitar on stage at the end of a performance at the Monterey International Pop Festival in California.

English composer Benjamin Britten's one-act opera Noye's Fludde was premiered at the Aldeburgh Festival.

Carlos Castillo Armas led a CIA-sponsored invasion force across the Guatemalan border, beginning the 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état.

A Douglas C-124 Globemaster II aircraft crashed just after takeoff from Tachikawa, Japan, killing all 129 people on board.

A Douglas C-124 Globemaster II aircraft crashed just after takeoff from Tachikawa, Japan, killing all 129 people on board.

World War II: Charles de Gaulle gave his Appeal of 18 June speech, often considered to be the origin of the French Resistance.

World War II: Charles de Gaulle gave his Appeal of 18 June speech, often considered to be the origin of the French Resistance.

The Cadaver Tomb of René of Chalon (pictured) in Bar-le-Duc, France, was designated a monument historique.

Charles Darwin received a manuscript by fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace on natural selection, which encouraged him to publish his own theory of evolution.

Charles Darwin received a manuscript by fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace on natural selection, which encouraged him to publish his own theory of evolution.

War of the Seventh Coalition: Napoleon fought and lost his final battle, the Battle of Waterloo (depicted), in present-day Belgium.

Third Silesian War: The Austrian victory at the Battle of Kolín forced Prussian leader Frederick the Great to give up the Siege of Prague and retreat to Saxony.

Sui–Tang transition: Chinese governor Li Yuan (pictured) declared himself emperor, establishing the Tang dynasty.

Sui–Tang transition: Chinese governor Li Yuan (pictured) declared himself emperor, establishing the Tang dynasty.

Titan, a submersible operated by OceanGate Expeditions, implodes in the North Atlantic Ocean while attempting to view the wreck of the Titanic, killing all five people on board, including OceanGate co-founder and CEO Stockton Rush.

An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 strikes northern Osaka.