Moldova declared its independence from the Soviet Union.
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American driller Edwin Laurentine Drake successfully drilled the first oil well in Pennsylvania, US.
Chinese and Korean forces won the two-day Battle of Baekgangon.
The world's first jet-powered aircraft, the Heinkel He 178, completed its first flight.
Mars made its closest approach to Earth in nearly 60,000 years.
In Java, Indonesia, the Krakatoa volcano erupted and destroyed 70% of the island and its surroundings.
