Home   On This Day   On this day in history - April 20

On this day in history - April 20

What Happened On This Day – April 20

  • 2010 The Deepwater Horizon oil rig explodes

    The explosion of the British Petroleum (BP) platform operated by Transocean killed 11 workers and led to the largest accidental marine oil spill in history.

  • 1999 15 die in the Columbine High School massacre

    A further 24 victims were injured when two teenagers opened fire on students and teachers in the high school south of Denver.

  • 1978 Soviet air defense shoots down Korean Air Lines Flight 902

    The Boeing 707's crew had miscalculated their route, taking them into Soviet airspace at the height of the Cold War. The jet made an emergency landing on a frozen lake. Two passengers were killed in the incident.

  • 1951 A human organ is surgically reconstructed for the first time

    Romanian surgeon Dan Gavriliu used a section of the stomach to bypass the esophagus.

  • 1902 Pierre and Marie Curie discover the radioactive element radium

    In 1903, the French couple received the Nobel Prize in Physics for their pioneering research.

Illustration of stork, signifying birth

Births On This Day,
April 20

  • 1969 Felix Baumgartner

    Austrian skydiver

  • 1939 Gro Harlem Brundtland

    Norwegian physician, politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Norway

  • 1893 Joan Miró

    Spanish painter

  • 1889 Adolf Hitler

    Austrian/German politician, Chancellor of Germany

  • 1808 Napoleon III

    French politician, 1st President of France

Illustration of tombstone, signifying death

Deaths On This Day,
April 20

  • 1993 Cantinflas

    Mexican actor, screenwriter, producer

  • 1991 Don Siegel

    American film director

  • 1991 Steve Marriott

    English singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, actor

  • 1918 Karl Ferdinand Braun

    German/American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate

  • 1521 Zhengde Emperor

    of China