Greenland assumes self-rule. The island had been administered by Denmark (earlier Denmark-Norway) for centuries. The Self-Government Act grants Greenland full responsibility for its inner affairs, while Denmark retains control of foreign policy.

SpaceShipOne completes the world's first manned private spaceflight. The privately funded spaceplane reached an altitude of just over 100 kilometers (62 miles). Mike Melvill was the pilot and only occupant.

The body of Josef Mengele is identified. An international team of scientists confirmed that the skeletal remains found in a cemetery in Embu, Brazil are those of the Nazi war criminal. Mengele was a physician in the Auschwitz concentration camp and conducted horrific experiments on some of the inmates.

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini becomes Pope Paul VI. The Italian pontiff is known for completing the Second Vatican Council, addressing the Roman Catholic Church's relationship with the modern world.

The Kiel Canal is opened by German Emperor Wilhelm II. The 98 km (61 mi) long canal in Northern Germany is one of the world's busiest artificial waterways. It connects the North Sea with the Baltic Sea.