Events January January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). Between 10,000 and 14,621 were killed and 26,783 were injured. January 14 – Biafra capitulates, ending the Nigerian Civil War. January 15 – After a 32-month fight for independence from Nigeria, Biafran forces under Philip Effiong formally surrender to General Yakubu Gowon. February February 1 – The Benavídez rail disaster near Buenos Aires, Argentina, kills 236. February 10 – An avalanche at Val-d'Isère, France, kills 41 tourists. February 11 – Ohsumi, Japan's first satellite, is launched on a Lambda-4 rocket. February 22 – Guyana becomes a Republic within the Commonwealth of Nations. March March 1 – Rhodesia severs its last tie with the United Kingdom, declaring itself a republic. March 4 — All 57 men aboard the French submarine Eurydice (S644) are killed when the vessel implodes while making a practice dive in the Mediterranean Sea. March 5 – The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty goes into effect, after ratification by 56 nations. March 6 – Süleyman Demirel of AP forms the new government of Turkey (32nd government). March 12 – Citroën introduces the Citroën SM, the fastest front-wheel drive auto in the world at that time, at the annual Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland. March 15 – The Expo '70 World's Fair opens in Suita, Osaka, Japan. March 16 – The complete New English Bible is published. March 18 – General Lon Nol ousts Prince Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia and holds Queen Sisowath Kossamak under house arrest. March 19 Ostpolitik: The leaders of West Germany and East Germany meet at a summit for the first time since Germany's division into two republics. West German Chancellor Willy Brandt is greeted by cheering East German crowds as he arrives in Erfurt for a summit with his counterpart, East German Ministerpräsident Willi Stoph. March 20 – The Agency for Cultural and Technical Co-operation (ACCT) (Agence de Coopération Culturelle et Technique) is founded. March 21 – All Kinds of Everything, sung by Dana (music and text by Derry Lindsay and Jackie Smith), wins the Eurovision Song Contest 1970 for Ireland. March 31 NASA's Explorer 1, the first American satellite and Explorer program spacecraft, reenters Earth's atmosphere after 12 years in orbit. Japan Airlines Flight 351, carrying 131 passengers and 7 crew from