On this day in 1976, a broke Britain asked the International Monetary Fund for a US$3.9 billion loan. That was the maximum limit of its entitlement. Britain needed the money to prop up the ailing pound.
On this day in 2008, following the bankruptcies of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual, The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 777.68 points. That was the largest single-day point loss in its history.
On this day in 1988, the space shuttle Discovery was launched. It was the first space shuttle launch since the explosion of the Challenger shortly after takeoff in January 1986.