On this day: Key events in history on May 18, From India's first nuclear test in 1974 to eruption of Mount St. Helens
India's Ist nuclear test, 1974 On May 18, 1974, India conducted its first successful nuclear test, code-named “Smiling Buddha," at the Pokhran test range in Rajasthan. This significant event marked India as the world's sixth nuclear power. …