Sputnik
Mission
Sputnik
Series
Soviet space program
Venue
Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakh SSR
Date
October 4, 1957
Agency
Soviet space program
Nickname
Sputnik 1 becomes the first artificial satellite
Crew
Sergei Korolev
Sputnik 1 becomes the first artificial satellite
The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit Earth, a polished metal sphere that transmitted radio pulses heard around the world. The launch stunned the West, triggered the Space Race, and led directly to the creation of NASA the following year.
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