Sputnik: 50 Year Anniversary
October 04, 2007 09:53 AM Filed in:
Tech News
History changed on October 4, 1957,
when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. It was a
pivotal moment, the kind of event that -- five decades later --
still has people asking, "Do you remember where you were when
…?"
The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a beach ball (58 cm.or 22.8 in.), weighed only 83.6 kg. or 183.9 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path. That launch ushered in new political, military, technological, and scientific developments. While the Sputnik launch was a single event, it marked the start of the space age and the U.S.-U.S.S.R space race.
Nasa's Sputnik Site
Wired.com
BBC.com
Russia Today
Listen to Sputnik's telemetry (Quicktime Required).
The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a beach ball (58 cm.or 22.8 in.), weighed only 83.6 kg. or 183.9 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path. That launch ushered in new political, military, technological, and scientific developments. While the Sputnik launch was a single event, it marked the start of the space age and the U.S.-U.S.S.R space race.
Nasa's Sputnik Site
Wired.com
BBC.com
Russia Today
Listen to Sputnik's telemetry (Quicktime Required).