History changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik 1.
The world’s first artificial satellite was about the size of a basketball, weighed only 183 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path.
Today Google celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Sputnik with a flashy Google logo:
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.
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Sputnik started the race to space in which United Sates won. However, let’s not forget that sputnik was the first artificial satellite to be put in space.
@Davin: Indeed, we should not forget about the first artificial satellite to be put into space which is why I also posted this.
Sputnik was larger than a basketball. The main sphere was 23″ diameter, while a standard NBA basketball is 9.4″ diameter.
Hello from Sweden, just wanted to say great article! I try to visit your blog atleast once a week