October 4, 1957 · Space Race Theater
October 4, 1957
On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite — a 184-pound aluminum sphere broadcasting a radio beep as it orbited the Earth every 98 minutes. Americans could tune their radios to hear it pass overhead. The achievement was a thunderbolt: if the Soviets could put a satellite in orbit, they could deliver a nuclear warhead to any city on Earth. The 'Sputnik Crisis' ignited a political firestorm in Washington that transformed American science, education, and defense policy.
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