Oct. 4, 1957... Sputnik, a day that shook the world.

[74-911]

A day late posting but nevertheless, any of you old enough probably remember this well. Being 11 at the time, I distinctly remember seeing the huge headlines in the newspaper and the news coverage on TV. Hard to believe that was 60 years ago !

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/oct-4-1957-sputnik-the-dawn-of-the-space-age


"On Oct. 4, 1957, Sputnik 1 successfully launched and entered Earth's orbit. Thus, began the space age. The successful launch shocked the world, giving the former Soviet Union the distinction of putting the first human-made object into space. The word 'Sputnik' originally meant 'fellow traveler,' but has become synonymous with 'satellite' in modern Russian."

"History changed on Oct. 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a beach ball, about 23 inches in diameter and weighing less than 190 pounds. It 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. "

[tcar]

Yes remember it... huge shock. They announced it on the school intercom system.

Also remember our failed Vanguard (Navy) attempts, and Redstone (Army).

Many Vanguard failures... our first satellite attempt made it just a few feet off the pad. The satellite detached and rolled into the bushes...and started transmitting. Embarrassing.

Von Braun was pissed, saying his Redstone (descendant of the German V-2) was ready to go. Redstone was more successful... Alan Shepard rode it.

[pavulon]

"Game Changer" gets tossed around a lot. Sputnik really was.