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Sputnik 1

1957 · 20th century

Sputnik 1 was the first artificial Earth satellite, launched by the Soviet Union from Baikonur on 4 October 1957. A polished sphere with four antennas, it transmitted radio signals for three weeks and burned up in the atmosphere in January 1958. Its launch shocked the United States and began the space race.

Sputnik 1
Image: U.S. Air Force photo · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

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First known
1957
Where
Baikonur, Kazakhstan
Credited to
Sergei Korolev · Soviet Union
Built onRocket13th century

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Mentioned in 1 profile

Soviet UnionImpact, Summary

Mentioned in 2 state histories

Soviet UnionKazakh SSR

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Sputnik 1. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sputnik-1
MLA
“Sputnik 1.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sputnik-1. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Sputnik 1.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sputnik-1.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Sputnik 1’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sputnik-1 (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻