4. Sputnik and the Space Race
On October 4, 1957, the Soviet satellite Sputnik successfully orbited the Earth and triggered the space race and a new era in the Cold War. It also triggered an amazing era of science and invention and the U.S. and the Soviets competed to put a man in space.
In response to Sputnik, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower announced that the U.S. would launch their own satellite. Nonetheless, the Soviets beat the Americans to it, even though Sputnik came very close to failure. A fuel regulator in the booster failed 16 seconds into launch. The flight control system had to compensate by rapidly moving the vernier engines and stabilizer fins.
In the end, Sputnik succeed and sent a visual message loud and clear, as it could be seen from Earth. Anyone with a short-wave radio could also hear the satellite, and many recorded it. The USSR was very open about their plans for the satellite, but few Americans paid attention until the actual launch. Project Moonlight helped alert people as to when and how to view it.
Sputnik’s launch spread both fear and amazement around the world. The success of Sputnik was later used for Soviet propaganda in the 1960s as the race to the moon consumed both the U.S. and the Soviet Union.