Sputnik 1957 was the first manmade satellite to orbit Earth, launched by which country?

Sputnik 1957 was the first manmade satellite to orbit Earth, launched by which country?

• A. Germany
• B. United States
• C. United Kingdom
• D. Soviet Union

Answer: (D)

The question tests understanding of who first placed an artificial satellite into orbit and why that milestone mattered in the space-race era. Sputnik 1 was launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome using a modified R-7 Semyorka intercontinental rocket. This flight demonstrated that the Soviet rocket-vehicle technology could reach orbit, not just suborbital flight, and its beeping radio signals confirmed it was successfully circling Earth. The achievement jolted global science and defense programs, fueling the U.S. push to accelerate its own space efforts and leading to the creation of NASA. The other nations did not achieve this orbital milestone first. Germany had developed rocket tech earlier (the V-2) but did not place a satellite into orbit in 1957. The United States soon followed with its own satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958. The United Kingdom would not orbit a satellite until much later (1971).

The question tests understanding of who first placed an artificial satellite into orbit and why that milestone mattered in the space-race era. Sputnik 1 was launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome using a modified R-7 Semyorka intercontinental rocket. This flight demonstrated that the Soviet rocket-vehicle technology could reach orbit, not just suborbital flight, and its beeping radio signals confirmed it was successfully circling Earth. The achievement jolted global science and defense programs, fueling the U.S. push to accelerate its own space efforts and leading to the creation of NASA.

The other nations did not achieve this orbital milestone first. Germany had developed rocket tech earlier (the V-2) but did not place a satellite into orbit in 1957. The United States soon followed with its own satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958. The United Kingdom would not orbit a satellite until much later (1971).