Updated 17 December Despite the somewhat difficult relations between Russia and the West in the last few years, it is worth looking back over 68 years to October 1957 and the launch of the first artificial satellite Sputnik 1. This historic event, which caught many in the West by complete surprise, was the beginning of… Continue reading 4 October 1957 – Sputnik 1
Tag: space race
Salyut to the ISS: A Journey Through Space Stations
Updated June 2026 In this post I’ll talk about the history of the International Space Station (ISS) and some of the other space stations which have been constucted over the years. I’ll also touch on some of the politics involved. The International Space Station Image from NASA The First Space Stations Although America was the… Continue reading Salyut to the ISS: A Journey Through Space Stations
The early days of the space race
In my previous post I talked about two significant successes for the Soviet Union in 1957: the first artificial satellite in orbit in October and the first living creature, a dog named Laika, in orbit in November. In December of that year the Americans had a humiliating failure when the Vanguard spacecraft exploded in a… Continue reading The early days of the space race
4 October 1957 – the start of the space age
Updated 16 December 2025 On 4 October 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, into orbit around the Earth. This is considered to be the beginning of the space age. Before this date there were no human made satellites in space but on every single day since then there have been artificial… Continue reading 4 October 1957 – the start of the space age
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