Why was the launching of Sputnik important. How did it affect the United States

Surname 1
Name
Tutor
Class
Date of submission
Why was the launching of Sputnik important? How did it affect the United States?
Sputnik was a milestone in the world technological development after it became the first
artificial satellite of the earth. The Soviet Union was the country associated with the milestone
having launched Sputnik 1 on the fourth day of October 1957. The first artificial satellite was
spherical covering a diameter of 58 centimeters and weighing 83.6 kilograms. It was made from
a shiny metal so that it could be easily visible, with radio antennae attached to its surface for
transmission of radio signals. It went round the earth on an elliptical path within a time period of
98 minutes. On the 26 th of October the power source for Sputnik 1 was exhausted and hence a
month after the first satellite launch, Sputnik II was sent to the earth’s orbit. The Soviet Union
milestone launches of the artificial satellite lead to new advancements in science, technology,
political as well as the military and consequently intensifying the US-USSR cold war.