On this date: Lucy Wan

On October 4th, 1957, 10:29 PM Moscow time, the Space Age would officially begin. Sputnik, the world's first automatic satellite, was launched from the Tyuratam launch base in the Kazakh Republic. As Sputnik sent back radio transmissions, many radio operators listened in awe as the satellite passed over. The U.S. was caught completely off-guard. Sputnik was 10 times bigger than the first planned U.S. satellite which was not scheduled to be launched until the next year. As the U.S. struggled to catch up with the Soviet Union in the 'space race', the Russian space program went on to set a series of firsts: first man in space, first woman, first three men, first space walk, first spacecraft to impact the moon, first to orbit the moon, first to impact Venus, and first craft to soft-land on the moon. 

Through the launch of Sputnik to the present day, our everlasting quest into space has yielded valuable information about the universe we live in. Sputnik represented a move into the modern space age; it's launch signified a shift into a new era of technology and information. Not only was the event an incredible achievement for the Soviet Union, it also spurred the U.S. into further development of it's own space program. Without the 'space race' it is certain that our own deviation into space technology would have come at a much slower, less advanced pace.

I truly believe that this is an important event in our world's history. The launch of Sputnik was the catalyst for a new age of exploration; it was a stepping-stone to our greatest achievements as a collective human race. October 4th, 1957 was undeniably an impactful day in history.