Sputnik

Sputnik On 4 October 1957, the Soviet Union placed the first manmade satellite, Sputnik I, into orbit. On 3 November it orbited a dog on Sputnik II. When the US attempted to launch its own satellite on 6 December, the booster rocket exploded. Sputnik began the space race between the US and the USSR by sparking a rapid expansion of funding for missile research and creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The US also increased funding for college education by the National Defense Education Act.