50 years: Sputnik, the space race, and what next?

Page 1 of 3October 4, 2007 was the 50 year anniversary of human designed machines leaving the warm embrace of Earth.

Unlike today, when the launch of space shuttles and crews to the international space station are common occurrences, Sputnik was a shock. The satellite was launched by the Soviet Union, some say as a stunt to boast of their victory in developing a rocket which could hurl a bomb between continents. The R-7 rocket which pushed Sputnik into orbit was a hurriedly re-fitted version of earlier models which had been designed for launching a nuclear weapon. Only months before had Soviet engineers and scientists fine-tuned the R-7 rocket so that it did not explode within the first minute or so of flight.

And so, Sputnik, a 53cm, 83kg silver ball with trailing antennae orbited the Earth every 96 minutes. It’s tiny one-watt transmitter emitted a continuous ‘beep’ at 20 and 40MHz which was heard by amateur radio operators for 22 days until the battery on the satellite ran down.

The reaction in the United States was one of worried awe. Many in the general public did not understand what a satellite in orbit meant. What was holding it up? How long could it stay in the sky? Were the Soviets looking down at the Earth at that moment? However, regardless whether or not most people understood the science of an orbiting satellite, it was clear that if the Soviet Union could send Sputnik around the Earth - they could do the same with a nuclear weapon. The space age and the era of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles were born in the same instant.

The climate of apprehension during the cold war resulted in a scientific and technological fever in which the United States and Soviet Union squared off against each other. Not only did the two countries and their allies strive to out-do each other militarily, but also to win a propaganda war – which side would achieve scientific and technological breakthroughs first? The launch of Sputnik was a blow to the national pride of the United States and interpreted as a potential threat. Government planners moved quickly to organise a response.

The most well known consequence of Sputnik was the U.S. drive to put a man on the moon by the end of the 1960’s. Despite some early setbacks, Apollo 11 sent three astronauts to the moon, two of which walked on it’s surface in July of 1969. Another six missions followed and apart from the ill-fated Apollo 13, a further 10 astronauts walked on the surface of the moon.

Outside of the Apollo programme, NASA, which had been formed in July of 1958 showed early indications that it’s space research activities would result in new technological innovations. This resulted in the Technology Utilization Program being set up in 1962 to inform the scientific community about NASA technologies.

Many products are in commercial use today as a direct result of NASA science and technology research. These range from kidney dialysis machines, athletic shoe manufacturing techniques, insulation materials for automobiles, water filtration technologies, freeze dried foods, computer innovations and many more.

What other innovations were prompted by Sputnik and the space race?