NewsHour Coverage
October 2, 1997
The NewsHour's panel of historians debate the legacy of Sputnik.
September 30, 1997
An interview with the astronauts on the Russian space station Mir
July 11, 1997:
the Sojourner rover send back spectacular images from Mars.
February 18, 1997:
The NewsHour's panel of historians discuss the legacy of the space program.
Browse the NewsHour's coverage of the Science.
OUTSIDE
LINKS
Univ. of Michigan Windows on the Universe page on Sputnik.
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It was only a simple, aluminum sphere that weighed 184 pounds and was 23 inches across, but when it was launched on October 4, 1957, Sputnik was the pinnacle of Soviet space technology and began the Cold War race to the moon.
 Sputnik, the first man-made satellite to be sent into orbit, only carried a radio transmitter that sent a beep back to Earth, it signaled much more to America. The United States was no longer the world's unchallenged leader in the worlds of science and technology. The fact that a nuclear bomb could have been substituted for the satellite was quickly pointed out.
In addition to pushing President Eisenhower to create the National Air and Space Administration (NASA), the launch of Sputnik also pushed Congress to pour money into science and math education to make America's youth more competitive with their Soviet counterparts.
 | | Keith Benson |
But now, the U.S. and Russia are no longer Cold War adversaries and are,
in fact, cooperating in space, most importantly in the Mir and in the building of an international space station.
 | | Haynes Johnson |
So what was Sputnik's legacy, and what can we learn from that era? Your questions are answered by Keith Benson of the History of Science Society and author/journalist Haynes Johnson.
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