Fifty years ago, on October 4, 1957, Sputnik 1, the first man made satellite was launched by the Soviet Union. This event marked the beginning of the space exploration era. The satellite was simple in construction - 58 cm in diameter, weighing approx 84 kg, and looked like an overinflated tin basketball with four long spikes pointing outwards (these were antennas). It was launched using the so called R7 booster, which was tested months earlier.

Image credit: NASA

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