A Soviet technician works on Sputnik 1 before its launch in 1957. In October 1957, amateur radio operators monitored the first signal from a spacefaring civilization — and it was us. Sputnik 1, the ...
There may actually have been three Sputnik moments. The Soviet Union's Oct. 4, 1957, launch of the first-ever artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, created quite a stir, to be sure. It did kick off the ...