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Sputnik: Six Key Events Of The Space Race

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In 1957, Sputnik 1 was launched into space. It was the world’s first artificial satellite, created by the Soviet Union, and was the object that began the Space Race. The launch of this satellite came as an unpleasant surprise to the United States (“The Space Race”). Less than a month later, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, which carried a dog, Laika, in it (“6 Key Events of the Space Race”). A year later, in 1958, the United States retaliated by launching Explorer 1. The same year, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was formed (“The Space Race”).

In 1959, the Soviet Union sent a man, Yuri Gagarin, into orbit around the earth on the satellite Luna 2. The U.S. responded by launching Mercury-Redstone 3 into space carrying

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