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Sputnik
Sputnik 1, launched on October 4, 1957, was the world\'s first artificial satellite. It had a mass of 83.6 kilograms. It was designed to determine the density of the upper atmosphere and return data about the Earth\'s ionosphere However, its two radio transmitters only returned signals to Earth for 21 days.
Sputnik 2 was launched on November 3, 1957, and carried aboard it a dog, Laika. This time the satellite weighed 508.3 kilograms. Biological data was returned for approximately a week (the first data of its kind). The data showed scientists how Laika was adapting to space -- information important to the manned missions already being planned. There was no safe re-entry possible at the time, so Laika was put to sleep. The satellite itself remained in orbit 162 days.
The third Sputnik satellite was launched on April 27, 1958, but it failed to reach orbit. It was destroyed 88 seconds after launch. It was not given a numeric designation.
Sputnik 3 was launched on May 15, 1958. It was designed to be a geophysical laboratory, performing experiments on the Earth\'s magnetic field, radiation belt, and ionosphere. It weighed 1,327 kilograms. The data was used as part of the International Geophysical Year efforts. The satellite orbited Earth and transmitted data until April 6, 1960. However, its tape recorder failed rendering it unable to map the Van Allen belts. All four Sputniks were launched using R-7, or SS-6 Sapwood, launch vehicles. Sputnik 1 and 2 used the R-7 8K71, and Sputnik 3 and the failed satellite used the Sputnik 8A91 launch vehicle. The Sputnik Missions caused a shock in the USA The launch of the Sputnik series and the Space Age that the Soviet Union brought in had a number of ramifications on the world around it. Since the Soviets were able to keep Sputnik relatively quiet, the Western countries were shocked when the satellite began its orbit. The major concern with Sputnik was not necessarily the fact that the Soviets were the first in space, but the means in which they got there. At that time, the world was in a race to create the ICBM, or the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. Once the soviets launched Sputnik with this, the United States and Europe reacted. Within the United States, the primary reaction was fear. Americans feared two things about this new advancement. First off, if the Soviets were able to produce ICBMs in mass quantities, they would be able to attack the rest of the world without any retaliation.
The next shock was Yuri Gagarin on his Vostok rocket. Gagarin lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, on April 12, 1961. His mission lasted one hour, 48 minutes, and concluded with a landing in Kazakhstan, approximately 26 kilometers southwest of Engels. Gagarin had completed one Earth orbit, and did so 25 days prior to the first U.S. suborbital manned flight.
The Russian rockets were able to carry a larger amount as the American ones, that was what made projects like the MIR possible.
The Mir Space Station was officially built to conduct studies and experiments of interest to science and the Russian economy. When the Mir program began, the station\'s lifetime was estimated to be five years. The last crew left the station in August 1999 -- more than 13 years after the first component was launched. The station is still in orbit, and additional missions to the outpost being planned. Crew members have been ferried to Mir using the Soyuz-TM spacecraft and the NASA space shuttle. In all, 43 space travelers have called Mir \"home,\" and 59 others have visited for periods of time less than one month. Sixteen space travelers stayed on Mir for multiple long duration missions. The Mir Core, the base unit of the station, was launched on Feb. 20, 1986. It has a mass of 20,100 kilograms, a length of 13.13 meters and a maximum diameter of 4.15 meters. Its pressurized volume equals 90 cubic meters. The solar panels have a total area of 76 square meters. Five modules are attached to the core. The Progress resupply craft ferried supplies to the crews from 1986 to 1989. After that time, an improved Progress-M resupply craft was used. Both types of resupply spacecraft were launched using Proton rocket launch vehicles. They each had a total mass of 7,450 kilograms, a maximum diameter of 2.7 meters and a length of 7.2 meters. The Mir station core and modules were put in orbit by a Proton SL-13 launch vehicle. The SL-13 was designed in 1965 as a more capable follow-on to the two-stage SL-9, although the SL-13 was much larger. Its total mass at the launch of Salyut 6 was 697.1 tons, and its total length was 59.8 meters. Its first flight was in 1968. The vehicle\'s first stage uses RD-253 engines, which provide 167,000 kgf in a vacuum. All three stages use Nitrogen tetroxide/UDMH propellants. Currently the Russian Aviation and Space Agency is examining Mir to see if it may be salvaged as a private industry research post and galactic retreat for wealthy vacationers. The proposal to resurrect the space station was made in January 2000 by Walt Anderson, a Washington-based venture capitalist, who is said to plan to invest $21 million into attempts to renovate the station.
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