1957 the first artificial earth satellite. The first satellite of the earth. New space age

The first artificial earth satellite, which was successfully launched on October 4, 1957, marked the beginning of a new era - the era of the conquest of outer space.

This colossal technical breakthrough is the merit of a team of Soviet scientists and designers led by the recognized founder of astronautics S.P. Korolev.

General information about Sputnik 1

"Sputnik - 1" was originally called "PS - 1". This name stands for “The simplest satellite - 1”. It is a spherical object made of high-strength magnesium alloy.

The diameter of the sphere is 58 cm. It consists of two parts connected by bolts. Four VHF and HF antennas are mounted on its surface. The presence of antennas allows you to track its location during the flight.

The upper part of the satellite has a hemispherical screen. It plays the role of a thermal insulation coating. Inside the satellite there are batteries, a radio transmitter and all the necessary instruments and sensors.

History of creation

Attempts to create an artificial satellite were made long before PS-1 flew. Leading German designer Wernher von Braun worked on the creation of an unmanned orbital object.

As an employee of the American Strategic Weapons Service, he presented his experimental model of a spacecraft to the military. But none of his attempts were successful.

In the USSR, teams of enthusiastic engineers worked selflessly on this idea. They were not assembled in design laboratories or in spacious hangars and workshops. Ideas for space flight originated in metalwork shops and basements.

1946 was the year of the creation of the USSR rocket industry, the head of which was appointed the brilliant Soviet designer S.P. Korolev. Despite the fact that the country has not yet recovered from the terrible consequences of the Second World War, Soviet scientists and engineers managed to create a powerful technical base.

A few years later, the first successful launch of the R-1 ballistic missile was carried out. Subsequently, its analogue “R-2” was launched, which was distinguished by its large range and flight speed.

Model of the first space satellite

After successful tests of the new intercontinental rocket "R-3", Soviet scientists managed to convince the government of the feasibility of creating the first space satellite.

In 1955, this project received the approval of the highest authorities, which was the beginning of hard work to create the world's first orbital facility.

It is difficult to say with complete certainty who invented and created artificial satellites. This is largely due to the entire team of designers and engineers headed by S.P. Korolev and M.K. Tikhonravov.

Two years later, the satellite was ready. His weight was about 84 kg. The shape of the satellite was not chosen by chance. It is the sphere that represents the ideal shape, with maximum volume with minimum surface.

In addition, this object was supposed to become a symbol of the space age and represent an example of an ideal spacecraft, primarily in terms of its appearance.

Launch of the first artificial Earth satellite

Every day space became more and more accessible. On October 4, 1957, in the Kazakh steppe, one of the greatest events in the history of mankind took place - an intercontinental rocket with a spherical object on board was launched at the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

The R-7 launch vehicle soared upward with a piercing roar. A few minutes later, the spacecraft was launched into orbit, the altitude of which was about 950 km.

After some time, the first man-made object set off on its legendary free flight. The long-awaited signals began to be received on the ground.

The satellite flew over the earth for 92 days, making 1400 revolutions. After this, the companion was destined to die. Losing speed, it began to approach the surface of the earth and simply burned out, overcoming the resistance of the atmosphere.

After the first orbit around the Earth, the main announcer of the country of the Soviets, Yu. B. Levitan, announced the successful launch of the first satellite.

Thanks to special settings for the power of the radio transmitter, the signal from the satellite could be easily received by both specialists and ordinary radio amateurs. Millions of people around the world clung to their radio speakers to hear the “voice from space.”

For each revolution around the Earth, the satellite spent an average of 95–96 minutes. It is noteworthy that the satellite as such was not visible to the naked eye, although after its launch a moving dot could be observed in the sky.

In fact, this flying star is nothing more than the last stage of the launch vehicle, which continued to move in orbit for some time until it burned up in the atmosphere.

It is worth noting: despite the fact that all the instruments and control devices of the device were created, as they say, from scratch, not a single one of them failed during the flight.

When creating electronic power supplies, the latest technologies of those years were used, which had no analogues in any country for many years.

Scientific results of the Sputnik-1 flight

It is difficult to overestimate the significance of this legendary event. In addition to strengthening faith in space flight and increasing the country's prestige, he made an invaluable contribution to the development and strengthening of the scientific potential of that time.

Analysis of the PS-1 flight made it possible to begin the study of the ionosphere, the properties of which had not been fully studied. In particular, scientists were interested in the issue of the propagation of radio waves in its environment. In addition, measurements of atmospheric density parameters and its effect on the orbital object were carried out.

Analysis of the collected data has become a good help in the design and creation of new components and mechanisms of future spacecraft.

Some of the most interesting facts:

The era of space exploration remembers many significant events, each of which was achieved at the cost of incredible efforts and losses. One way or another, the thorny path to the stars was laid precisely then - on October 4, 1957.

It was this date that served as the starting point for the development of domestic cosmonautics as an independent industry and determined its future fate.

Day of the beginning of the space age of mankind (October 4, 1957); proclaimed by the International Astronautical Federation in September 1967 (on this day the world's first artificial Earth satellite was successfully launched in the USSR)

On October 4, 1957, the world's first artificial Earth satellite was launched into low-Earth orbit, ushering in the space age in human history. The satellite, which became the first artificial celestial body, was launched into orbit by the R-7 launch vehicle from the 5th research site of the USSR Ministry of Defense, which later received the open name of the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The PS-1 spacecraft (the simplest satellite-1) was a ball with a diameter of 58 centimeters, weighed 83.6 kilograms, and was equipped with four pin antennas 2.4 and 2.9 meters long for transmitting signals from battery-powered transmitters. 295 seconds after launch, PS-1 and the central block of the rocket, weighing 7.5 tons, were launched into an elliptical orbit with an altitude of 947 km at apogee and 288 km at perigee. At 315 seconds after launch, the satellite separated from the second stage of the launch vehicle, and its call signs were immediately heard by the whole world. The PS-1 satellite flew for 92 days, until January 4, 1958, completing 1,440 revolutions around the Earth (about 60 million km), and its radio transmitters operated for two weeks after launch. The United States was able to repeat the success of the USSR only on February 1, 1958, launching on the second attempt the Explorer 1 satellite, weighing 10 times less than the first satellite. Scientists M.V. worked on the creation of an artificial Earth satellite, led by the founder of practical cosmonautics S.P. Korolev. Keldysh, M.K. Tikhonravov, N.S. Lidorenko, V.I. Lapko, B.S. Chekunov and many others.

The formation of the rocket and space industry and technology in our country practically began in the spring of 1946. It was then that research institutes, design bureaus, testing centers and factories for the development and production of long-range ballistic missiles were formed. Then NII-88 (later OKB-1, TsKBM, NPO Energia, RSC Energia) appeared - the main institute in the country's jet weapons, headed by S.P. Korolev. Together with the chief designers - on rocket engines, control systems, command instruments, radio systems, launch complexes, etc., S.P. Korolev supervised the creation of rocket and space systems that ensured the first and subsequent flights of automatic and manned vehicles. In a short historical period, a powerful industry was created in the country to produce a wide variety of rocket and space technology. Thousands of devices for various purposes were designed, built and sent into space, and a huge amount of work was done to study outer space. Launch vehicles “Zenit”, “Proton”, “Cosmos”, “Molniya”, “Cyclone” launched scientific research, applied, meteorological, navigation, and military satellites “Electron”, “Gorizont”, “Start” into space orbit. , “Cosmos”, “Resource”, “Gals”, “Forecast”, communication satellites “Ekran”, “Molniya” and others. Unique work was done by automatic spacecraft during flights to the Moon, Mars, Venus, and Halley's Comet.

Flight parameters

• Start of flight- October 4, 1957 at 19:28:34 GMT
• End of flight- 4 January
• Device weight- 83.6 kg;
• Max diameter- 0.58 m.
• Orbital inclination- 65.1°.
• Circulation period- 96.7 min.
• Perigee- 228 km.
• Apogee- 947 km.
• Vitkov - 1440

Device

The satellite's body consisted of two half-shells with connecting frames connected to each other by 36 bolts. The tightness of the joint was ensured by a rubber gasket. In the upper half-shell there were two antennas, each of two pins 2.4 m and 2.9 m long. Inside the sealed housing were placed: a block of electrochemical sources; radio transmitting device; fan; thermal relay and air duct of the thermal control system; switching device for on-board electrical automation; temperature and pressure sensors; onboard cable network.

Launch history

Satellite signal

The flight of the first satellite was preceded by titanic work by Soviet rocket designers led by Sergei Korolev.

The history of the creation of the First Sputnik is the history of a rocket. The rocket technology of the Soviet Union and the United States had a German origin.

The developed project of a rocket of a new layout was approved by the Council of Ministers of the USSR on November 20, 1954. It was necessary to solve many new problems in the shortest possible time, which included, in addition to the development and construction of the rocket itself, choosing a location for the launch site, building launch facilities, commissioning all the necessary services and equipping the entire 7,000-kilometer flight route with observation posts. The first complex of the R-7 rocket was built and tested during 1955-1956 at the Leningrad Metal Plant, at the same time, in accordance with the government decree of February 12, 1955, construction of NIIP-5 began in the area of ​​the Tyura-Tam station. When the first rocket in the factory workshop was already assembled, the plant was visited by a delegation of the main members of the Politburo, headed by N. S. Khrushchev. The rocket made a stunning impression not only on the Soviet leadership, but also on leading scientists.

We [nuclear scientists] thought that our scale was large, but there we saw something that was an order of magnitude larger. I was struck by the enormous technical culture visible to the naked eye, the coordinated work of hundreds of highly qualified people and their almost everyday, but very business-like attitude towards the fantastic things they were dealing with...

- (collection “First Space”, p. 18)

On January 30, 1956, the government signed a decree on the creation and launch into orbit in 1957-1958. “Object “D”” - a satellite weighing 1000-1400 kg carrying 200-300 kg of scientific equipment. The development of the equipment was entrusted to the USSR Academy of Sciences, the construction of the satellite was entrusted to OKB-1, and the launch was entrusted to the Ministry of Defense. By the end of 1956, it became clear that reliable equipment for the satellite could not be created in the required time frame.

Multimedia

• The sound of a signal from the first artificial satellite(info)

Literature

• First Space (a collection of articles dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the space age) / compiled by O. V. Zakutnyaya. - M.: 2007. - ISBN 978-5-902533-03-0

Links

• “Sputnik as a Warning,” Los Angeles Times, September 30, 2007 - “Moscow was the first to go into space in a show of military force in the face of US provocation. Fifty years have passed - and the same thing is starting again” - Matthew Brzezinski.
• “France celebrates the anniversary of the launch of the first Soviet satellite,” Izvestia. Ru”, 10/04/07 - “A stamp dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the launch of the first satellite and human exploration of space has been issued”
• A satellite instead of a bomb. Documentary film from Roscosmos television studio

Notes

Sputnik series
Previous flight: -	Sputnik-1	Next flight:

The cry of the first satellites
was touchingly subtle.
So among the starry young cereals
the planet hatched,
like a chicken
from a blue airy shell.
Vladimir Kostrov

60 years ago, on October 4, 1957, the space age began in human history. For the first time, an object created by the hands of earthly engineers was launched into orbit. They called it "Sputnik".

Prototypes of the satellite

The idea of ​​an artificial Earth satellite (AES, satellite, moon) arose quite a long time ago. More Isaac Newton in his monograph "Mathematical principles of natural philosophy"(1687), as an example of his reasoning, cited a description of a huge cannon, with the help of which it would be possible to launch a core into a constant orbit around the Earth. Newton proposed to imagine the highest mountain, the peak of which is beyond the atmosphere, and a cannon mounted at the very top and firing horizontally. The more powerful the charge used when firing, the farther the cannonball will fly from the mountain. Finally, when a certain charge power is reached, the core will develop such a speed that it will not fall to the Earth at all and will revolve around our planet. This speed is now called “first cosmic speed” and for the Earth it is 7.91 km/s.

Sir Isaac Newton is the founder of not only physics, but also astronautics. "Newton's Cannon": the cannonball flies, but does not fall (original illustration)

Newton's figurative example was later turned to by both scientists who discussed the prospects of astronautics and science fiction writers. The technical implementation of the “Newton gun” was described in his novel by the science fiction classic Jules Verne in the novel "500 Million Begums" (1879).

Large French cannon for space launches.

The great Tsiolkovsky looks to the future.

The founders of theoretical cosmonautics spoke a lot about the need to launch an artificial Earth satellite. However, they justified this need in different ways. Our compatriot Konstantin Tsiolkovsky proposed launching a rocket with a crew into a circular orbit in order to immediately begin human space exploration.

The German Hermann Oberth proposed to assemble a large orbital station from the stages of launch vehicles, which could solve the problems of military reconnaissance, maritime navigation, geophysical research and relaying information messages.

In addition, by equipping this station with a large mirror, it would be possible, according to Oberth, to focus the sun's rays and direct them to the Earth, affecting the climate or threatening enemy troops and cities. He played on Oberth's idea in his novel "World Fire" (1925) German author Karl-August Laffert.

Many scientists and science fiction writers agreed that the artificial satellite of the Earth would be used primarily as a transshipment base for interplanetary spacecraft flying to the Moon, Mars and Venus. And in fact, why would a ship carry into orbit all the fuel necessary for acceleration if it can refuel from a satellite?

It was then that they came up with the idea of ​​equipping the future satellite with a telescope so that astronomers could observe distant space objects directly from orbit, freeing themselves forever from distortions introduced by the atmosphere.

An inhabited satellite in Earth orbit (original illustration from V. Nikolsky’s book “After a Thousand Years”). An inhabited satellite in Earth orbit (original cover for the American edition of O. Guile's novel "The Moonstone").

Artificial satellites of this type are described in the novels of Otto Geil "Moonstone" (1926), Vadim Nikolsky "After a Thousand Years" (1927) and Alexandra Belyaeva "KEC Star" (1936).

However, time passed, and it was not possible to build a means of delivering the satellite into orbit. The creation of large guns turned out to be extremely labor-intensive and expensive, and small rockets, which were launched in large numbers before World War II, could not even theoretically reach the first cosmic speed.

Due to the lack of a medium, very exotic projects appeared. For example, in 1944, Major General Georgy Pokrovsky published an article “New Earth Satellite,” in which he proposed launching a metal satellite using a directed explosion. He understood, of course, that after such an explosion only “some unorganized masses of metals” would go into orbit, but he was sure that humanity needed such an experience, since observing the movement of an “unorganized” object would provide a lot of new information about the processes that occur in the upper layers of the atmosphere.

Launch of the Pokrovsky satellite using an explosion (original illustration).
Pokrovsky satellite in orbit (original illustration).

First attempts

As is well known, the first large liquid fuel rockets were learned to be made in the Third Reich. And already there there was talk of using them to launch satellites.

There is evidence that when discussing future developments at the German rocket center Peenemünde, it was proposed to honor the first space travelers by placing their embalmed bodies in glass balls launched into orbit around the Earth.

The appearance of heavy V-2 rockets predetermined the development of astronautics.

In March 1946, US Air Force experts prepared a "Preliminary Design for an Experimental Spacecraft for Flight around the Earth." This document was the first serious attempt to evaluate the possibilities of creating a spacecraft that would orbit the Earth as its satellite.

Already in the introduction to the project it is emphasized that, despite the uncertainty of the prospects regarding the beginning of space activities, two points are beyond doubt: “1) A spacecraft equipped with appropriate instrumentation will, in all likelihood, become one of the most effective means of scientific research of the 20th century . 2) The launch of Sputnik by the United States will excite the imagination of mankind and will certainly have an impact on world events comparable to the explosion of an atomic bomb.”

On October 4, 1950, exactly seven years before the launch of the first satellite, the American scientist Kecskeméti presented a research report “Rocket vehicle - Earth satellite: political and psychological problems.” The memo analyzed “the likely political consequences that would arise from the launch of an artificial Earth satellite in the United States and its successful use for military intelligence purposes.” The report shows that military experts, back in the early 1950s, were well aware of the political and military significance the launch of Sputnik would have. We were no longer talking about glass balls with the bodies of space explorers - the designers’ imagination imagined entire orbital groups monitoring the territory of a potential enemy.

"V-2" at the White Sands training ground. This is how American astronautics began.

At the 4th International Congress on Astronautics, held in 1953 in Zurich, Fred Singer from the University of Maryland openly stated that in the United States there are prerequisites for the creation of an artificial Earth satellite, abbreviated as “MAUZ” (“Minimum Orbital Unmanned Satellite of Earth”). Singer's hypothetical satellite was an autonomous instrumentation system placed in a durable ball, which, upon reaching a given altitude, was separated from the third stage of a composite launch vehicle. The satellite's orbit, 300 km high, would pass through both poles of the Earth.

Wernher von Braun's rocket at launch

On June 25, 1954, a meeting was held at the Naval Research Office building in Washington, which was attended by leading American rocket scientists: Wernher von Braun, Professor Singer, Professor Whipple from Harvard, David Young from Aerojet and others. On the agenda was the question of whether it would be possible to launch large satellites into an orbit at an altitude of 320 km in the near future. By “near future” we meant a period of 2-3 years.

Wernher von Braun stated that the historic launch could be accomplished much earlier, and outlined his thoughts on using a Redstone rocket as the first stage and several clusters of Loki rockets as subsequent stages for this purpose. The main advantage was that it could use existing missiles. This is how the Orbiter project was born. The launch of the satellite was scheduled for the summer of 1957.

American satellite Explorer 1. Wernher von Braun still managed to launch it.

However, by that time other projects had also received serious development.

On July 29, 1955, the White House officially announced the upcoming launch of the satellite under the Navy's Vanguard program.

A three-stage launch vehicle was proposed, consisting of a modified Viking rocket as the first stage, a modified Aerobee rocket as the second stage, and a solid-fuel third stage. It was originally planned that the Avangard satellite would weigh 9.75 kg. They wanted to equip it with measuring instruments. With a small power source and camera on board, the satellite could even transmit color images back to Earth.

However, the launch of the first Soviet satellite confused the Americans' plans. In its final form, the spherical Avangard-1 weighed only 1.59 kg and had on board only two primitive radio transmitters powered by mercury and solar batteries.

American satellite "Vanguard". He could have been the first, but he didn’t even become the second. The rocket carrying Avangard-1 exploded at launch on December 6, 1957.

Meanwhile in the USSR

Cover of the futurological issue of the magazine “Knowledge is Power”

In November 1954, an unusual futurological issue of the magazine “Knowledge is Power” was published, dedicated to the upcoming flight to the Moon. In this issue, leading Soviet popularizers of science and science fiction writers shared their ideas about the coming space expansion. On the pages of the magazine a forecast was given: the first artificial satellite will be launched in 1970. The authors of the issue were mistaken - the space age began much earlier.

The chief designer of Soviet rocketry, Sergei Korolev, began talking seriously about Sputnik in 1953. At that time, work on the R-7 intercontinental rocket was just beginning, but it was clear to specialists that this rocket was capable of reaching the first cosmic speed.

On May 26, 1954, Korolev sent a memo "About the artificial satellite of the Earth" to the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers. The answer was negative, because from Korolev, first of all, they expected a combat missile that would fly to America - the top people were of little concern about research topics at that time. But Korolev did not give up hope of convincing the leadership and turned to the USSR Academy of Sciences.

On August 30, 1955, leading rocketry experts, including Sergei Korolev, Mstislav Keldysh and Valentin Glushko, gathered in the office of the chief scientific secretary of the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Academician Topchiev.

Academicians M.V. Keldysh and S.P. Korolev.

Korolev made a brief speech in which, in particular, he said: “I consider it necessary to create a special body in the USSR Academy of Sciences to develop a program of scientific research using a series of artificial Earth satellites, including biological ones with animals on board. This organization must pay the most serious attention to the manufacture of scientific equipment and involve leading scientists in this activity.”

The Academy supported the Queen. From December 1955 to March 1956, a number of meetings of scientists of various specialties, one way or another interested in space research, were held. After this, the government could no longer dismiss the “fantastic project.” On January 30, 1956, Resolution of the Council of Ministers No. 149-88ss was adopted, which provided for the creation "Object D"- this was the name of a non-orientable satellite weighing from 1000 to 1400 kg. From 200 to 300 kg were allocated for scientific equipment. The first test launch based on the R-7 long-range missile was scheduled for the summer of 1957.

Object “D” is a space laboratory. It could have become the first Soviet satellite, but it became the third.

Having received the long-awaited resolution, Korolev immediately began implementing his plans. In his design bureau OKB-1, a department was formed that was supposed to deal exclusively with the development of artificial Earth satellites. At Keldysh’s suggestion, the department worked on several versions of “Object D” at once, one of which provided for the presence of a container with “biological cargo” - an experimental dog.

Sergei Korolev closely followed the work of his American colleagues and feared that he might be ahead of him. Therefore, immediately after the successful launch of the R-7 rocket, which took place on September 7, 1957, the chief designer gathered the employees involved in the design of the satellite and proposed that work on the “Object D” be temporarily frozen and a small light satellite be made “at least on the knee.”

“The simplest satellite first” (“PS-1”).

The management of the design and production of PS-1 (The Simplest Satellite First) was entrusted to two engineers - Mikhail Khomyakov and Oleg Ivanovsky. Special signals for the transmitter were invented by Mikhail Ryazansky. The rocket's nose fairing, which protects the satellite from environmental influences, was designed by Sergei Okhapkin's group.

Although the satellite looked very simple in design, it was created for the first time; no analogues of an orbital artificial object existed in technology. Only one thing was set - a weight limit: no more than 100 kg. (In its final form it weighed even less - 83.6 kg). Quite quickly, the designers came to the conclusion that it would be advantageous to make a satellite in the shape of a ball.

Scheme "PS-1" (general view). Poster “The First Artificial Earth Satellite” (1958).

They decided to place two radio transmitters inside the satellite with operating frequencies of 20.005 and 40.002 MHz. The satellite's body consisted of two half-shells with connecting frames connected to each other by 36 bolts. The tightness of the joint was ensured by a rubber gasket. Externally, the satellite looked like an aluminum sphere with a diameter of 0.58 m, with four antennas. The power supply for the satellite's onboard equipment was provided by electrochemical current sources (silver-zinc batteries), designed to operate for 2-3 weeks.

Internal layout of "PS-1".

Work on the Soviet satellite was not kept secret. Even six months before the historic launch, the mass magazine Radio published an article by V. Vakhnin, “Artificial Earth Satellites,” which reported the orbital parameters of future Soviet satellites and the frequencies at which radio amateurs should catch their signals.

A week before the launch, at a scientific conference in Washington, Sergei Poloskov read a report on the USSR’s space plans and for the first time pronounced the name of the new spacecraft. Soon all the print media in the world will repeat this word - Sputnik.

• The day of the launch of Sputnik 1 is celebrated in Russia as the Memorial Day of the Space Forces.
• In 1964, in honor of the launch of Sputnik 1 in Moscow, near the VDNKh metro station, a 99-meter monument to the Conquerors of Space was built in the form of a rocket taking off, leaving a trail of fire behind it.
• A model of Sputnik 1 was donated by the Soviet government to the UN and now adorns the entrance to the UN Headquarters Hall in New York.
• On November 4, 1997, cosmonauts from the Russian orbital station Mir manually launched a model of Sputnik 1 (RS-17, Sputnik 40) into space. This model was made on a 1:3 scale by Russian and French students specially for the 40th anniversary of the launch of the first satellite.
• In 2003, an exact copy (double) of Sputnik 1, made back in 1957, was sold at an eBay auction. Before the sale, the copy was listed as an educational exhibit of one of the Kyiv institutes. It is believed that in preparation for the historic launch, four copies of the “Simple Sputnik” were manufactured.

Monument to the Conquerors of Space in Moscow.

Beep, beep, beep

Sergei Korolev at the launch site of the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

On September 20, 1957, a meeting of the special commission for the launch of the satellite was held at Baikonur, where all services confirmed their readiness for launch. Finally, on October 4, 1957 at 22:28:34 Moscow time, a bright flash illuminated the night Kazakhstan steppe. The M1-1SP launch vehicle (a modification of the R-7 rocket, later called Sputnik-1) went up with a roar. Her torch gradually weakened and soon became indistinguishable against the background of the starry sky.

295 seconds after launch, “PS-1” and the central block of the rocket weighing 7.5 tons were launched into an elliptical orbit with an altitude of 947 km at apogee and 288 km at perigee. At 314.5 seconds after launch, the satellite separated, and it began to signal: “Beep! Beep! Beep! At the cosmodrome they were caught for two minutes, then the satellite went beyond the horizon. The specialists ran out of their hiding places, shouted “Hurray!”, and shook up the designers and military personnel. And already on the first orbit a TASS message was heard: “As a result of a lot of hard work by research institutes and design bureaus, the world’s first artificial Earth satellite was created. On October 4, 1957, the first satellite was successfully launched in the Soviet Union.”

The moment of separation of the nose fairing and the last stage of the launch vehicle from the PS-1 (still from an educational film).

Observations during the first orbits showed that the satellite entered orbit with an inclination of 65.1° and with a maximum distance from the Earth's surface of 947 km. The satellite spent 96 minutes 10.2 seconds on each orbit around the Earth.

Klim Voroshilov presents Sergei Korolev with the Order of Lenin (1957).

At 20:07 minutes New York time, the RSA radio station in New York received signals from the Soviet satellite, and soon radio and television spread the news throughout the United States. The NBC radio station invited Americans to “listen to the signals that forever separated the old from the new.”

Another detail of the historical launch is of some interest. It is generally accepted that the star running quickly across the sky, which appeared after October 4, 1957, is a visually observable satellite. In fact, the reflective surface of PS-1 was too small for visual observation; the second stage was visible from Earth - the same central block of the rocket, which entered the same orbit as the satellite.

According to official information, PS-1 flew for 92 days, until January 4, 1958, making 1,440 revolutions around the Earth and covering about 60 million kilometers.

Photo of PS-1 during its passage over Melbourne.

However, there is evidence that it entered the dense layers of the atmosphere and burned up a little earlier - on December 8, 1957. It was on this day that one Earl Thomas discovered a flaming wreckage near his home in Southern California. Analysis showed that it consists of the same materials as PS-1. These fragments are currently on display at the Beat Museum near San Francisco.

Perhaps these are fragments of the filling of the first satellite that fell in the United States.

Alternatives

Issue of the New York Times dedicated to the launch of Sputnik 1.

The launch of the satellite caused shock throughout the world, and above all in the United States. For the first time, Americans received clear proof that they were not leading in all areas of life, that the “potential enemy” had bypassed them in the most important area. “Ninety percent of the talk about artificial Earth satellites came from the United States,” wrote the New York Times. “As it turned out, 100 percent of the case fell on Russia...” It was scary. And it was very scary!

“The King of Horror Movies,” Stephen King, admitted in his book “Dance of Death” that the announcement of the Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik into orbit was the greatest shock of his youth.

The fear was so strong that in the first days of October 1957, particularly hotheads from the Pentagon proposed “closing the sky,” that is, throwing tons of scrap metal into orbital heights: balls from bearings, nails, steel shavings, which would lead to the cessation of any space launches. This little-known detail from the history of astronautics indicates that Americans initially perceived space as their property. And they could not admit the thought that someone else would dare to lay claim to it.

But America really could have become the first space power.

Poster “Soviet artificial satellites of the Earth” (1958).

If before World War II no one thought about this, then after the war, impressed by the successes of the rocket scientists of the Third Reich, US leaders seriously thought about a new “strategic bridgehead.” Thanks to documents and specialists brought from Germany, the Americans were able to quickly overcome the gap in ballistic missiles, and therefore create the prerequisites for launching satellites into outer space.

The US leadership made only one mistake. He should have trusted the experience and talent of Wernher von Braun and accepted the Orbiter project, which promised the launch of the first satellite by the end of 1956. Most likely, the German designer would have been able to fulfill his promises, and the United States would have acquired the much-coveted “right of ownership.”

What difference would it make? Only one thing, but the most important thing. Having established itself in outer space and secured one of its most important priorities, the United States would hardly get involved in a space “race” that would require huge financial expenditures. But an attempt to “catch up and overtake America” in space could lead to the fact that Soviet cosmonauts would not only become the first in orbit, but also land on the Moon. The history of astronautics would change in the most dramatic way.

The launch of the Soviet satellite started a space “race”, which the Americans won by landing on the Moon.

* * *

It’s impossible to say whether people would be happier in such a world or not, but that doesn’t matter. After all, it never existed and never will, because it was the Soviet satellite that opened the space age, and its ringing signals notified the entire Universe about it...

The first artificial Earth satellite was created and launched into space in the USSR. This happened on October 4, 1957. On this day, radio stations around the world interrupted their broadcasts to report the most important news. The Russian word “sputnik” has entered all languages ​​of the world.
It was a fantastic breakthrough for mankind in the exploration of outer space, and it marked the beginning of the great Space Age of all mankind. And the palm rightfully belongs to the USSR.

Here is a photo taken in the hall of the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

In the foreground is the First Sputnik, the highest technological achievement of its time.
On the second floor are IKI employees - outstanding scientists, creators of the first satellite, atomic weapons, space science and technology.

If you can't read it in the picture, here are their names:

• Yakov Borisovich Zeldovich - theoretical physicist, was repeatedly awarded the 1st degree Stalin Prize for special work related to the atomic bomb. Three times Hero of Social Labor.

October 4, 1957 will forever go down in human history as the beginning of a new era - the cosmic era. It was on this day that the first artificial satellite (AES), Sputnik-1, was sent from the Baikonur Cosmodrome to roam space. It weighed relatively little - 83.6 kilograms, but at that time delivering even such a “crumb” into orbit was a very serious task.

I think that there is not a person in Russia who does not know who was the first man in space.

The situation with the first satellite is more complicated. Many don't even know which country it belonged to.

Thus began a new era in science and the legendary space race between the USSR and the USA.

The era of rocket science begins at the beginning of the last century, with theory. It was then that the outstanding scientist Tsiolkovsky, in his article on the jet engine, actually predicted the appearance of satellites. Despite the fact that the professor had many students who continued to popularize his ideas, many considered him just a dreamer.

Then new times came, the country had many things to do and problems besides rocket science. But two decades later, Friedrich Zander and the now famous aviator engineer Korolenko founded a group to study jet propulsion. After this, there were several events that led to the fact that 30 years later the first satellite was launched into space, and after some time a person was launched:

• 1933 - launch of the first rocket with a jet engine;
• 1943 - invention of German V-2 rockets;
• 1947–1954 - launches of P1-P7 rockets.

The device itself was ready in mid-May at 7 pm. Its device was quite simple; it had 2 beacons, which made it possible to measure its flight trajectories. It is interesting that after sending the notification that the satellite was ready for flight, Korolev did not receive any response from Moscow and independently decided to place the satellite at the launch position.

The preparation and launch of the satellite was led by S.P. Korolev. The satellite completed 1440 full revolutions in 92 days, after which it burned up, entering the dense layers of the atmosphere. The radio transmitters worked for two weeks after launch.

The first satellite was given the name “PS-1”. When the project of the first-born in space was born, there were disputes among engineers and designers: what shape should it be? After listening to the arguments of all sides, Sergei Pavlovich categorically declared: “The ball and only the ball!” - and, without waiting for questions, he explained his plan: “The ball, its shape, its living conditions from the point of view of aerodynamics have been thoroughly studied.

Its pros and cons are known. And this is of no small importance.

Understand - FIRST! When humanity sees an artificial satellite, it should evoke good feelings in them. What could be more expressive than a ball? It is close to the shape of the natural celestial bodies of our solar system. People will perceive the satellite as a certain image, as a symbol of the space age!

I consider it necessary to install such transmitters on board so that their call signs can be received by radio amateurs on all continents. The orbital flight of the satellite should be calculated in such a way that, using the simplest optical instruments, everyone from Earth could see the flight of the Soviet satellite.”

On the morning of October 3, 1957, scientists, designers, members of the State Commission - everyone who was associated with the launch - gathered at the installation and testing building. We were waiting for the two-stage Sputnik rocket and space system to be transported to the launch pad.

The metal gate opened. The locomotive seemed to push out a rocket placed on a special platform. Sergei Pavlovich, establishing a new tradition, took off his hat. His example of high respect for the work that created this miracle of technology was followed by others.

Korolev took a few steps behind the rocket, stopped and, according to the old Russian custom, said: “Well, with God!”

There were only a few hours left before the start of the space age. What awaited Korolev and his associates? Will October 4 be the victorious day that he has dreamed of for many years? The sky, dotted with stars that night, seemed to become closer to the Earth. And everyone who was present at the launch pad involuntarily looked at Korolev. What was he thinking about, looking into the dark sky, twinkling with myriads of near and distant stars? Maybe he remembered the words of Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky: “The first great step of humanity is to fly out of the atmosphere and become a satellite of the Earth”?

The last meeting of the State Commission before the start. There was a little over an hour left before the start of the experiment. The floor was given to S.P. Korolev, everyone was waiting for a detailed report, but the chief designer was brief: “The launch vehicle and satellite have passed launch tests. I propose to launch the rocket and space complex at the appointed time, today at 22:28.”

And here is the long-awaited launch!

“THE FIRST ARTIFICIAL EARTH SATELLITE, SOVIET SPACE VEHICLE LAUNCHED INTO ORBIT.”

The launch was carried out from the 5th research site of the USSR Ministry of Defense "Tyura-Tam" on the Sputnik launch vehicle, created on the basis of the R7 intercontinental ballistic missile.

On Friday, October 4, at 22:28:34 Moscow time (19:28:34 GMT), a successful launch was made.

295 seconds after the launch, PS-1 and the central block (II stage) of the rocket weighing 7.5 tons were launched to

elliptical orbit with an altitude of 947 km at apogee and 288 km at perigee. At the same time, the apogee was in the Southern Hemisphere, and the perigee was in the Northern Hemisphere. 314.5 seconds after launch, the protective cone was released and Sputnik separated from the second stage of the launch vehicle, and it cast its vote. “Beep! Beep! - that was his call sign.

They were caught at the training ground for 2 minutes, then the Sputnik went beyond the horizon. People at the cosmodrome ran out into the street, shouted “Hurray!”, shook the designers and military personnel.

And on the first orbit a TASS message sounded:

“As a result of a lot of hard work by research institutes and design bureaus, the world’s first artificial Earth satellite was created.”

Only after receiving the first signals from Sputnik did the results of processing telemetry data arrive and it turned out that only a fraction of a second separated it from failure. Before the start, the engine in block G was “delayed”, and the time to enter the mode is strictly controlled, and if it is exceeded, the start is automatically canceled.

The unit entered mode less than a second before the control time. At the 16th second of the flight, the tank emptying system (TES) failed, and due to increased kerosene consumption, the central engine turned off 1 second earlier than the estimated time. According to the memoirs of B.E. Chertok: “A little more - and the first cosmic speed might not have been achieved.

But the winners are not judged! A great thing has happened!”

The inclination of Sputnik 1's orbit was about 65 degrees, which meant that Sputnik 1 flew approximately between the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle, shifting 24 degrees along longitude 37 due to the Earth's rotation during each orbit.

The orbital period of Sputnik 1 was initially 96.2 minutes, then it gradually decreased due to the lowering of the orbit, for example, after 22 days it became 53 seconds shorter.

History of creation

The flight of the first satellite was preceded by long work by scientists and designers, in which scientists played a significant role.

Here are their names:

1. Valentin Semenovich Etkin - probing the Earth's surface from space using remote radiophysical methods.
2. Pavel Efimovich Elyasberg - during the launch of the first Artificial Earth Satellite, he led the work on determining orbits and predicting the movement of the satellite based on measurement results.
3. Yan Lvovich Ziman - his PhD thesis, defended at MIIGAiK, was devoted to the issues of choosing orbits for satellites.
4. Georgy Ivanovich Petrov - together with S.P. Korolev and M.V. Keldysh, stood at the origins of astronautics.
5. Joseph Samuilovich Shklovsky is the founder of the school of modern astrophysics.
6. Georgy Stepanovich Narimanov - programs and methods of navigation and ballistic support for flight control of artificial earth satellites.
7. Konstantin Iosifovich Gringauz, the first artificial Earth satellite, launched in 1957, carried on board a radio transmitter created by a scientific and technical group led by K. I. Gringauz.
8. Yuri Ilyich Galperin - magnetospheric research.
9. Semyon Samoilovich Moiseev - plasma and hydrodynamics.
10. Vasily Ivanovich Moroz - Physics of planets and small bodies of the Solar system.

Satellite device

The satellite's body consisted of two power hemispherical shells with a diameter of 58.0 cm made of aluminum-magnesium alloy AMg-6 with a thickness of 2 mm with docking frames connected to each other by 36 M8 × 2.5 studs. Before launch, the satellite was filled with dry nitrogen gas at a pressure of 1.3 atmospheres. The tightness of the joint was ensured by a vacuum rubber gasket. The upper half-shell had a smaller radius and was covered with a hemispherical outer screen 1 mm thick to provide thermal insulation.

The surfaces of the shells were polished and processed to give them special optical properties. On the upper half-shell there were two corner vibrator antennas, facing backwards, located crosswise; each consisted of two arms-pins 2.4 m long (VHF antenna) and 2.9 m long (HF antenna), the angle between the arms in a pair was 70°; the shoulders were moved to the required angle using a spring
mechanism after separation from the launch vehicle.

Such an antenna provided nearly uniform radiation in all directions, which was required for stable radio reception due to the fact that the satellite was unoriented. The design of the antennas was proposed by G. T. Markov (MPEI). On the front half-shell there were four sockets for attaching antennas with pressure seal fittings and a filling valve flange. On the rear half-shell there was a locking heel contact, which included an autonomous on-board power supply after separation of the satellite from the launch vehicle, as well as a test system connector flange.

Orbit diagram of the first Earth satellite. /From the newspaper “Soviet Aviation”/. 1957

Inside the sealed case were placed:

• block of electrochemical sources (silver-zinc batteries);
• radio transmitting device;
• a fan that turns on from a thermal relay at temperatures above +30°C and turns off when the temperature drops to +20...23°C;
• thermal relay and air duct of the thermal control system;
• switching device for on-board electrical automation; temperature and pressure sensors;
• onboard cable network. Weight - 83.6 kg.

Flight parameters

• The flight began on October 4, 1957 at 19:28:34 GMT.
• End of flight - January 4, 1958.
• The weight of the device is 83.6 kg.
• Maximum diameter - 0.58 m.
• Orbital inclination is 65.1°.
• The orbital period is 96.2 minutes.
• Perigee - 228 km.
• Apogee - 947 km.
• Vitkov - 1440.

Memory

In honor of the beginning of the space age of mankind, a 99-meter obelisk “To the Conquerors of Space” was opened in 1964 in Moscow on Mira Avenue.

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 1, on October 4, 2007, a monument to the First Artificial Earth Satellite was unveiled in the city of Korolev on Kosmonavtov Avenue.

An icy plateau on Pluto was named after Sputnik 1 in 2017.

Picking up speed, the rocket confidently went up. Everyone who was involved in the launch of the satellite gathered at the launch pad. The nervous excitement did not subside. Everyone was waiting for the satellite to fly around the Earth and appear above the cosmodrome. “There is a signal,” the operator’s voice came over the speakerphone.

At that same second, the clear, confident voice of the satellite poured out of the speaker over the steppe. Everyone applauded in unison. Someone shouted “Hurray!”, and the others echoed the victorious cry. Strong handshakes, hugs. An atmosphere of happiness reigned... Korolev looked around: Ryabinin, Keldysh, Glushko, Kuznetsov, Nesterenko, Bushuev, Pilyugin, Ryazansky, Tikhonravov. Everyone is here, everyone is nearby - “a mighty group in science and technology”, adherents of Tsiolkovsky’s ideas.

It seemed that the general jubilation of those gathered at those minutes on the launch pad was impossible to subdue. But then Korolev stood up on the makeshift podium. Silence reigned. He did not hide his joy: his eyes sparkled, his usually stern face glowed.

“Today what the best sons of humanity dreamed of, and among them our famous scientist Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky, has come true. He brilliantly predicted that humanity would not remain on Earth forever. The companion is the first confirmation of his prophecy. The assault on space has begun. We can be proud that our Motherland started it. Thank you very much to everyone!”

Here are reviews from the foreign press.

The Italian scientist Beniamino Segre, having learned about the satellite, said: “As a person and as a scientist, I am proud of the triumph of the human mind, emphasizing the high level of socialist science.”

New York Times review: “The success of the USSR shows above all that this is the greatest feat of Soviet science and technology. Such a feat could only be achieved by a country with first-class facilities in a very wide field of science and technology.”

The statement of the German rocket scientist Hermann Oberth is interesting: “Only a country with enormous scientific and technical potential could successfully solve such a complex problem as launching the first Earth satellite. It was also necessary to have a considerable number of specialists. And the Soviet Union has them. I admire the talent of Soviet scientists."

The most profound assessment of what happened was given by the physicist and Nobel Prize laureate Frederic Joliot-Curie: “This is a great victory for man, which is a turning point in the history of civilization. Man is no longer chained to his planet."

In all the languages ​​of the world on this day they sounded: “space”, “sputnik”, “USSR”, “Russian scientists”.

In 1958 S.P. Korolev gives a report “On the lunar exploration program”, supervises the launch of a geophysical rocket with research equipment and two dogs in the descent vehicle, and participates in organizing the flight of the third artificial Earth satellite - the first scientific station. And a lot of other scientific work was done under his leadership.

And finally, the triumph of science - April 12, 1961. Sergei Pavlovich Korolev - leader of the historical human flight into space. This day became an event in the history of mankind: for the first time a man defeated gravity and rushed into outer space... Then real courage and courage were required to board the “space ball,” as the ship “Vostok” was sometimes called, and, without thinking about one’s own fate, be carried away into the boundless starry space.

The day before, Korolev spoke to members of the State Commission: “Dear comrades! Less than four years have passed since the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite, and we are already ready for the first human flight into space. There is a group of astronauts here, each of them is ready to fly. It was decided that Yuri Gagarin would fly first. Others will follow him in the near future. We have new flights coming up that will be interesting for science and for the benefit of humanity.”

Korolev's Martian project remained unfinished. New ones will come, those who will continue this project and lead their ships along the Milky Way to distant planets, to distant worlds...

On my own behalf, I can add that the heroes of science, who have imprinted Knowledge with their lives, bring and will continue to bring glory to the Fatherland.

Above us are the same skies as in ancient times,
And in the same way they pour their blessings upon us,
And miracles are happening these days,
And today there are prophets...

(V.G. Benediktov)