By 1957, it seemed clear that the iron curtain that separated East and West was impenetrable. The Cold War was on. Americans were very uncertain of the future, at least those who followed foreign affairs. Khruschev had succeeded Stalin (after a brief struggle within the Kremlin) and he vowed to bury the United States. In fact, there was legitimate cause for concern as Soviet industrial production increased from 30 to 55 percent of American output between 1950 and 1960.

1957 was also a time that the Cold War advanced from the political stage to outer space. Since World War II it was clear that the U.S. was the scientific and technological leader of the free world. However, the U.S. scientific community was heavily laced with Europeans who had fled the war and post-war devastation and there was concern that U.S. successes were not homegrown accomplishments but rather, were based on borrowed European talent.

In preparation for the International Geophysical Year (1957-58), both the U.S. and the Soviet Union announced plans to launch artificial satellites. The U.S. space program was conducted in full view of the world and was obviously struggling. The Soviet space program was centered in a remote region of Kazhakhstan and conducted with the utmost secrecy. Rumors of a new launch vehicle, significantly larger than anything the U.S. had built, circulated at scientific meetings. However, even these vague claims were dismissed as mere Soviet propaganda.

The Soviet announcement in the summer of 1957 of the frequencies on which their satellite would broadcast was largely ignored. Suddenly on October 4, the Soviets stunned the world when "Sputnik," meaning literally "fellow traveler of earth," rode into orbit on a ballistic missile. It was 184 pounds, twenty times larger than the satellite the U.S. was attempting to launch. Sputnik circled the earth every 92 minutes at a speed of 18,000 miles per hour.

It's hard to imagine what this must have been like for Americans back then, especially when you think of all of the changes that have taken place, technologically, in just the past ten years.

Millions of Americans were dismayed by the sound coming from their radios and televisions; beep, beep, beep…in A-flat. The power of the signal itself was only 1 watt, emitted by a battery that died in a few weeks, but the shock it gave America was staggering. Communism was mastering the universe. President Eisenhower tried to downplay the event. Sputnik was "one small ball in the air," he said, "(and) it's something which does not raise my apprehensions, not one iota." He was more concerned that public hysteria would feed the appetite of the military industrial complex for more spending on ballistic missile technology.

Democratic Senate Majority Leader, Lyndon Johnson had a different reaction. "The Roman empire controlled the world because it could build roads. Later, when men moved to sea, the British Empire was dominant because it had ships. Now the communists have established a foothold in outer space. It is not very reassuring to be told that next year we will put a 'better' satellite into the air. Perhaps it will even have chrome trim and automatic windshield wipers."

Meanwhile, for a typical Soviet reaction to Sputnik we can turn to an account from Semyon Reznik, a college student at the time.

"The day our satellite Sputnik was launched, a special voice came over the radio to announce it to us. Traditionally, in the Soviet Union a few of the radio announcers were hired to read only the most urgent news on the radio. We always knew when something extra special was coming over the airwaves, as we would hear a special signal, "ta ta toe, ta toe, ta toe" and then one of these readers with a deep voice would begin speaking. And if your radio wasn't on at home, a neighbor would let you know immediately. It was pure genius on the part of Soviet leaders to create this kind of show. You'd forget about everything at this moment - about your problems, about your spouse and your family. This was like a kind of religious performance. [And so it went on 10/4/57]. 'Attention. All radio stations of the Soviet Union are broadcasting…Our satellite Sputnik is in space.' Everyone felt so proud and wondered who did it? No names were named for years."

And how did the U.S. stock market react? Well, the Dow Jones had closed at 465.82 on 10/3/57. As word spread on 10/4 of the Soviet's success, the Dow fell to 461.70 on 10/4. But by 10/22, the Dow had slipped to 419.79 (a decline of 9.9%) in less than 3 weeks. The idea that the nation was technologically inferior was not a good one.

While 419 was the low level for the period, the general attitude among the American people did not improve with time. In November the Soviets launched Sputnik II. This time the satellite was 1,120 pounds and it had some "live" cargo, a dog named Laika as a passenger. The feeling spread that a Soviet rocket capable of flinging radios and dogs into space was capable of flinging an atomic or hydrogen bomb into American soil.

The U.S. finally attempted its first launch of a satellite in December and it flopped miserably.

Werner Von Braun, the German who had launched the first successful ballistic missile, the V-2, at London had brought 127 of his team to America after the war. After the Navy's version of a missile had failed in December, Von Braun was allowed to launch his rocket, which on January 31, 1958, put Explorer I in space.

The success of Explorer I helped to alleviate the apprehension. What the average American didn't know, however, is that their President, Ike, was never as concerned about Soviet capabilities. But, unfortunately, he was unable to convey those feelings to the people. The matter of our U-2 spy plane flights over the Soviet Union stood in the way of full disclosure.

In April 1958, Eisenhower made the crucial decision to put space exploration under civilian control in the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (later Administration). After this move, the space program progressed rapidly.

Sources:
"We Interrupt This Broadcast," Joe Garner
"The American Century," Harold Evans
"The Century," Peter Jennings and Todd Brewster
"Russia: A History," Gregory Freeze

Brian Trumbore