On Oct. 4, 1957 at 7:28 p.m., the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the world’s first man-made satellite to circle the Earth, sparking a space race that spurred US advances in education and technology that a dozen years later landed a man on the Moon. According to NASA, the cosmic bundle of joy weighed in at 83.6 kilograms and measured 58 centimeters tall. Sputnik reportedly soared at 28,980 km/hr, according to Soviet math, the Museum of Flight writes.