Sputnik 1

Type: Event

As of November 2026, Sputnik 1 has been mentioned in one podcast episode on Today I Found Out (Jan 2026). Mentioned as a key event that influenced the development of WD-40 during the Cold War.

Sputnik 1, often referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program. It sent a radio signal back to Earth for three weeks before its three silver-zinc batteries became depleted. Aerodynamic drag caused it to fall back into the atmosphere on 4 January 1958.