On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union ushered in the Space Age when it stunned the world by launching the first satellite into space orbit. Dubbed Sputnik, meaning "companion", the tiny satellite orbited the earth every ninety-six minutes. Democratic Senator Lyndon Baines Johnson described the effect of the launch of Sputnik had on America as a "second Pearl Harbor"(Burns). Appearing akin to a small shooting star, Sputnik shot across the night sky to the astonishment of American onlookers. Sputnik emitted a radio signal with a faint, distinct "beep-beep" to aid the Soviets in determining the satellites location and progress (Mellberg 26). This otherwise harmless radio signal represented an alarm bell to the Americans, and for the first time the United States was technologically behind their Communist counterparts.
During 1952 the International Council of Scientific Unions decided to officially designate July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958, as the International Geophysical Year......

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Title: Sputnik's Effect On The United States
Approximate Word Count: 1418
Approximate Pages: 6 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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