Sputnik (Спутник, Russian for "satellite"NOTE: The Russian word "sputnik" can have many meanings: "satellite", "travelling companion", "fellow traveller", etc. However, in astronomy, it means only "satellite".) is a spacecraft launched under the Soviet space program. "

Sputnik 1 Sputnik 1 (; see § Etymology) 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 t ...

", " Sputnik 2" and " Sputnik 3" were the official Soviet names of those objects, and the remaining designations in the series ("Sputnik 4" and so on) were not official names but names applied in the West to objects whose original Soviet names may not have been known at the time.

Spacecraft officially named ''Sputnik''

, the first artificial satellite to go into orbit, launched 4 October 1957 * Sputnik 2, the first spacecraft to carry a living animal (the dog Laika) into orbit, launched 3 November 1957 * Sputnik 3, a research satellite launched 15 May 1958

Spacecraft with names containing ''Sputnik''

Being the Russian term for "satellite", the word ''Sputnik'' has appeared in the names of other spacecraft: *

Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik Dnepropetrovsk Sputnik (russian: Днепропетровский Спутник; ua, Дніпропетровський супутник), also known as DS, was a series of satellites launched by the Soviet Union between 1961 and 1982. DS satel ...

, a series of scientific and technology development satellites *

Istrebitel Sputnikov Istrebitel Sputnikov, or IS (russian: Истребитель спутников, ИС, meaning "destroyer of satellites"Not to be confounded with "sputnik-istrebitel" ("спутник-истребитель"), "fighter satellite".), was a Soviet ...

, "Destroyer of Satellites", a series of antisatellite weapons and targets * Tyazhely Sputnik, "Heavy Satellite", a failed Venus probe * Upravlyaemy Sputnik, "Controllable Satellite", a series of ocean surveillance and missile detection satellites **

US-A Upravlyaemy Sputnik Aktivnyy (russian: Управляемый Спутник Активный for Controlled Active Satellite), or US-A, also known in the west as Radar Ocean Reconnaissance Satellite or RORSAT (GRAU index 17F16K), was a series of ...

, nuclear-powered ocean radar surveillance satellites ** US-K, molniya orbit missile detection satellites ** US-KS, geosynchronous orbit missile detection satellites ** US-KMO, Modernised geosynchronous orbit missile detection satellites ** US-P, electronic ocean surveillance satellites ** US-PM, modernised electronic ocean surveillance satellites

Spacecraft designated "Sputnik" in the West

These objects are listed with their official Soviet names: *Sputnik 4 –

Korabl-Sputnik 1 Korabl-Sputnik 1 (russian: Корабль Спутник 1 meaning ''Vessel Satellite 1''), also known as Sputnik 4 in the West, was the first test flight of the Soviet Vostok programme, and the first Vostok spacecraft. It was launched on May 15, 1 ...

*Sputnik 5 – Korabl-Sputnik 2 *Sputnik 6 – Korabl-Sputnik 3 *Sputnik 7 – Tyazhely Sputnik *Sputnik 8 – Venera 1 *Sputnik 9 – Korabl-Sputnik 4 *Sputnik 10 – Korabl-Sputnik 5 *Sputnik 11 – Kosmos 1 *Sputnik 12 – Kosmos 2 *Sputnik 13 – Kosmos 3 *Sputnik 14 – Kosmos 4 *Sputnik 15 – Kosmos 5 *Sputnik 16 – Kosmos 6 *Sputnik 17 – Kosmos 7 *Sputnik 18 –

Kosmos 8 Kosmos 8 (russian: Космос 8 meaning ''Cosmos 8''), also known as DS-K-8 No.1 and occasionally in the West as Sputnik 18 was a technology demonstration satellite which was launched by the Soviet Union in 1962. It was the eighth satellite to ...

*Sputnik 19 –

Venera 2MV-1 No.1 Venera 2MV-1 No.1, also known as Sputnik 19 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft, which was launched in 1962 as part of the Venera programme. Due to a problem with its upper stage it failed to leave low Earth orbit, and reentered the atmosphere ...

*Sputnik 20 –

Venera 2MV-1 No.2 Venera 2MV-1 No.2, also known as Sputnik 20 in the Western world, was a Soviet spacecraft, which was launched in 1962 as part of the Venera programme. Due to a problem with its upper stage it failed to leave low Earth orbit, and reentered the atmo ...

*Sputnik 21 –

Venera 2MV-2 No.1 Venera 2MV-2 No.1, also known as Sputnik 21 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft, which was launched in 1962 as part of the Venera programme, and was intended to make a flyby of Venus. Due to a problem with the rocket which launched it, it faile ...

*Sputnik 22 –

Mars 2MV-4 No.1 Mars 2MV-4 No.1 also known as Sputnik 22 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft, which was launched in 1962 as part of the Mars programme, and was intended to make a flyby of Mars, and transmit images of the planet back to Earth. Due to a problem ...

*Sputnik 23 – Mars 1 *Sputnik 24 – Mars 2MV-3 No.1 *Sputnik 25 – Luna E-6 No.2

Spacecraft named after Sputnik 1

*Sputnik 40 *Sputnik 41 *Sputnik 99

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sputnik Sputnik, * Lists of spacecraft

Spacecraft officially named ''Sputnik''

Spacecraft with names containing ''Sputnik''

Spacecraft designated "Sputnik" in the West

Spacecraft named after Sputnik 1

See also

Notes