Sputnik (Спутник,

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

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 name for multiple

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

launched under the

Soviet space program The Soviet space program () was the state space program of the Soviet Union, active from 1951 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Contrary to its competitors (NASA in the United States, the European Space Agency in Western Euro ...

. "

Sputnik 1 Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), sometimes 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 ...

", "

Sputnik 2 Sputnik 2 (, , ''Satellite 2'', or Prosteyshiy Sputnik 2 (PS-2, , ''Simplest Satellite 2'', launched on 3 November 1957, was the second spacecraft launched into Earth orbit, and the first to carry an animal into orbit, a Soviet space dog named ...

" and "

Sputnik 3 Sputnik 3 (, Satellite 3) was a Soviet satellite launched on 15 May 1958 from Baikonur Cosmodrome by a modified R-7/SS-6 ICBM. The scientific satellite carried a large array of instruments for geophysical research of the upper atmosphere and n ...

" 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 A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scienti ...

to go into orbit, launched 4 October 1957 *

, the first spacecraft to carry a living animal (the dog

Laika Laika ( ; , ; – 3 November 1957) was a Soviet space dog who was one of the first animals in space and the first to orbit the Earth. A stray mongrel from the streets of Moscow, she flew aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft, launched into lo ...

) into orbit, launched 3 November 1957 *

, 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 (; ), also known as DS, was a series of satellites launched by the Soviet Union between 1961 and 1982. DS satellites were used for a number of missions, including technological and scientific research, and radar tracking t ...

, a series of scientific and technology development satellites *

Istrebitel Sputnikov Istrebitel Sputnikov, or IS (, ИС, meaning "destroyer of satellites"), was a Soviet Union, Soviet anti-satellite weapons programme which led to the deployment of the IS-A or I2P system during the 1970s and 1980s. IS satellites were originally ...

, "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 ( for Controlled Active Satellite), or US-A, also known in the Western world as Radar Ocean Reconnaissance Satellite or RORSAT ( GRAU index 17F16K), was a series of 33 Soviet reconnaissance satellites. Launched betwe ...

, nuclear-powered ocean radar surveillance satellites **

US-K Upravlyaemy Sputnik Kontinentalny ( meaning ''Continental Controllable Satellite'') or US-K () is a series of Russian, previously Soviet Union, Soviet, satellites used to detect missile launches as part of the Oko system. It consists of a constell ...

molniya orbit A Molniya orbit ( rus, Молния, p=ˈmolnʲɪjə, a=Ru-молния.ogg, "Lightning") is a type of satellite orbit designed to provide communications and remote sensing coverage over high latitudes. It is a highly elliptical orbit with ...

missile detection satellites ** US-KS,

geosynchronous orbit A geosynchronous orbit (sometimes abbreviated GSO) is an Earth-centered orbit with an orbital period that matches Earth's rotation on its axis, 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds (one sidereal day). The synchronization of rotation and orbital ...

missile detection satellites **

US-KMO US-KMO (), an abbreviation for Upravlyaemy Sputnik - Kontinenty Morya Okeany () meaning ''Controllable Satellite - Continents, Oceans, Seas'' is a series of Russian, previously Soviet, satellites which are used to identify ballistic missile launch ...

, 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 *Sputnik 5 –

Korabl-Sputnik 2 Korabl-Sputnik 2 (), also known as Sputnik 5 in the West, was a Soviet artificial satellite, and the third test flight of the Vostok spacecraft. It was the first spaceflight to send animals into orbit and return them safely back to Earth, inc ...

*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 Kosmos 1 ( meaning ''Cosmos 1''), also known as DS-2 No.1 and occasionally in the West as Sputnik 11 was a technology demonstration and ionosphere, ionospheric research satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1962. It was the first satellite ...

*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 *Sputnik 19 – Venera 2MV-1 No.1 *Sputnik 20 –

Venera 2MV-1 No.2 Venera 2MV-1 No.2, also known as Sputnik 20 in the Western world, was a Soviet Union, 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 ree ...

*Sputnik 21 –

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

*Sputnik 22 – Mars 2MV-4 No.1 *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 40 (, ), also known as Sputnik Jr, PS-2 and Radio Sputnik 17 (RS-17), was a France, Franco-Russian amateur radio satellite which was launched in 1997 to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 1, the world's first a ...

* Sputnik 41 * Sputnik 99

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT: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