That satellite, the Television InfraRed Observational Satellite, or TIROS 1, operated for only 78 days but demonstrated the feasibility of monitoring Earth's cloud cover and weather patterns from space. On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union stunned everyone by launching the world's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1. In October 1954, scientists called for the first ones to be launched during IGY to map Earth's surface. Relay 1 was launched on December 13, 1962, and it became the first satellite to transmit across the Pacific Ocean on November 22, 1963. or 183.9 pounds, and took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth on its elliptical path. It was an event that galvanized the world and spurred the fledgling U.S. space effort into high gear. This is a listing of the most recent launched satellites, ordered by launch date Name Description Launched Action; CREW DRAGON DEMO-2: May 30, 2020: TRACK IT: USA 300: May 17, 2020: Unable to track COSMOS 2546: COSMOS 2546 is a Russian missile warning satellite and is likely the fourth EKS (Tundra) satellite. In 1957, the world was surprised to see the Soviets launch the first satellite into orbit, with most expecting the USA to be the first to do so. Satellites have undergone a major evolution since those challenging first days, but the world we live in now - where information about our planet is gathered from space and sent around the globe in the blink of an eye - wouldn't be possible without the earliest hardware to orbit the Earth. Sputnik 1 was the first artificial satellite.It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit (LEO) by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957. The White House agreed that this might be a good idea, and announced plans to launch an Earth-orbiting satellite to take measurements of the upper atmosphere and the effects of the solar wind. The USSR launches Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. On April 1, 1960, a satellite designed by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) launched to become the nation's first weather satellite. Revolutionary Guard deployed a Ghased satellite carrier to put the device into space, a previously unheard-of system. Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite launched, was a 83.6-kg (184-pound) capsule. First Satellite Launched Into Space. The first satellite was launched on October 4, 1957, the landfill Tura-Tam (now - Baikonur). The Rohini series consisted of four satellites, each of which was launched by the Satellite Launch Vehicle and three of which made it successfully to orbit.The series were mostly experimental satellites. Rohini is a series of satellites launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Engineers and researchers in the country will develop an ult The world's first artificial satellite was about the size of a beach ball (58 cm.or 22.8 inches in diameter), weighed only 83.6 kg. Sputnik, any of a series of three artificial Earth satellites, the first of whose launch by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, inaugurated the space age. The first artificial satellite was Sputnik I, launched by the Soviet Union on the 4th of October 1957 Sputnik and The Dawn of the Space Age History changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. This day is celebrated in Russia as a day of cosmic forces.