FUN WITH MAPS – ISSUE 2022-176 DAILY FEATURE:

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (October 4, 2022) – In Issue 2022-176 of Steve Kovacs Fun with Maps, we remember the launch of the space race today.

Sputnik

The space race was on when the Soviet Union launched the first satellite, Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957 – 65 years ago today.

This low earth satellite collected valuable information about the upper atmosphere and the ionosphere.

Launched from Kazakhstan, as were all future space missions by the USSR, Sputnik 1 broadcasted until its batteries ran out 3 weeks later.  It returned to earth, crashed, in January 1958.

The space race between the USSR and the USA heated up, with the former taking the early victories while the USA took the best victory to date – landing on the moon and returning the astronauts safely.

This Tallis map of Tartary – mostly of today’s Kazakhstan – is from 1851, before the invasion by Russia.

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.