Guru Byte - Mini Metal Moon Menaces the Minds of Millions!

 

Over 50 years ago the only thing that orbited the Earth was the Moon. But on October 4, 1957 that changed. A nation called the Soviet Union launched the first man-made satellite into space. 


The Soviets named it Sputnik, which means “Fellow Traveler” in the Russian language. This metal sphere orbited the world once every 96 minutes. While it passed overhead, Sputnik emitted a radio beep every six-tenths of a second so people could track it on the ground. 

 Fear gripped millions of  people around the world. Many leaders predicted the Soviets would drop bombs from space. Or that Sputnik carried special cameras to spy on the US. Some thought that the tiny satellite would lure aliens from other planets.

Many people believed the Soviet Union would try to land a probe on the Moon and claim it for themselves. And there was even a rumor that the communist country was planning to launch a space ship that would explode on the lunar surface spreading paint over an area large enough to create a red spot that could be seen from the Earth.

Of course none of this turned out to be true. Except, of course, for the aliens.