The nose of the rocket used to launch Sputnik I should come down to earth ... because they are not sure how the shell will reach the air layer. Since it is spinning end-over-end, the rocket ...

Like the Sputnik-1 that flew into orbit on October 4, 1957, the test replica is a polished ... It consists of an outer shell to protect the satellite against heat and an inner pressurized shell ...

When Sputnik 1 launched 60 years ago — on Oct. 4, 1957 — LIFE Magazine’s audience had to get used to a new reality. In a very literal sense, there was a “dazzling new sight in the heavens ...