To its main Cold War adversary, the United States, Sputnik was a severe blow to the widely held belief in the technological superiority of the Americans (Peoples, 2008). In addition, being seen as a...

To its main Cold War adversary, the United States, Sputnik was a severe blow to the widely held belief in the technological superiority of the Americans (Peoples, 2008). In addition, being seen as a military threat in that it signaled the capacity to use satellites as a carrier of intercontinental missiles (Nye, 1994, p. 226), it also demonstrated the technological feasibility of using space for radio broadcasting because the Sputnik satellite transmitted a beeping sound while orbiting the earth.