The first probe that was sent into space was named Sputnik 1. Sent into space by the Soviet Union, changed history as we know it also sparking a space race between the Soviet Union and the United States. Launching in October of 1957, the first ever probe in space was Sputnik 1. The whole worlds attention was on Sputnik 1, and the United States started to contemplate that the Soviet Union could send missiles and nuclear weapons, in the direction of the United States. According to NASA (Sputnik), the probe was only about the size of a beach ball and weighted about 180 pounds. It took 98 minutes to orbit the Earth and lasted 22 days until the batteries died, a year later Sputnik burned up when entering the atmosphere. Just a month later the Soviet