Vladimir Beilin (Russian, 20th C.) "Sputnik" Original Fleetwood First Day cover watercolor painting. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the Russia Sputnik in Orbit stamp issued May 29, 1992. On October 4,1957, the Soviet Union fired the shot that began the Space Race with the launch of Sputnik 1. This first earthshaking shot soon became a salvo, as it was quickly followed by Sputnik 11, carrying the dog Laika into orbit, and Sputnik 111, which had a payload of nearly 3,000 pounds -- more than 15 times as great as Sputnik 1. Werner von Braun, the German scientist who led a U.S. rocket development team, summed up American response to the Soviet successes in space: "The reaction to these events had been profound. They triggered a period of self-appraisal rarely equaled in modem times. Overnight it became popular to question the bulwarks of our society .. even the moral fiber of our people." Insult was added to injury when the American answer to Sputnik, the tiny Vanguard I (derisively called a "grapefruit" by Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev), exploded on the launch pad, its 3.2-pound payload plaintively broadcasting a homing signal from the Florida sands where it had fallen after the explosion. Orbiting serenely above a frustrated nation, Sputnik I continued to send a mocking signal to American scientists until November 14, 1958, when its batteries finally failed. Ten weeks later, it plummeted to Earth in an incandescent trail of flame. America's first artificial satellite was not to follow Sputnik into space until January 31, 1958, when Explorer I finally slipped the surly bonds of Earth. Image Size: 14 x 12 in. Overall Size: 17.75 x 14 in. Unframed. (B13806)