The Piece of Sputnik in the Street
One morning in 1962, police in a small Wisconsin town found a hot lump of metal buried in the street. It had come from a Soviet spacecraft.
What was reported
Before dawn on 5 September 1962, people around Lake Michigan saw a fiery object streak overhead. A few hours later, two police officers in Manitowoc found a chunk of metal weighing about 9 kilograms embedded a few centimetres into the road surface of a downtown street.
Scientists confirmed it was part of Sputnik 4, a Soviet test spacecraft launched in 1960 that had been stuck in orbit after a failed attempt to bring it home.
Explanations offered
The craft had been circling for more than two years before its orbit decayed. The fragment was returned to the Soviet Union, and a brass ring marks the spot. The town now holds a 'Sputnikfest' every September.
- When
- 5 September 1962
- Where
- Manitowoc, Wisconsin, USA
- Witnesses
- Police officers in Manitowoc
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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