The Sputnik crisis was a period of public fear and anxiety in Western nations about the perceived technological gap between the United States and Soviet Union caused by the Soviets' launch of Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite. It was a joyous occasion for supporters of the Soviet Union and an equally frightening one for those in the United States. The successful launch of Sputnik was a major victory for the Soviet Union, for they had become the first nation to send an object into orbit.