The first satellite in space was launched by:

The correct answer is Option (3) → U.S.S.R.

The first artificial satellite was Sputnik 1, launched by the U.S.S.R. (the Soviet Union) on 4 October 1957 from the Baikonur launch site. It was a small metal sphere with four antennas that sent out radio signals as it went round the Earth, and its launch began the space race with the U.S.A., whose first satellite, Explorer 1, followed in January 1958.