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Canada was the 4th country with a satellite, and the 3rd country to fully construct its own satellite. It called that satellite Alouette 1, followed by Alouette 2, then ISIS 1 and 2 (International Satellites for Ionospheric Studies, not the other one).

The list of launches is pretty funny.

Sputnik 1 (success); USSR
Sputnik 2 (success); USSR

Then an absolutely frantic series of US attempts

Vanguard 1A (failure); USA
Explorer 1 (success); USA
Vanguard 1B (failure); USA
Explorer 2 (failure); USA
Vanguard 1C (success); USA
Explorer 3 (success); USA
Vanguard 2A (failure); USA

Then another Sputnik

Sputnik 3 (success); USSR

Then more frantic attempts by the USA

Vanguard 2B (failure); USA
Vanguard 2C (failure); USA
Explorer 4 (success); USA
Pioneer 0 (failure); USA
Pioneer 5 (failure); USA
Vanguard 2D (failure); USA
Pioneer 1 (partial success); USA
Beacon 1 (failure); USA
Pioneer 2 (failure); USA

Then 1959 started with Luna 1, a partially successful launch from the USSR.

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HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Mild confusing, Pioneer 5 launched before Pioneer 1? Whose bright idea was that?

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- merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Oops, I messed up. That should have been Explorer 5.
  
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  - HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    no no your list is right it’s reality that’s wrong
    
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sukhmel@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I read in another place that Japan was the fourth to launch a satellite in February of 1970, it looks like that other article means ‘launched using their own rocktet’, and Canada launched 8 years earlier than Japan using NASA rocket

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- merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Everybody wants to make their own achievement sound better.
  
  The UK was the third country with a satellite, but didn’t fully build their own satellite.
  
  Canada was the fourth, but third to fully build their own satellite, but they didn’t use their own rocket.
  
  Italy was the fifth and also launched a satellite they built, but used an American rocket.
  
  France was the sixth country with a satellite, but the first to launch outside the US or USSR using their own rocket.
  
  Australia was the seventh country with a satellite, but the third to launch a satellite in its own territory; France launched from Algeria in 1965 which had been independent since 1962. But, Australia used an American rocket, not its own design.
  
  West Germany was the eighth country with a satellite, but it was launched from a US rocket on a US base.
  
  Japan was the ninth country with a satellite, but it used its own rocket from its own territory. So, 9th with a satellite, 5th to launch outside the US and USSR, 4th to launch from its own territory, and 4th to launch with its own rocket.
  
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