1 Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to go into orbit, launched 4 October 1957. 2  Sputnik 2, the first spacecraft to carry a living animal (the dog Laika), launched 3 November 1957.  Sputnik 3, a research satellite launched 15 May 1958.
By population the 3 largest cities in Spain are Madrid 2.9 million, Barcelona 1.5 million, and Valencia 741,000. They include: the capital Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia. Onlyâ¦ two  of Spain's cities, the national capital Madrid and Barcelona, have  populations of more than one million.
Language: Castilian Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%, are official regionally. Largest Cities: (by population) Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Sevilla, Zaragoza, Malaga, Murcia, Las Palmas, Bilbao, Palma. Name: The meaning of the name Espana comes from the Phoenician word i-spn-ya, meaning land where metals are forged. National Day: October 12.