Russia Launching New Search Engine 'Sputnik' to Compete With Google

The name Sputnik stands tall in history books as the vessel that helped spark a space race with the U.S. But a new Russian project with the same name is planning to play catch-up in an area where the U.S. already has a huge lead: search engines.

See also: 20 Searches Made Ridiculous by Google Autocomplete

Rostelecom, the country's state-controlled telecom service, has been charged with creating a search engine to compete with the likes of Google, as well as well local search-engine leader Yandex, which is based in the Netherlands, according to Reuters.

Even with state backing, however, Sputnik will face stiff competition. On its website, Yandex claims that it currently generates 62% of all search traffic in Russia.

But recent events have destabilized the company. Yandex lost its popular co-founder, Ilya Segalovich, in July to cancer. That led to a brief dip in Yandex's stock, and doubt about the company's long-term future.

So while Yandex is currently the market leader — and Google is close behind with roughly 25% of Russia's search users — Rostelecom may be launching Sputnik at just the right time.

Rostelecom has already spent $20 million on the search engine, according to a report in Russia's Vedomosti. The site will reportedly be accessible at www.Sputnik.ru, and will launch some time in the first quarter of 2014.

Rostelecom did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

BONUS: Google Tricks and Easter Eggs

1. 

   Gravity

   Enter "Google Gravity" in the search bar. Hit "I'm feeling lucky" (if you have Google Instant enabled, it's on the right hand side of the suggested searches). Then watch your world fall down.

2. 

   Askew

   Simply search for the word "askew." We dare you not to tilt your head.

3. 

   Chuck Norris

   Search for the Walker Texas Ranger star, hit I'm Feeling Lucky, and Google will school you in Norrisology.

4. 

   ASCII

   Searching for ASCII art -- the kind built out of characters -- is about the nerdiest thing you can do. Google salutes you with a special logo.

5. 

   Recursion

   Here's one for word nerds and philosophy majors. Search for "recursion" and Google asks "did you mean recursion?"

6. 

   Mentalplex

   This one started life as an April Fool's joke, but is still around at google.com/mentalplex. Baffle your less Internet-savvy family and friends!

7. 

   Pacman

   The Google doodle that launched a thousand lost hours of productivity will live forever at google.com/pacman.

8. 

   Ninja!

   Here's where Google easter eggs start to get a little more complex. Go to Google Reader, then use your cursor keys thus: up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A. A ninja then pops onto your screen and into your search box. Thankfully, this still works in the new version of Google Reader.

9. 

   Nessie

   Set your iGoogle homepage to the beach theme. Wait until 3:14am (or if you can't, just move your clock forward). What monster this way comes? Could we be on the shores of Loch Ness?

10. 

    Flight simulator

    This one began life as an easter egg, and became so well-loved that Google incorporated it as a feature in Google Earth. Click on Tools > Enter Flight Simulator, and you're off and flying around the planet. Bon voyage!

Image: Flickr, Anthony