Sputnik moment

Etymology
A reference to the Soviet Union’s 1957 launch of the first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite Sputnik 1 which caught the US unprepared. The event ignited the Space Race during the Cold War, and led to the US successfully launching into space in 1958.

Noun

 * 1) The moment when a country or a society realizes that it needs to catch up with apparent technological and scientific developments made by some other country or countries by increasing its investment into education, innovative research and development, etc.

Synonyms

 * wake-up call