A Sociological Analysis of Ron Howards Apollo 13 Essay

From the start of the Space Race, the Soviet Union had the United States beat by sending the first satellite, the Sputnik, and the first man, Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin, into space. However, President Kennedy would not stand by as the Soviet Union began to run away with the space race. Kennedy addressed the nation by consulting Congress to “increase NASA’s budget by nine billion dollars”(Cox). This bold move made by Kennedy enabled the United States to make it to the moon first. Going to the moon first was a much higher feat than simply going into space because it required much more “precision while launching and higher equipped technology to go the extra distance”(Exploring Space). Due to the extra skill required to go to the moon, it showed how by the end of the Space Race the United States had superior technology. Since the Cold War was a fight for Global Power, going to the moon was a significant move for the United States because it showed that they had exceptional machinery. With this admirable technology, it solidified the United States’s reputation as a Global

Many critics believe that NASA and space exploration should not be the main focus of the government. However, NASA is not just about flying rockets and putting men into space. There is science and engineering that is being developed to push humanity forward in life. This space program is essential to answering philosophical questions, creating new technology for practical everyday use, the international collaboration with other countries, and the long-term survival of the human

On July 16, 1969, NASA launched a shuttle into space containing Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin. They were going to be the first people to step foot on the Moon. This mission into the unknown caused a commotion on Earth. Many reputable news sources across the world created various sources about this event. These are weighted with the high emotions that ran through the world as well as the facts gathered as the brave men first put their footprints on the barren surface of the Moon. The creators of each peice used logos, pathos, and ethos to get the desired response from their audiences.

While many people support funding NASA and agree with the organization’s goals, there a good number of people who do not. A common reason for this is that they believe that the space program should focus on discovering things that can benefit us immediately, not in the future. This is a valid argument because there

As President Eisenhower once stated, “Every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed” (qtd in DeGroot). According to Jerry DeGroot, a lecturer in the Department of Modern History at the University of St. Andrews and author of the widely acclaimed biography “Douglas Haig”, every year, the United States federal government funds the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with over $17 billion. When Keith Yost, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), was asked about government funding on NASA, he replied, “NASA is not only spending money, but also the sweat of our laborers, the genius of our scientists, and the hopes of our children.” As a powerhouse in the work industry, NASA is taking away from the remainder of the country. Before venturing off into space, the US needs to realize the importance of tackling the issues that lie before the citizens here on Earth. As Richard Truly, a retired Vice Admiral in the United States Navy, stated in agreement, “...I didn’t go to NASA for the United States to make international commitments that wouldn’t keep, to design space vehicles that will never be built (or will be then fail), or to make promises to the American people that will never be kept.” It would be in the best interest for the citizens of the United States federal government to cut NASA funding.

America’s funding for NASA during the space race in 1966 was 4.41% of the federal budget yet in modern times this expenditure has fallen to only 0.5% of the federal budget. One might ask why, but the greater question is why isn’t anything being done about this dearth of funding for NASA. America should once again fund the exploration of space with a renewed ferocity because of the various educational, economical, and technological benefits of having well-funded space agencies.

“We intend to be first . . . and to become the world's leading space-faring nation.” (Kennedy, John F.) During his 1962 address to Rice University in Houston, Texas, President John F. Kennedy uses various rhetorical devices to persuade his audience to support advances in the national space program. With Russia’s launch of the first man into space the year before, America was struggling to regain an advantage over Russia in the space race.

Apollo 11 changed the way Americans saw the world, and the way the world saw Americans. The world had been competing, the biggest battle being between Russia and the United States. The whole world was aware of the space race. The landing on the moon was not just important to America. It was important to all of mankind. Neil Armstrong and the other crew members were shot into fame overnight, with Neil Armstrong being the first man on the moon. The Apollo 11 mission will never be forgotten by the American people.

In 1961, the United States of America was embroiled in the Cold War with the Soviet Union. This confrontation was taking place not only on land, sea and air, but in space as well. On May 25th, 1961 recently elected US President John F. Kennedy addressed a joint session of Congress, during which he outlined his now famous Man on the Moon challenge. It was through this ambitious dream that the creation of the National Aeronautical Space Administration (NASA) came about, which President Kennedy challenged to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade. Although he didn't live to see the achievement of his dreams, the United States successfully landed Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin on the moon on July 20, 1969 and

Look up at the night sky, see the stars, planets and our closest neighbor, the moon. Every human being at one point in his or her life has done this same thing. It is only natural to look up and wonder in awe at whats out there. Human beings are made with an innate desire to expand and explore. In the 1950s when there was no more of Earth to discover, people started looking upwards at the sky to satisfy this internal desire. Hungry for dominance and technological innovation, the United States created NASA and embarked on what would become the greatest voyage in human history. Throughout the second half of the twentieth century, space travel and the technology which powered it advanced far beyond what any prior civilization could imagine. Inspiring in humanity hope for a future not on Earth. An analysis of the effects of the NASA space program on the United States reveals a radical shift in educational policies, an influx of new an innovative technologies, and a renewed motivation and hope for the future.

“Sputnik marked the beginning of the "space race," a period of nearly twenty years during which fierce US and Soviet competition spurred both countries to make rapid progress in aeronautic engineering,” (Lee). This period of time birthed a new program from the American government, called the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA. NASA has been building rockets, training astronauts, and studying space for the benefit of science, the government, and the people of America since 1958. Unfortunately, many people don't realize how important NASA is, and there have been efforts made to stop the government from funding NASA. This program is essential for increasing knowledge of outer space, protecting planet Earth, and creating

Not to say that NASA and the United States’ Space Program is not important. However, for all this new money, the program does not seem to be expanding the United States’ control or even its productivity in the field. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, a senator from Texas, mourns the new plan, saying, “America’s decades-long dominance of space will finally come to an end.” (Foust) To many Americans, this does appear to be the case. Under the NASA Authority Act of 2010, the United States’ would no longer even have access to the new International Space Station. Since the space shuttle took its final flight before being retired, American astronauts have been left without a “ride.” Instead, United States’ astronauts are going to have to hitch-hike their way to space aboard other countries’ shuttles (Moskowitz). This hardly declares the excellence or exceptionalism that most Americans are used to boasting about their proud nation.

In the early 60s, President John F. Kennedy led America into a space race against the Soviet Union. American men and women across the nation backed this goal, allowing NASA to take great leaps in advancing its space exploration programs. This unified nation fulfilled its goal, and Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon. However, since then, America’s space exploration has only declined. Funding for NASA has been drastically cut, thus greatly limiting the opportunities for exploring the cosmos. Understanding and exploring the universe is detrimental to the advancement of the United States and opens the door for vast possibilities. If the government chooses to limits its own advancement, then that responsibility must fall

In 1969, the iconic first steps on the moon drew in 500 million people who watched from their television screens. Since then, two thirds of Americans say they are interested in space exploration. What is stopping NASA and other space programs from feeding into Americans’ interests? Many argue that space exploration is vital to our society and one day the human race in its entirety will have no option but to leave Earth in search of a new planet. Others insist the space programs in America have created some of the world’s most useful inventions, ranging from CT scanners to digital cameras to firefighting equipment; these inventions supposedly prove space exploration’s worth. While these statements may have some truth to them, there are multiple setbacks that make space exploration difficult for American space programs to accomplish, and, in the end, not worth it- at least for now.

NASA and the cause of human exploration of space received outstanding public support and confidence in the 1960’s during the era of Apollo and then the public support slowly receded during the post-Apollo era. During the 1990’s, public support for human exploration had hit an all-time low. But, in the 1960’s, a poll taken of the American population showed that a majority of Americans did not believe Apollo was worth the cost, with the only exception to this being a poll taken at the time of the Apollo 11 moon landing in July of 1969. 45-60 percent of Americans consistently believed throughout the decade that the government was spending way too much on space, showing their lack of commitment to this spaceflight agenda the government had created. Although support for the outrageous spending of the government was lacking, there was little done by the American people to prevent such increased spending. The situation can be described simply as the people being in support of heavy exploration spending when and only when missions are accomplished and new things are discovered. Most people overlook the plain fact that without funding of these programs through the rough times there wouldn't be any triumphs to cheer about. Throughout the many innovations discovered during “failed” space missions, the public has always taken the impact of these discoveries for