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Space Race Research Paper

Decent Essays

The Race to Space

Throughout the twentieth century, space exploration and advancements allowed for the American dream to come to life. The space race, first man on the moon, and other space missions not only helped establish America’s opposing world power, but also acknowledged the fact that the United States encouraged its citizen and gave them a dream to aspire to as a nation. Space exploration achieved the American dream as the United States became a dominant world power and discovered new hopes for knowledge and peace which is emphasized by astronaut Neil Armstrong, President John F. Kennedy, and the first moon landing in 1969.

The space race, which took place between 1957 and 1975, was a competition between two rivals, the United …show more content…

Additionally, President John Kennedy’s speech stated, “...space is there, and we're going to climb it, and the moon and the planets are there, and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there…” (Kennedy). The American dream is directly put into words as the former president discusses the achievements he hopes to attain if and when he lands the first man on the moon. After landing on the moon, the hope was that America would prove to the rest of the world, especially the Soviet Union, that the U.S. is a dominant world power and that we would be a leader in promoting world …show more content…

A single journal entry was written on the Apollo 11 journey by astronaut Armstrong and it reads, “My team and I are laughing in success as we walk down the craters on this alien world. I completely forget about the pain I felt back in training, and during launch of the Apollo 11” (Armstrong). All of the risk and pain eventually led up to the moment in which three American men made history by putting the first footprints on the moon. Discovering a new world exceeded the American dream and achieved great new hopes for life back on Earth. Armstrong goes on to talk about his achievement as he wrote, “I am myself still awed by that miracle. That awe, in me and in each of us… must be the engine of future achievement, not a slow dimming light from a time once bright” (Armstrong). Even the astronauts thought as the others did, NASA has created a miracle. Space advancements and the urge for superiority broke through the barriers of doubt and successfully reached the American

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