Sputnik And The Space Race

On the political side of the “Space Race”, the Sputnik launch was a surprise to Americans. As stated in Document A, “With the launch of the Soviet satellite, Logsdon said, the reaction was more fear than surprise, because it showed clearly that the United States was no longer safe behind it’s ocean barriers.”. So with that in mind they decided to go head to head in a way with

Ten years into the Cold War, the Space Race began after the Soviets successfully managed to launch Sputnik, “the world’s first artificial satellite” states NASA, into space. The significance of this launch was very important because it destroyed the morale the citizens America had and all of a sudden they felt like they were now the victims/defensive of the Cold War. In other words, this launch essentially triggered the Space Race through competitive

Following the detonation of two atomic bombs over Japan and the closure of World War II, the United States of America and the Soviet Union entered a period of ideological conflict, the Cold War. The United States sought to preserve and protect democracy throughout the world while the Soviet Union established communist satellite states. During the Cold War, the United States government pushed for the expansion of the United States space program in an attempt to demonstrate power and innovation over the Russians, and in doing so, accelerated the process of space exploration and endangered the lives of their astronauts.

Although there is disagreement on the precise date that the Space Race began, the moment that it became an important competition that was in the forefront of the minds of everyday Americans is on April 12, 1961 when Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin orbited the earth in Vostok 1. (citation). This event created a feeling amongst the American public that the Russians were further ahead in science and technology than the United States, as well as the fear that the Soviets could use their superior technology to be better able to attack the USA from a distance. Shortly after Gagarin’s flight, the United States launched astronaut Alan Sheppard into

The space race started when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik on October 4, 1957. Sputnik was the very first artificial satellite and the first man-made object in space. This scared and upset many Americans. They worried that if the Soviets could launch a satellite into space, then they could also launch nuclear missiles. One month later, the USSR launched Sputnik II, which was larger than Sputnik I and it carried Laika, the first living being in space. The US saw space as the next frontier to explore and they did not want to lose too much ground to the Soviets, so in response America launched their own satellite, Explorer I, in January 1958, marking their entrance into the race. And in that same year, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a federal agency dedicated solely to space travel, was created.

At the same time, the world was in a tense situation; the Cold War was taking place. The United States and Russia were competing to see who could send a person to space first. Against the backdrop of the Cold War and the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union, NASA's mission to launch a man into space was not only a scientific project but also a matter of national pride for their country and geographical and political competition. If the Soviet Union did something first, it would make the United States look bad. The pressure was high, and everyone wanted to be the first.

During 1947 and 1991 the United States and the USSR were at war with each other, not really a bloodshed fight but more of political arguments, nuclear threat, and seeing which country was more advanced than the other. This is why the war was dubbed the “Cold War” cause there really wasn’t any fighting but more to see who could gain more international prestige. On October 4, 1957 the Soviet Union launched a satellite gaining a huge lead in what was known as the “Space Race”. The Space Race was between the Soviets and America basically seeing who had the better technology and reach the stars before the other could, but the satellite the Soviets launched was named Sputnik 1. Sputnik is the world’s first artificial satellite to be launched into

Starting after World War ll, both America and the Soviet Union had an unfortunate assumption that the other was trying to take over the world and spread their governmental policies, Democracy and Communism. This lead to hate and fear, and the overall goal of destroying those ideals. Both sides thought that their political systems were superior and tried to expand their reach on the world, steering themselves down a road paved with bitter rivalries and childish contests. One such contest, and probably the most famous, being the Space Race. Both sides were reaching out towards the unknown, but Americans believed they were far more ahead than the Russians so when the Soviet Union launched the world’s first satellite, “Sputnik-1” On October 4, 1957, they were awed, scared, and offended.The Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik created a new era in American society and influenced many pivotal aspects of daily life, including the government, education, culture, and thought process.

One of the greatest achievements from many during the space race was that the Soviet Union sent the first satellite into space. This was a great achievement because satellites were used a lot and were necessary during the space race. The first satellite sent to space was known as ¨sputnik¨ and was sent on October 4,1957 by the Soviet nation during the first year of the race. According to history.com it stated, ¨ Sputnik 1 remained in orbit until January 4, 1958, when it burned up on reentering Earth atmosphere¨. Later, during the race more of these satellites were used and marking more achievements.

The Space Race was a competition between the Soviet Union and the United States to see which nation could achieve spaceflight dominance before the other. The Race began on August 2, 1955 and ended nearly 40 years later in December of 1991. The Space Race began because of two major factors that would carry it until its end. The Soviet Union’s announcement that they were going to began building and using satellites to use in space days before the United States planned to announce the same thing helped fuel the fire for the competition. The Cold War also played a very influential role in the competitiveness between the countries and would inspire them to be better and work harder than their rival. The general public also played a key role in the race. Reinforcing your country’s involvement in the race gave them the all clear to spend money to build these space crafts, satellites and other technology in order to not only win, but to please the people. If a country has the support of its people they can accomplish anything. Propaganda like posters became a great way of encouraging the people to get involved and stay involved. Posters depicted great spaceships only seen in movies, engrained a hatred for the opposing country, the influence the race had on the future, and astronauts as real life superheroes like Superman. Most importantly the Space Race was a time of great inventions that carry on to

Back then when the Cold War started, the Soviet Union always somehow came on top of USA. John F. Kennedy, at the time the U.S. president from 1961-1963, was tired of America always being in second place especially the “Space Race”. America was far behind from the Soviet Union, they send the first successful satellite into orbit and send the first man into space, while America try to send rockets into space, but usually ends up in a explosion. Especially when America tried their first lunar module landing, Apollo 1, but sadly there was some technical difficulties, then there was a fire and Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger B. Chaffee sadly died in that fire. That was the point in the “Space Race” where it looked like America lost.

This event was not all just about being the first to be in space but it was who could gain the technology that could potentially send a nuclear device into an enemy country without them being able to defend it. The Russians gained this advantage first and this terrified many Americans who had previously thought that they were the superpower of the world. At the time that that sputnik I launched the success of the soviets was tried to be downplayed by people all over the US even though the technology gained from it would leave a positive lasting impact on the world today. Without the space race, we would surely not have satellite TV the very thing that keeps most people in the US entertained today (Rob Mead). This was developed during the space race in order to communicate with astronauts. Another thing that was developed during the space race was cordless tools used to drill on the moon to collect moon rock samples, before this, you would not be able to use a battery powered tool cut down a tree or mow a lawn (Rob Mead). Smoke/carbon monoxide detectors were another invention to help detect smoke and poisonous gasses on board space shuttles( Rob Mead). Without this one may very well be poisoned by carbon monoxide or killed in a fire when it could be easily avoided with a detector. Imagine life today when going on a road trip having to read a map rather than typing in the destination on your phone this could very well be what life would be like if the space race did not influence the Satellite navigation system to be created it had a big part in developing it( Rob Mead). These are just a few examples of how common things that one may take for granted every day that may possibly not even exist if it wasn’t for the technological breakthroughs that occurred during the space race. Not only did the space race positively affect technology but also schools. The

To begin with, the Space Race began all because of the Soviet Union and they kept pushing on to create and carry out with their objectives, meanwhile the United States was doing nothing. In an article, “United States-Soviet Cooperation during the Cold War” nasa.gov. Erika Vick, May 28, 2008. Web. , it says, “History changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I.” In the late 1950’s they launched Sputnik I, which created the Space Race and it continued into the 1960’s, where the Soviet Union and the United States tried beating each other. If the Soviet Union started it, they should earn a little credit for giving the space science a tremendous advancement. For example, in an article by Global Security website, it says, “When communists were pressing for joint action in 1963, what it had meant was Soviet commitment to the policy of

On October 4th, 1957 the Soviet Union launched the first ever satellite, Sputnik. The launch of Sputnik sent the United States into a frenzy, beginning the Space Race, and the innovation of technology as a whole. The Space Race most importantly had a major impact on the evolution of the United States’s defense technologies through the launch of Sputnik. The Space Race sparked the United States battle for technological superiority against the USSR, and lead to improvizations in their satellite and satellite defense technologies.

The space race did not start as one would expect with the respective American and Soviet space agencies. But rather it began with the German V2 missile launches towards the end of World War 2. The V2 missile