The Challenger Disaster And Its Impact On Space Travel

By examining the two nations’ early space technology, it is evident that Russia was initially superior in this regard. Launching the world’s first-ever artificial satellite — called Sputnik I — in October of 1957, the USSR chalked

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

On October 4, 1957 the Soviet Union shocked the people of the United States by successfully launching the first Earth orbiting satellite, Sputnik. America's first satellite

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.

Seventy three seconds into its 10th flight, on January 28, 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart over the Atlantic Ocean, killing the seven crew members on board [1]. The Challenger was the second space shuttle constructed by NASA and had completed nine successful missions prior to the disaster. Following the accident, the shuttle program was suspended for 32 months as President Ronald Regan appointed a Commission, chaired by William P. Rogers and known as the Rogers Commission, to investigate the cause of the accident [1].

On October 4th, 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, a small satellite, successfully into orbit, and the Space Race truly

In addition to initiating a space race between the two current superpowers, the Sputnik spacecraft launch also had alarming military implications. The Sputnik satellites used intercontinental ballistic missiles that were initially used for their thrust capabilities but could theatrically be capable of flying from the Soviet Union to United States military targets in less than an hour—cutting the flight time to a fraction of a conventional bomber aircraft. In response to the launch of Sputnik, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. The act created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) . To prevent the rise of Soviet dominance in military matters, Eisenhower also established the Advanced Research Projects Agency, a division of the U.S. Department of Defense. This was symbolic of a serious revelation of the standing of the scientific and technological capabilities of America in comparison to other countries, and also led to President Eisenhower issuing a proclamation to increase funding for education in America in science and engineering to combat this widening deficit. The quick Soviet lead in the newly emerging space race caused much panic, which shaped American foreign policy for the following decade(Document E). An example is avoiding “an all-out war with China” for fear of having to combat communism on two fronts.(Document

On the morning of Janurary 28th 1986, the world witnessed in shock and horror what was known as the Challenger disaster as the space shuttle exploded only 73 seconds after its launch, killing all seven crew members onboard including one teacher Christa McAuliffe. Approximately 17 percent of Americans watched the live broadcast of this launch, many of them schoolchildren including those from McAuliffe’s school. From this grave moment emerged an exigency that demands immediate action by the president. Later on that same day, President Ronald Reagan delivered his Challenger address to the nation.

Sputnik I was a man-made object the former Soviet Union successfully launched into space on October 4th, 1957. The beach ball sized satellite surprised the world, because it was the first artificial satellite to reach space, and the Soviet Union was very humbly proud. This launched the space race. The United States wanted to prove superiority over the Soviet Union in every aspect, so shortly after the launch, Washington announced plans to send a United States satellite into space. However, during the early years of the space race, a little over 50% of Americans did not support it.

The Soviets wanted to study the earth’s atmosphere, the behavior of animals in space, and the testing of rocket technology. Russia launched Sputnik 1, which carried a dog, into space. This helped to understand how humans might react in space and through the reentry process. The United States was urged to invest more of their money and resources into its space program, generating a race between the two countries to land a person on the moon. The whole race started on October 4, 1957, when the first Sputnik was launched. This satellite weighed about 184 pounds and the official name of it was "Iskustvennyi Sputnik Zemli" (1). Which meant "fellow world traveler of the earth". To counteract the United States’ launch of the Explorer 1, a satellite that included a rocket motor, the Russian’s responded with Sputnik 3 on May 15, 1958. The first three Sputnik satellites all carried instruments to measure the temperature and density of the earth’s upper atmosphere. Solar energy was used for the first time by Sputnik 3 to power its instruments and transmitters.

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

Five, Four, Three, Two, One, We have lift off of the Sputnik I, on January 4, 1958 the Soviet Union launched a program called Sputnik. Sputnik launched the start of the space age. The launch intimidated other countries especially the U.S. because of the rising tensions with the cold war and they wanted to be smarter, make more advancements, and discoveries; they also realised that if they could launch a satellite they could definitely launch an atomic bomb.

During the midst of the Cold War, the Soviet Union and United States were doing all that they could to appear as the bigger superpower of the world. After the Soviets had launched the world’s first satellite, Sputnik, into space as well as the first man, the U.S did all it could to try and one-up the Soviets. In response, President John F. Kennedy stood in front of Congress and said “I believe that this nation should commit itself achieving the goal, before the decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth” (John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2017.) Due to the Cold War putting pressure on the United States to join the space race, America was able to launch the Apollo program, and land two humans on the surface of the moon.

Did you know that the Soviet Union was the first to launch something outside of Earth’s orbit? In the 1960’s, the Soviet Union speed up the advancement of space science, faster than the United States ever could, during the Space Race. First of all, they were the first to start the Space Race and continually kept going onward to try new concepts and/or more concepts. On the other hand, the Soviet Union were more focused on witnessing who’s better. Finally, the Soviet Union were the ones who sent multiple of inventions into space, but still had a bunch of trial and error and learned what worked and what didn’t work.

The first artificial satellite was Sputnik 1. Sputnik 1 blasted off from Site 1 in Tyuratam (Baikonur) at 22:28 Moscow Time. This happened on October 4, 1957. The main stage R-7 rocket when made into orbit orbited 822 times. That part re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on December 2, 1957. The satellite made 1,440 total orbits and then burned upon the re-entry into the Earth atmosphere on January 4, 1958. It was in space for 92 days and in flight there were only slight engine