The National Aeronautics And Space Administration Essay

If NASA was not created, science would not be the same as it is today. We would have never walked on Mars, walked on the Moon, or even go into space itself. More importantly, the Soviet Union

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.

However, this was not the only issue that the superpower encountered. As well as the arms race, the superpowers also took on the mission to compete in space. The launching of Sputnik affected the domestic policy because now they were competing to see who could control space. To answer the lauch, the United States created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, also known as NASA. The arms race and race to space was far from over between the two superpowers, and sometimes is still evident in the world

The Cold War was an all-encompassing face of the 20th century, world politics, and a major idea during this time was domination of the skies. The United States competed against The Soviet Union in a war unlike any other, they didn’t fight with guns, bombs, or war machines but with science and the battlefield was space. The prioritization of the space race on the national agenda was characterized by an urgency, which underscored the commitment to the U.S. to defeat the Soviet Union by all means necessary. This came at the cost of billions of dollars, resources, lives, and political forces.

　　President Ronald Reagan inherited the space policy of his predecessor, Jimmy Carter and was not satisfied with its current objectives and lack of direction (Logsdon, 1995). He put together a transition team to draft a new chapter for NASA which was left in an “untenable position” by Carter’s lack of direction for the agency. The NASA transition team leader, George Low, remarked that NASA can be “the best in American accomplishment and inspiration for all citizens” (Logsdon, 1995). The team provided input to Reagan that would drive space policy during his eight year tenure.

Have you heard of the “Space Race”? It all began when the Soviet Union sent the first artificial satellite “Sputnik 1” into space. After that the United States rushed to catch up with the Soviet Union’s technological advances, and the Space Race started. The Space Race finally ended in 1969, when we sent the first man to land on the moon. The Space Race had many impacts on the Cold War.

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

The period after World War Two, known as the Cold War, was a period of brinkmanship between the world superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United States. This conflict was fought across the world as these two powers tried to advance their ideologies while blocking the others through military battles and by social prestige. Among the arms race between these powers, a technological battle unfolded, called the Space Race. This race sent humans into space as the two sides took huge risks to outperform the other, giving humanity some of its greatest achievements. This paper will look at the events and outcome surrounding the space race and answer three main questions. First, what led up the Space Race and the Soviet Union’s early victories? Second, how did the United States respond? Fourth, how did the Space Race affect the Cold War? Fourth, what made the United States Space Program more successful compared to the Soviet Union’s?

For 50 years, both the United States and the USSR competed for world dominance. One way they competed for those 50 years was the Space Race, an ideological war. The Cold War led to the Space Race because the US wanted to prevent the spread of communism, to stop the Soviet’s espionage on the military and to compete with the USSR on technological superiority.

Having experienced many setbacks in relations with the Soviet Union up to this point, there was now a growing sense of optimism in America that détente with its many possibilities was the precursor to a new era of cooperation with the Russians. This sentiment spilled over into NASA and resulted in the unorthodox sharing of scientific data with

“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

The Cold War was a new conflict that began to rise after the horrific and globally destructive World War II in the mid-20th century between two powerful countries, the democratic United States of America and the communist government of the Soviet Union. Both countries highlighted its superiority through a thriving threat of nuclear weapons and wide-ranging espionage and counter-espionage between the two countries. In the 1950’s, space became the platform for the competition of supremacy to validate each country’s dominance in innovative technology, military firepower, and political-economic system. Space was seen by David Beers, in the book Blue Sky Dream: A memoir of America’s Fall from Grace, as the next frontier which was a logical extension of the grand American tradition of exploration. The rise of the aerospace industry became the icon of national reputation and a dream for the blue sky tribe, who benefitted from the space race, which then later on led to disappointment and betrayal in the 1990s.

Originating with the belief that, “he who controls space controls the world,” the Soviet Union and the United States engaged in a decades long rivalry to see who could conquer the next frontier and establish themselves as the most dominant nation. The contention between capitalist America and communist Soviets occurred in aeronautical laboratories and interstellar battlefields. As the Soviets surged ahead early in the space race with their Sputnik victories, America was aghast and fretful that the underestimated Soviets were able to accomplish more than they had ever anticipated. The long term implications of Soviet domination created unimaginable horror and panic among the America public. The Cold War hostility embodied not only the opportunity

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

NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) is always prepared to intercept hijacked airplanes with fighter jets, and are able to debilitate them or shoot them down—Fact or fiction? This is a fact; however, on the day of September 11, 2001, four commercial airplanes were hijacked with the intent to crash into the world trade center, the pentagon, and possibly the white house. Three of these planes were successful on this mission and there is substantial evidence that NORAD knew about these hijackings, at least after the first one hit the World Trade Center. “NORAD generals said they learned of the hijackings in time to scramble fighter jets.” (NewsOne) Why did they instead choose to stand down? Obviously, NORAD was commanded by a higher authority to abstain from thwarting these men’s attempts. This must be because the corrupt government of the United States either knew these attacks were going to take place, or they allowed them to happen to benefit from the after effects. The government may not have been completely behind the 9/11 attacks, but they most certainly had some part in it and had the capability to prevent them; therefore, we must consider the theories we could possibly believe, and those that we dismiss outright through analysis and contemplative thought.