The Space Race Essay

​ On November 3, 1957, a stray dog by the name of Laika was launched into outer space. People weren't sure whether or not humans would be able to survive in space so they sent an animal to experiment first and that caused controversy. Many questioned why an innocent dog's life would be risked for experimental purposes. According to TIME, "She was promoted to cosmonaut based partly on her size (small) and demeanor (calm)..." It may have been unfair, but dogs have no purpose other than to provide companionship. However, humans have a lot more to offer the world. And think about all their loved ones who would have to give up his or her son, daughter, wife, husband or friend.

This picture depicts a Soviet scientist putting the finishing touches on Sputnik, a satellite that would soon be launched into orbit around earth. The news of the launch came as a big, unpleasant surprise to the US (The Start of the Space Race). They feared the military capabilities of satellites in orbit as well as the advancement of Soviet technology. The US immediately reacted by launching Vanguard into orbit, but it failed miserably when it was launched (Space Race.). Although the US managed to successfully put Vanguard 1 into orbit later that year,

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 was a 20th century competition between two Cold War rivals, the United States of America and the Soviet Union. This competition was held between 1955 until 1972 and enabled these two rivals to advance their ability of spaceflight and their exploration out of the Earth’s reach. The competition covered several ways in taking human life out of Earth’s orbit and to successfully bring them back home in the process. The Space Race brought about several controversial topics relating to how the USSR copied the methods conducted by the United States, how the United States retaliated against the USSR and the man landing was purposely staged or not. These factors contribute to a large extent on how the space race was won. The Space Race

The Space Race was a competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space. From 1955 until 1975, both sides battled it out to be the leader in the competition. Fueled by the Cold War and other causes of the beginning of the race, the Soviet Union and the United States fought for authority in a very public manner through the media. There were many achievements at this time and it led the way for many great things to come afterwards.

​Did you know that in the year 1957, the Soviet Union sent the dog Laika into space? The Russians did this so that they did not have to sacrifice humans. Animal testing was necessary during the Space Race to save human lives. The famous space race began in 1957 between the Soviet Union and the United States. Both racing to be the first to space and the moon. Researchers with both teams during the space race thought it would be a better idea to send animals rather than send humans and risk their lives. The first animal launched into space was a Rhesus monkey followed by Laika the first dog sent into space.

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

DeVry University Online The Space Race and education: An annotated Bibliography Goldgeier, J. M., & McFaul, M. (1992). A tale of two worlds: core and periphery in the post-cold war era. International Organization, 46(02), 467-491. This article focuses on how the space race was realized in the twentieth century between year 1955 and 1972.

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.

The next American thing to go up into space was the Explorer 1, a satellite used to measure the radiation in Earth's orbit. The Explorer 1 was formally known as Satellite 1958 Alpha. The program at the California Institute of Technology that was to make the Explorer 1 had taken only three months to build the satellite. The Explorer 1 was launched in January 31, 1958 from Cape Canaveral and was America's first satellite. It was sent up into space with the use of a Jupiter-C vehicle, which is "a special modification of the Redstone ballistic missile" (Explorer-I and Jupiter-C). The Jupiter-C vehicle was, under the management of Dr. Wernher Von Braun, a German scientist. Dr. Wernher Von Braun was part of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency, also known as ABMA. Once the satellite was up in orbit, it started its tests on how much radiation was in Earth's orbit. The scientist who was in charge of this experiment was Dr. James Van Allen. The Explorer had found that the level radiation was very low which went against Dr. Van Allen's prediction. Dr. Van Allen then made another prediction that the equipment that was used on the satellite was corrupted by a powerful belt of radiation. A couple months later when the second satellite went up

Explorer 1 was America’s first satellite. It was under the direction of Dr. William H. Pickering but designed and built by Dr. James Van Allen. It was launched on January 31, 1958. Explorer 1 was launched on Cape Canaveral by the Army Ballistic Missile Agency. It was launched atop of Juno 1 which was a modified Jupiter-C booster. Explorer 1 was much smaller than the Sputniks, only 30.66 pounds, but It made the first important discovery about the space environment. It discovered an existence of a belt of charged particles which is called the Van Allen Belts. Explorer 1’s external skin of instrument section was painted in alternate strips of white and dark green because it would provide passive temperature control of the

Sputnik 3 was supposed to be the first satellite, named object-d, it was a big laboratory with 12 experiments to measure outer space conditions.(“Sputnik: 50 years ago.”). The last Sputnik launch was on May 15th, 1958, it orbited almost 2 years, it was supposed to be a space laboratory to study the radiation belt and Earth's magnetic

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.

Exploring space is one of the most complicated and extraordinary project scientists are currently working on because of the technology used and health risks. On October 4, 1957, the Soviets launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, into space (aerospace). This sparked scientist to send satellites to space. Shortly after, the United States sent its first satellite, Explorer 1, into orbit. Since then there have been more than 130 space shuttle missions.

The Space Race was a war of firsts between the United States of America and the Union Soviet Socialist Republics. But it was also the culmination of the dreams of man for many millennia and the team who worked on the space programs were able to discover what so many of the people that came before and after them could only dream of. It was an endeavor that all of humanity was invested in at the time. It was a testament to the power of the human spirit and it showed how nothing was impossible if we persevered and strived to be better.