Space Race Research Paper

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Imagine being an American astronaut during the Space Race/Cold War; so much pressure to succeed in your mission to achieve a goal in space before the Soviets. The Cold War was a time of great tension between the United States (US) and Soviet Union (USSR). It was considered different than most wars in the sense that it progressed over time and involved no direct fighting between the two sides. Instead the Cold War involved indirect support of wars and threats by both sides. The Space Race was a competition between the US and USSR for supreme spaceflight capabilities and bragging rights about which system of government was better. This essay is a brief overview of the Space Race; one of the many different aspects of the Cold…show more content…
The US “won” the Space Race when Apollo 11’s lunar module landed Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, on the moon. They became the first men to walk on the moon. When walking on the moon, Neil Armstrong famously said “One small step for man; one giant leap for…show more content…
Both the US and USSR saw the potential of satellites in space, which have the ability to observe the ground and spy on either side without being detected or shot down. Both sides began working on a scientific satellite. However, on October 4, 1957 the Soviets successfully sent Sputnik into orbit. It was the first satellite and it sent a ping that was observed back on earth. The USSR sent the first animal, a dog into orbit in January 1958. In 1959 both the US and USSR set their sights on a new goal, the moon. In January the Soviets launched unmanned Luna One which missed the moon, but became the first spacecraft to leave Earth's orbit and orbit the sun. Luna Two managed to land on the moon. On October 4, 1959 Luna Three took pictures of the moon's far side as it did a flyby. The Soviets were considered to be winning the race to the moon at this point but didn't disclose if they had plans to land a man on the moon. In 1960 the Soviet Union began working on spy satellites to send into space. According to pbs.org, the Soviets were able to take detailed pictures of the Pentagon by 1967. In April, 1961 Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin reached space on Vostok One and became the first man in space and orbit. By 1974 the Soviet Union and United both had plans to launch weapons into space. Later in 1974 the Soviets launched Salyut space station
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