Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay about sputnik
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Works Cited Incomplete Sputnik: The Satellite That Inspired Generations Introduction In 1950, a group of American and European scientists decided to establish a worldwide program to promote research and understanding of the world around them. They decided that July 1957 to December 1958 would be called the International Geophysical Year, or IGY. They hoped that drawing attention to geophysical matters would stimulate new projects and inventions, and increase the knowledge the world had of the planet, its atmosphere, and the things that lay beyond. This focus galvanized many countries to produce new innovations in science and technology. At the same time, the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics were involved in the Cold War. They were competing against one another, constantly trying to show that their country (and therefore their form of government and ideals) was the better choice. They were competing for influence over the rest of the world. Eventually the USSR and Communism lost, but far more important results came out of this competition instead. Development of Sputnik The idea that a satellite could be put into orbit around the Earth was introduced to the scientific community in 1903. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky showed that this could be done, but his work was all mathematical. In 1948, another Russian named Mikhail Tikhonravov talked to the famed scientist Sergei Korolev about turning this theory into an actual working device. Tikhonravov presented his ideas to the Academy of Artillery Sciences, but they refused to support the project. The Academy president Anatoli Blagonravov, however, could not get the idea that the project would have huge value out of his head. Eventually he brought the p... ... middle of paper ... ...rsity. Accessed May 22, 2003. [URL] 6. Jorden, William J. "Soviet Fires Earth Satellite Into Space?" New York Times, October 5, 1957. [URL] Accessed May 22, 2003. 7. Launius, Roger D. "Sputnik and the Origins of the Space Age." 1997. NASA. Accessed 2 Apr. 2003. < a href="http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/sputorig.html> 8. Plumb, Robert K. "Satellite is First Step Into Space." New York Times, October 5, 1957. [URL] Accessed May 22, 2003. 9. Siddiqi, Asif A. "Korolev, Sputnik, and The International Geophysical Year." 1997. NASA. Accessed 2 Apr. 2003. [URL] 10. Sullivan, Walter. "Scientists Wonder if Shot Nears Moon." New York Times, November 5, 1957. [URL] Accessed May 22, 2003. 11. Wright, Michael. "Sputnik: First Artificial Satellite." 30 Aug. 1997. Accessed 2 Apr. 2003 [URL]
“The distinct differences in the political systems of the two countries often prevented them from reaching a mutual understanding on key policy issues and even, as in the case of the Cuban missile crisis, brought them to the brink of war” (Library of Congress). The Soviet Union and The United States were complete opposites, The United States was a democracy whereas The Soviet Union was a dictatorship. This only began their differences though, their economies, beliefs, goals, and even their fears, everything about them made them different except for their enemy. The
The Web. 26 Feb. 2014. "The Soviets Launch Sputnik 1: October 4, 1957. " Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History.
Following the conclusion of the Second World War, the United States and the Soviet Union made it a priority to outdo each other in every possible facet from arsenals of missiles to international alliances and spheres of influences. Yet when the Soviets launched Sputnik on October 4th, 1957, the world changed forever. The first manmade object was fired into space, and it appeared that American technology and science had fallen behind. Yet, the public feared that not only were they now technologically inferior to the Soviets, but also deduced that if a satellite could be launched into space, a nuclear missile could just as likely reach the mainland United States. Less than a month later, the Soviets pushed the bounds of technology yet again by
The cold war by the late 1950s had weaved into the everyday life of society for both countries. The announcement from the US that they will launch a satellite into orbit was challenged by the Soviets. On October 4th 1957, the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. This was the world’s first artificial satellite and man-made object to be in earths orbit. The launch was unexpected to the US, having caught them off guard. As a result Sputnik began to raise fears amongst the public, fearing the possible event of a nuclear attack, due to previous cold war
R7 was test launched 5 times before the Soviet scientists got it to reach it target hight. They replaced the heavy satellite they had with Sputnik. It was just over 83 kilograms. With that success they launched another one on October 1,1957 and achieving the record of the first man made satellite in space.This was not just a military advancement, it was a man's dream come true.
The Space Race is remarkably similar to that of the arms race because of the parallel between the creation of the atomic bomb and the goal of reaching the moon. The United States’ bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki effectively established its place as the technologically superior nation; however, major milestones in space achieved early by the Soviets damaged America’s reputation. In 1957, Soviet scientists shocked the world by successfully launching the Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, beyond the Kármán Line (the boundary of space). This amazing breakthrough “rattled American self-confidence”. It cast doubts on America’s vaunted scientific superiority and raised some sobering military questions.”
The Soviets took a lead by launching the first successful satellite into space. On October 4, 1957 the Soviets launched the first successful satellite into orbit. It was called Sputnik I and it successfully entered Earth’s orbit. This first success started the Space Age. The Soviets successful launch shocked the whole world, giving the Soviet Union the respect for putting the first man-made object into outer space. The Americans successfully launched their first satellite four months after Sputnik I, called the Explorer I. The US would have had the first satellite in orbit if they were allowed to use military rockets from the beginning. But, Eisenhower was worried he would be called a warmonger if he used military rockets for launching a satellite into orbit. He told the sci...
The United States and Russia wanted to prove they could frontier the next best thing space. Each eager to prove to the world they would be the first to engineer satellites into space (Britannica). Russia would be the first to accomplish this on October 4th, 1957 they launched the first satellite into earth’s atmosphere (History of the Cold War, 2017). Not to be out done the United State accomplished this feat as well a year later.
The Soviets launched the Sputnik, the first artificial satellite, which introduced the Space Age. Sputnik was way bigger than the U.S. first satellite. This put the Soviets technology ahead of the United States. This cause many people to fear the soviets because they didn't expect them to have this type of technology. This would soon begin the great Space Race. With the Sputnik launched many people feared what the other nation could achieve.
“On Oct. 4, 1957, Sputnik 1 successfully launched and entered Earth's orbit. Thus, began the space age. The successful launch shocked the world, giving the former Soviet Union the distinction of putting the first human-made object into space. The word 'Sputnik' originally meant 'fellow traveler,' but has become synonymous with 'satellite' in modern Russian.” -NASA.
The post-war world left the Soviets and the United States in an ideological power struggle. The origin of the cold war is hard to pinpoint. There were several issues and disagreements that led to it. The political differences between the 2 nations were absolute opposites. America was a democracy, a system that allows its citizens to choose the political party in which runs the government. The Communists were led by one of the most vicious dictators in human history, Joseph Stalin.
Smirnov, Yuri, Adamsky Viktor. “Moscow’s Biggest Bomb: The 50-Megaton Test of October 1961.” Cold War International History Project. March 1994.
While, on the other hand, the United States just wanted to stop the spread of communism, which they felt, would spread rapidly throughout the world if they did not put an end to it soon. Both the United States and the Soviet Union wanted to avoid WWIII in the process of trying to achieve their goals. The Cold War was failed by the Soviet Union for many reasons, including the sudden collapse of communism (Baylis & Smith, 2001.) This sudden collapse of communism was brought on ultimately by internal factors. Soviet Union president Gorbachev’s reforms: glasnost (openness) and perestroika (political reconstruction) ultimately caused the collapse of the Soviet Empire.
Kennedy Space Center Story. 1991. The. 15 February 2010 http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/about/history/story/kscstory.html>. The "Reading Eagle" JFK Cites Red Threat: Declares Russia Will Lead Space Race for Some Time 13 April 1961: 1. The life of Konstantin Eduardovitch Tsiolkovsky.
In 1957 the Soviets used a missile to launch a satellite, Sputnik 1, into orbit around the earth. The arms race then became a space race as the United States rushed to launch its own satellites, some for military purposes.