The V-2 was a ballistic missile with a supersonic speed and, when the war ended, the United States and Soviet Union took the scientists that created it to use them for their own developments. By August 1957, the U.S.S.R. had effectively tested the R-7 Semyorka, the first ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile). The R-7 was used two months later to launch the Sputnik 1 in space. At this point the Soviet Union was ahead in the space race. Not happy with that, President Eisenhower demanded that the Navy launch an American satellite as soon as possible.
Ranger 7 marked a turning point in America's exploration of space. Af... ... middle of paper ... ...tes and the Soviet Union to see who could make the furthest development into space first. Creating NASA that lead to build new technologies during the Space Race, was proved because it helped U.S protect itself and today it still affect us in being able to accomplish our dreams. From President Kennedy’s contribution to the program to building Ranger Missions and Rockets Programs made America one of the most powerful and advanced country in the world. The Space Race not just only created shuttles, it created things we used now on daily basis like water purification, chemical detection, solar cells, and many more.
On this date, the United Soviet Socialists Republic (USSR) launched Sputnik into outer space. The launch of Sputnik instilled a fear in the American society and an urgent call to increase technological capabilities to protect the homeland from Soviet attacks and also to prove the United States’ superiority. The United States’ official involvement in what has commonly been termed the “Space Race” began in 1958 after the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA. When created, NASA immediately began working on the idea of human space flight. The first high profile program was titled Project Mercury.
On October 4, 1957 the Soviet Union altered history and launched Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth. After the Soviet Union had launched Sputnik the United States started to worry that America may had been falling behind. In retaliation to the fear of the United States not being the most advanced and imperial nation, the United States created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to advance space knowledge. It also passed the National Defense Education Act (NDEA) that promoted the study of mathematics, science, and foreign languages with funds from the government. After Sputnik was launched into space the "Space Race" had begun, a race to the moon that John Kennedy made a priority.
This chapter takes a close look into the development of the WS-117L reconnaissance satellite and how the two projects are related. The main thrust that the project received was from the launch of Sputnik I. With the Soviets now seemingly ahead, the author explains how the project was taken away from the Air Force who was failing with the WS-117L and passed the mission onto the CIA for the development of the Corona satellites. Peebles explains that the difference between the two programs is that the WS-117L promised almost real-time through radio-transmitted imagery while the Corona missions would drop the film from the nose cone for development. The engineering team faced numerous challenges in the task of getting the satellites into orbit as explained in chapter three.
The administration was formed to research and progress anything that had to do with space, flight, or other aeronautics. Just over a year after the launch of Sputnik, on October 11, 1958 NASA launched its first rocket: Pioneer I. The primary purpose of this rocket was to measure magnetic fields around the Earth. Although the Sputnik projects had many of the same capabilities, the US having finally launched a rocket meant that they were really in the race. On April 12, 1961 Russia became the first to send a manned craft into space.
The US and Russia raced to claim the title “First Country to Enter Space.” Russia won that race on April 12, 1961 when Yuri Gagarin entered space and orbited Earth. The US now needed a goal that would "better" the Russian success, and President Kennedy provided one -- the first man on the moon! Kennedy’s goal of space exploration included landing a man on the moon and safely returning him to Earth. He hoped that achieving this goal would bring the US out of the “status hole” it was in. The US sent the first American, Alan Shepard, into space on May 5, 1961.
The United States immediately reacted to the launch by claiming it would have been first in launching a satellite had it not been for planning mistakes. After the launch of Sputnik II in November 1957, the United States made its first public reaction.
The United States and the Soviets made nuclear rockets to test there capability in traveling half way around the world, they were known as intercontinental ballistic missiles, or ICBMs. The nuclear rockets began the technology advancement in NASA program (Evans). The space exploration was a distraction from nuclear war and weapons. The space race raised cold war tensions, and made the United States work harder for success against the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union launched a surprise missile the "Sputnik" on October 4, 1957, to orbit the Earth meanwhile initiating the competition between the two countries.
Beginning in 1955, the Space Race was a technological “race” between the US and the USSR, the main goal of which was to establish a leader in spaceflight. The rivals believed that the technology gained by spaceflight was necessary for national security and research potential, in addition to proving the technological superiority of each ideology. The early endeavors of it included the launching of probes and satellites to Mars, Venus, the Moon, the Space Race also began with manned spaceflight in low-earth orbit. The Space Race was officially sparked on August 2, 1955 when the USSR declared that they had plans of launching their own probe on 4 days later in response to the US's announcement of launching an unmanned satellite into space for the International Geophysical Year. The Soviets took an early lead with the launch of Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957.