The space race was a battle for technological superiority between the United States and the Soviet Union during the cold war. Each wanted to showcase the strengths of their political and economic systems. Its effects were far reaching; most notably the space race acted as a relief valve to the military tensions during this era of potential nuclear warfare, it eventually expanded collaboration on issues of mutual interest and provided opportunities to work together although deep mistrust and disdain that exists to this day with Russia and some of the remnants of the USSR.
To understand the space race and the relationship between the Soviets and the Americans, we must first understand the cold war and how it all began. A cold war can be defined as, “a conflict or dispute between two groups that does not involve actual fighting” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cold+war n.d.) This conflict was a result of the fundamental differences of the political ideologies of capitalism and communism and it manifested itself in many ways. Proxy wars were fought such as in Korea and Vietnam where the U.S. fought against the Communists of those countries and the Soviets supported them and then the United States repaid them in Afghanistan with our support of arms and financing of the mujahedeen in their fight against the U.S.S.R. The cold war also resulted in a war of espionage and dramatic cloak and dagger activity and also in contests of technological superiority such as the space race and the quest for superior arms and machines of war.
Although there had been a long running chill between the Soviets and the United States since at least the end of World War One, the Cold War is generally agreed upon to have begun in 1947 with the...
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...ect where three American astronauts met in space with two Soviet
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...o the Soviets inability to properly contain their civilians. The main reasons why the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics lost the Space Race the United States of America are because the USSR was communist. The civilians did not support or like living in a communist society, which made them flee to freedom and ran the cost of border control up to employ more guards. Also, the USSR alone controlled East Germany and East Berlin, while the United States ran West Berlin and West Germany with its allies France and Britain. Finally, the United States was tough competition for the Soviets. The sheer determination of the Americans to defeat the Soviets in the Space Race and restore order in Europe was greater than the Soviets expected. Even after failed attempts at reaching space, the Americans never gave up and beat the Russians to the moon, winning the Space Race.
The Cold War in 1945 to 1953 brought about a period of tension and hostility due to the feud between the United States and the Soviet Union. The period began with the end of the Second World War. The situation acquired the title for there was no physical active war between the two rivals. The probability of the tension got to be the fear of the then rise in nuclear ammunition. Things began to roll when a US based U2 sky plane got to take photos of some USSR intermediate ballistic missiles with the capability of transporting nuclear heads.
These rivalries would become clear when two countries competed in the space race, a competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union concerning achievements in the field of space exploration. The Soviet’s took the early lead as they put the first satellite, Sputnik 1, into space. The launch of Sputnik 1 established a sense of fear in the American public, resulting in the creation of NASA in the late 1950’s. This opened the door for space exploration today and for future generations. After World War II, the Cold War created tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States leading to extreme national pride and competition, culminating in the space race which began with the launch of Sputnik 1.
The Cold War began in the mid 1940’s between the United States and the Soviet Union at the end of the Second World War. The Cold War was clearly marked between two former World War II allies. As the Cold War continued there were many self-serving propaganda. When John F. Kennedy was elected to the presidency in 1960, crises between USSR and the Cuban erupted.
At the end of WWII in 1945, the USA and the Soviet Union emerged as the world’s superpowers. This was a time of great tension, rivalry and distrust between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was a time of political, diplomatic, military and economic rivalry where both nations wanted to emerge as the world’s new superpower. Hence, the Cold War would be of profound significance in the development of the space race as the space race was a key element in the rivalry of political, economic and social dominance.
American nationalism during the Space Race fueled support for NASA, resulting in great technological and scientific advancements during the Cold War. The hyper-competitive atmosphere surrounding the Cold War heightened already existing rivalry between the United States’ and the Soviet Union’s science programs. As the two superpowers struggled for technological dominance, the American people were swept into a frenzy of nationalism. The Science News-Letter pointed out that the Space Race was driven by, “nothing more or less than the ego-driven pressures of competition.” The idea of the Soviet Union both having a superior space program as well as having the capacity to attack the United States with intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) brought the U.S. space program off the ground.
During World War II, the United States and Soviet Union fought together as allies against the Axis powers. However, the relationship between the two was increasingly tense. The US had been concerned about Soviet communism and of Joseph Stalin’s tyrannical rule of Russia. The Soviets did not like the Americans refusal to treat the USSR as a part of the international community as well as their delayed entry into World War II, which costed thousands of deaths of Russians. After the war ended, these grievances turned into a sense of mutual distrust between the two. The Soviets expansion in Eastern Europe fueled many Americans’ fears of a possible Russian plan to try to take over. Although many people believe that the Cold War began off of no one
For the time of WWII the United States and the Soviet fought side by side as allies. Although they were allies with the same cause their partnership was a tense and rocky one. “The United States was always very concerned about the tyranny of Soviet communism and most importantly the blood thirsty ways of its leader Joseph Stalin.” (Taylor 2001) On the Soviet side, the Soviets had always resented the fact that America never really recognized them as legitimate part of the international community and because America delayed its entry into WWII, it resulted in millions of Russians dead. When WWII was over these accusations turned into both sides having a mutual sense of distrust for one another.
After World War II both the United States and the Soviet Union realized how important rocket research would be to the military. So they each hired the top rocket scientists from Germany to help with their research. After they hired them both sides were making a lot of progress. The Space Race began in 1955 when the Americans announced that they would start launching satellites into orbit. The Soviets took the US announcement as a challenge and established a group whose goal was to beat the US in putting a satellite into orbit. Even though the United States started the competition the Soviets still won because they launched the first successful satellite into orbit, put a dog into outer space and also put the first man into outer space. Some might say that the United States won because they put the first man on the moon, which was a huge feat made by the Americans. So for winning many missions against the U.S. the Soviets won the Space Race.
The 1960’s were full of questions, and one of the biggest questions the world was pondering about was regarding the Space Race: was the USA going to beat their communist enemy, the Soviet Union? The Space Race was a series of events that helped to symbolize and determine in the worlds’ eyes which form of government was better, communism (Soviets) or democracy (United States)? In the beginning of the race, the Soviets had the lead, and it was not looking good for America. Then the United States picked up the pace and spent well over eight billion dollars funding the space studies. This period of time made many scientists and astronauts heroes in the eyes of Americans. The Space Race was a combination of determination, intelligence, space projects, and American pride, all used to reach our exploration goals and surpass the Soviets.
As a result, the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union continued for over 30 years. Shortly after the end of World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as the two superpowers. These two former wartime allies found themselves locked in a struggle that came to be known as the Cold. War. The. Eisenhower saw the Cold War in stark morality.
The Cold War lasted from 1947-1991. During this period, the U.S. and Russia were competing with each other to see who had superior military, weapons, and technology. While they never fought directly they would aid third-world countries such as North Korea and South Korea in The Korean War. Historians call it The Cold War because even though shots were never fired between the U.S. and Russia, they were fighting each other indirectly. Although The Korean War ended in 1953, the U.S. and Russia would still have many conflicts for the next few decades.
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>
Space travel was born from the flames of war – or in this case, the refrigerators of war. The Soviet Union and the United States were ready to show up each other in the fields of science and engineering, and with the recent advent of rocketry, it was evident that space was the next goal. Russia held the first few victories: including the first man-made satellite and the first man in space. Following these defeats, America picked itself up, and defeated the Russians on the race to the moon.
The space race was the product of the Cold War. It was an effort to prove technological superiority but on the other hand, it was also feared on both sides that weapons of mass destruction will be placed in orbit. In 1957, the Soviet Union sent the 184 pound Sputnik 1 satellite into Earth’s orbit. It was the first artificial satellite and the first manmade object to be placed into Earth’s orbit. Following that, they also sent the first animal into space, Laika the dog. In 1958, the United Sates also launched their first satellite into orbit, dubbed Explorer 1. The Soviet space program advanced once again in 1959. The Soviet Union launched Luna 2, which was the first space probe to hit the moon. In April 1961, the Soviet Union had the ultimate success, sending the first human into space. The name of the Russian cosmonaut was Yuri Gagarin, who made a 108 minute suborbital flight in a Vostok 1 spacecraft. One month after that, Alan Shepard became the American in space aboard the Freedom 7 spacecraft. Continuing from there, each nation step...