• Home Page
  • Sputnik's Technological Advancements During The Cold War

Sputnik's Technological Advancements During The Cold War

Improved Essays
Show More
During the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union had many technological advancements. The most notable of all was the creation of the first Earth satellite. The satellite named Sputnik I was launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957 and orbited the Earth for three months. At this moment the Soviet Union had officially started the Space Race and was currently in the lead. During this time the US citizens reacted differently. “From the 1950's, the United States and the Soviet Union attempted to surpass each other in feats of space exploration. What became known as "the space race" began with the Soviet's successful launch of the first ever artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, on October 4, 1957. Sputnik (the full name of which - Sputnik …show more content…
The launch of Sputnik made the US push harder for a satellite than ever before. The launch of the US satellite was made possible by funding that politicians made towards the research. The first satellite attempt by the US was made by the US Navy, and was named Vanguard. The satellite the Navy made was not nearly as heavy as the Sputnik satellite, which weighed 184 pounds, the Vanguard satellite only weighed 3 pounds and was much smaller. The launch of the Vanguard satellite was going to take place on Cape Canaveral in Florida. The Vanguard satellite was launched on December 6, 1957 at 11:44 AM. What happened next was the worst possible outcome, the rocket barely got in the air when it burst into flames. After only a couple minutes all that remained of the rocket was the Vanguard satellite. Now all eyes were on the US Army and their satellite named Explorer I. The Explorer satellite was lighter than its Soviet counterpart The US Army planned to launch Explorer I in Alabama. The Explorer I satellite was going to be launched into space by the Redstone Rocket, it was named “Redstone” because of the red soil in Alabama. Early in the morning on January 31, 1958 the Explorer satellite launched into space flawlessly (Crompton

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Sputnik: Impact On America's Politics And Media
    • 338 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Sputnik: Impact On America's Politics And Media

    Many historians are clear that Sputnik had a major impact on America's politics and media following its launch in 1957. Something that is considered one of the greatest technological advancements in human history is sure to have a great impact. Following the launch many saw this as a sign of America’s weakness and that the Soviet Union was far superior in their missile technology. The American media was affected very much by the launch of Sputnik, as every news station and newspaper made comments on it.…

    • 338 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Space Race Research Papers
    • 552 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Space Race Research Papers

    The Space Race began with the launch of Sputnik, and from then on it did nothing but heat up. The launch of Sputnik did give the Soviets a lead, but The U.S. quickly answered back with the expedited launch of their satellite, the Explorer 1. Now that the U.S. had realized that they were behind, they began making major strides in the field of space exploration. The first change that thy made was creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and immediately after creating the Mercury program that had the goal to put a human into orbit. The Soviets made good use of their lead, though, and in April, 1961, they put the first person (Yuri Alekseyevich) into orbit aboard Vostok 1.…

    • 552 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    Sputnik Persuasive Speech
    • 227 Words
    • 1 Pages

    Sputnik Persuasive Speech

    Sputnik 1 was the world's first ever artificial satellite. This satellite was put into orbit by the USSR. Sputnik 1 scared Americans because they thought this could be a sign that the US was falling behind the Soviet Union technologically. In fact, this satellite really was a sign that they were falling behind after all. Sputnik 1 made most of the Americans believe that if the Soviet Union could put a satellite in the sky, they could drop ballistic missiles on the US.…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Space Race Impact On American Culture
    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Space Race Impact On American Culture

    When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1 in 1957, the American public began to question Eisenhower’s presidency. They believed he was not assertive enough with Soviet Union relations. This sparked the political turn to space. To keep his presidential ratings up, Eisenhower created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), and the Space Race so America could reinsert itself into a place of military and space superiority.…

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    19th Century Space Race
    • 1133 Words
    • 5 Pages

    19th Century Space Race

    The 19th century space race between the United States and the Soviet Union was one of the most influential times in the history and development of American technology. Rooted deeply in the Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, the space race captivated both world powers and casted them against one another. It began in 1957, when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first satellite ever to reach outer-space. The space race also occurred at a time in which anti-communist hysteria was rapidly spreading across The United States. American society was based on capitalist ideals, in which trade and industry was controlled by many private owners rather than the state.…

    • 1133 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Causes Of Sputnik
    • 1865 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Causes Of Sputnik

    Explorer 1 was designed by the U.S. Army and was launched under the direction of the rocket scientist Wernher von Braun. With the launch of Explorer 1 came the beginning of what has become known as the Space Race. That same year on July 29, President Eisenhower signed a public order bringing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) into existence. The federal agency was dedicated to space exploration along with several programs seeking to exploit the military potential that space had. However, the Soviets were still a step ahead of the U.S. with the launch of the first man into space on April 12, 1961.…

    • 1865 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Compare And Contrast The Cold War And The Evil Empire
    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Compare And Contrast The Cold War And The Evil Empire

    The Cold War & the Evil Empire The cold war was a time when there was a conflict of the United States of America and The Soviet Union. It was a war that was basically underground and was a time when President Ronald Reagan was pushing buttons with Russian leader Joseph Stalin. The cold war basically was after the World War II.…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Sputnik Dbq Analysis
    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Sputnik Dbq Analysis

    October 4, 1957 is when Soviet Union [Russia] launched Sputnik 1, starting the Space Race. 10 years earlier the cold war started mainly with United States and Soviet Union. Because of that, the Americans were worried because of the technology that they could possibly use for military purposes other than exploration. The Americans were being left behind in technology. They created NASA to build rockets and satellites to compete with the Soviet Union.…

    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Sputnik
    • 857 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Essay On Sputnik

    The Soviet satellite was approximately the size of a basketball and weighed just 184 pounds (83.6 kilograms).” Then “Just as Americans started to get used to the incessant "beep ... beep . beep: ' and just as they were getting accustomed to the idea that the Russians had beaten them to the punch, they were surprised again. Americans learned that Sputnik II, launched on November 3, 1957, weighed more than a thousand pounds, and actually carried a dog (named Laika, for Sputnik its breed) to…

    • 857 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Race To Space Analysis
    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Race To Space Analysis

    Space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. This unknown area is a major interest by the large world powers. The thought of being able to control this infinite far-off territory compelled people to attempt to explore. In 1957 the Soviet Union and the United States became eager in learning about this remote abyss. The “race to space” quite clearly reflected the political, social and economic aspects if the Cold War because it was a fight for supremacy between two superpowers, both powers wanted to be the first to do everything including go to space and lastly both the Cold War and the “race to space” overall cost a great deal of money.…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    What Was The Cause Of The Sputnik Crisis
    • 1021 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What Was The Cause Of The Sputnik Crisis

    The relations seemed to be cooling for the two opposing countries in the summer of 1959, when in June, The US granted Russia permission to put on a exhibition in New York. The Russians put up an traditional Russian house that would not look out of place in their country. While it did not feature gadgets, it was Russia’s chance to brag about and show off their space technology and gloat about the launch of Sputnik in 1957. This exhibition was part of a deal that was signed in January of 1958, that consisted of the establishment of activities that exposed the peoples of the United States and the USSR to each other to get mutual cultural understanding and to cool relations. It was almost a year later, in late 1958, that the two sides came to an…

    • 1021 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Gagarin: The Space Race
    • 1881 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Gagarin: The Space Race

    In broad terms, the space race was a competition between the US and the USSR for space dominance. Also, the ultimate goal of both countries was to put a man on the moon. Two months later, the successful launch of Sputnik, the first man-made…

    • 1881 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Marxism And The Cold War
    • 536 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Marxism And The Cold War

    The Cold War was riddled with international politics and political conflict. Beginning in 1945, the Cold War lasted for approximately 45 years and ended around 1990. During this conflict there were two main contenders; the United States and the Soviet Union. Even though there was no direct campaign between the two contenders, “billions of dollars and millions of lives were lost…” ("The Cold War Erupts", (n.d.)).…

    • 536 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Apollo 11 Pros And Cons
    • 1147 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Apollo 11 Pros And Cons

    In the late 1950’s the United States was in the middle of an arms and intelligence race with the Soviet Union. Part of this intelligence race was over who had supremacy in space. The Soviet Union was the front-runner in 1957 when they launched the first man made satellite into space that orbited the Earth (Miller 16). The following year Kim Mcquaid says NASA was created to develop the United States’ non-military space effort (Mcquaid). On May 25, 1961 President John F. Kennedy set a goal for the program: “perform a crewed lunar landing and return to Earth” (Loff).…

    • 1147 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Argumentative Essay On Space Technology
    • 1227 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Argumentative Essay On Space Technology

    Humans have an indefinite desire to explore the unknown and push their boundaries to discover new frontiers. Space exploration has allowed humans to test the limits of technology and understand the place of our planet in the solar system. However, the exploration of the cosmic world still remains debatable as some believe that the resources spent on space technology could be used to solve existing problems on Earth such as poverty. Conversely, space technology is the catalyst to form other technologies and innovations that are beneficial to our society. For example, the first satellite, 'Sputnik', used to study the orbital measurements of earth had provided new knowledge to develop satellites that are used for telecommunication, navigation…

    • 1227 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2024 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings