Steaming from the Cold War, two of the world superpowers were in a technological battle with each other. As nuclear bombs started to be developed, both the United States and Soviet Union needed an advantage such as where to launch these bombs or ways to launch them from space to their target. No nation on Earth had developed a technological device to do such a complicated task. Right as the cold war faded in the past only the future was looked upon. Beginning on October 7th 1957 we officially started the Race to Space. (Space Race Timeline) Starting with the launch of Sputnik, it was a Soviet satellite in which the Americans had no clue how to respond except panic. Americans felt like they were being spied on by the Soviets. The approach
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Luna 2 wasn’t just launched into space, it was launched to the moon, it was not only the first probe to reach the moon it was the first probe to also hit the moon. This milestone quickly debunked the myths of it being impossible to reach the moon. Soon after reaching the moon the Soviets stepped up their game and put a man in space. After a long few months of experimenting with monkeys in space they finally did what was thought to be the impossible. In April of 1961 the soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit Earth. (history) Following the Soviets launch of Yuri, America started to realize they were descending behind and it would be hard to catch up, but they stepped up to the plate and caught right back …show more content…
To beat the soviets America would have to turn it up a bit and that is exactly what they did. From 1961 to 1964, NASA’s budget skyrocketed a whopping 500 percent. NASA expanded into having over 400,000 employees and contractors(History). As they were expanding we knew America would be great again. Eventually our time, hard work, and money paid off with the launch of Apollo 8. Apollo 8 was Americas first launch towards the moon and it was an extraordinary success. America became the first country to orbit the entire moon. However, they didn’t stop there, with the Apollo project becoming more and more ground breaking they finally capitalized with Apollo 11. Apollo 11 became the most historic space project in the world. On July 16th, 1969 America launched three astronauts: Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins directly towards the moon. Following the launch, on July 20th 1969, America successfully landed on the surface of the moon. (NASA) Once landed Neil Armstrong became the first human to step foot on the moon. Before touching down on the surface, he stated “One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (history). America was said to of won the race with that one moment. Till this day, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong’s footprints remain on the surface of the moon next to the flag of the United States. On July 20th 1969 America stunned the world by becoming the first nation to land
Luna 2 wasn’t just launched into space, it was launched to the moon, it was not only the first probe to reach the moon it was the first probe to also hit the moon. This milestone quickly debunked the myths of it being impossible to reach the moon. Soon after reaching the moon the Soviets stepped up their game and put a man in space. After a long few months of experimenting with monkeys in space they finally did what was thought to be the impossible. In April of 1961 the soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit Earth. (history) Following the Soviets launch of Yuri, America started to realize they were descending behind and it would be hard to catch up, but they stepped up to the plate and caught right back …show more content…
To beat the soviets America would have to turn it up a bit and that is exactly what they did. From 1961 to 1964, NASA’s budget skyrocketed a whopping 500 percent. NASA expanded into having over 400,000 employees and contractors(History). As they were expanding we knew America would be great again. Eventually our time, hard work, and money paid off with the launch of Apollo 8. Apollo 8 was Americas first launch towards the moon and it was an extraordinary success. America became the first country to orbit the entire moon. However, they didn’t stop there, with the Apollo project becoming more and more ground breaking they finally capitalized with Apollo 11. Apollo 11 became the most historic space project in the world. On July 16th, 1969 America launched three astronauts: Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins directly towards the moon. Following the launch, on July 20th 1969, America successfully landed on the surface of the moon. (NASA) Once landed Neil Armstrong became the first human to step foot on the moon. Before touching down on the surface, he stated “One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (history). America was said to of won the race with that one moment. Till this day, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong’s footprints remain on the surface of the moon next to the flag of the United States. On July 20th 1969 America stunned the world by becoming the first nation to land