Answer: The space race was an important time in history, for the U.S, USSR, and the rest of the world. Soon after World War II, the Soviet Union and United States began a global battle, communism against democracy. Space became a huge entity in the "war." Each side spend billions on besting each other's achievements in what later became known as the famous "Space Race."
Explanation: The Cold War was the United States capitalists, versus the Soviet communists. It wasn't an actual war, but more of a grudge, because there wasn't any real fighting going on. It began in the late 1950's, after World War II. The "war" ended after the Berlin Wall was torn down, and the USSR fell in 1991. Although they hated each other, both powers had a mutual enemy, NAZI Germany.…show more content…
In 1961, John F. Kennedy made a public claim to land a man on the moon before the end of the decade. Sputnik was credited for instigating President Kennedy's declaration. (Moskowitz) It was big deal, it was also the most popular thing at the time, and something everybody was talking about. Many U.S. citizens became worried when Sputnik I's launch was announced. None of them were willing to lose to the Soviets (The Space Race Lifts Off). In 1959, the Soviets launched Luna II, which hits the moon. It took thirty three and a half hours to land. The mission confirmed that the Moon had no magnetic field, and did not find any evidence of radiation belts their either (Bell).
Nasa was established on July 29, 1958. It was created to counter the Soviet's Sputnik (NASA created). The goal was "To reach new heights and reveal the unknown so that what we do will benefit all humankind" (Daines). NASA stands for National Aeronautics and Space Agency. With the competition rising, and all the growing support, the amount of employees quickly grew from 34,000 to 375,000. The budget also increased almost five hundred percent (Dunbar) going from eighty nine million to 5.9 billion (Space Race: Cold War Front).