Final answer:
Leonid Brezhnev became the general secretary of the USSR in 1964 and made space exploration a priority. The Soviet Union had a command economy controlled by the state, which led to rapid industrialization under leaders like Joseph Stalin, but was ultimately problematic. Mikhail Gorbachev attempted to reform this system in the mid-1980s.
Step-by-step explanation:
Leonid Brezhnev became the general secretary of the USSR in 1964. Under his new leadership, the USSR made space exploration programs a priority. At the time, the Soviet Union’s economic system was a command economy. In this type of economy, industry is controlled by the state.
The Soviet Union's approach to economic planning included every conceivable commodity being produced based on quotas imposed by the party bureaucracy in Moscow. This planned economy was initially aimed at rapid industrialization and to establish the USSR as a major industrial power. Joseph Stalin, who came to power after Lenin's death in 1924, created a state that sought to control every aspect of life and the economy, implementing economic plans to modernize the country. Stalin's economic policies provided full employment and growth, especially during the 1930s, contrasting to the struggles faced by Western democracies.
By mobilizing the country to work towards common goals, the USSR achieved rapid industrialization, but the strict command structure was ultimately disastrous in the long run, as it lacked the efficiency and innovation found in market economies. Despite this, the Soviet Union became a superpower, largely due to its industrial capabilities and its control over economic planning.
By the mid-1980s, the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, faced a different challenge, as the Soviet economy was faltering. Gorbachev began a dramatic restructuring of Soviet political and economic policies in an effort to revive the stagnating system.