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Robert H. Goddard starts work on solid-fuel rockets (USA)
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Robert H. Goddard starts work on liquid-fuel rockets (USA)
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Period: to
Vladimir Lenin (USSR Leader)
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Period: to
Joseph Stalin (USSR Leader)
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Air Force starts ICBM research (USA)
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White Sands Rocket taking photos from space is launched (USA)
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Korolev designs R-1 Rocket (USSR)
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WAC Corporal-V2 is first rocket launched with multiple stages (USA)
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R-7 development begins (USSR)
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Period: to
Dwight D. Eisenhower (USA President)
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Period: to
Nikita Khrushchev (USSR Leader)
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US to launch satellite for International Geophysical Year (USA)
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USSR to launch satellite "in the near future" (USSR)
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R-7 becomes world's first ICBM (USSR)
R-7 had 18/27 successful launches -
Atlas-A becomes America's first ICBM (USA)
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Sputnik 1 launched (USSR)
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Project Vanguard fails on American live TV (USA)
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Period: to
Luna 1 fails three times, misses moon once, then fails again (USSR)
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Explorer 1 launched (USA)
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Ranger programme starts in response to Luna programme (USA)
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Period: to
John F. Kennedy (USA President)
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Vostok 1 brings Gagarin to space (USSR)
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Ranger 7 lands on moon successfully after many attempts with varying degrees of success (USA)