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Launch Sputnik 1
Launch Sputnik 1
The launch of Sputnik 1 spurred the U.S. to launch its
own satelites and begin space explorationin earnest.
It also marked the beginning of the competition between America and the USSR. -
Sputnik 2 with Laika
Sputnik 2 with Liaka
The launch of Sputnik 2 with Laika the dog was a big
advancement in space. It proved that a living being could survive in space. This gave the USSR another big lead. -
Explorer 1
Explorer 1
Explorer 1 let the U.S. catch up a little bit on the space race.
Explorer 1 also gave the U.S. successful data from space.
Students nation wide benefited from this by excelling more
in math and science. -
First Man in Space
First Man in Space
When the USSR sent the first person in space gave them the biggest lead they had yet. The Americans were afraid of the
opening gap. When he was coming back to earth, it was a
shaky ride. There was an emergency space in the aircraft
however he did not use it and used a parachute when he was
close enought to the ground. -
First American in Space
First American in Space
The U.S. sends austruantant Alan Shepard on a 15-minute
28-second sub-orbital flight onboard Freedom 7. The Americans
are closing the gap rapidly between them and the USSR. -
Moon Walk Before the End of the Decade
Moon Walk Before the End of the Decade
President John F. Kennedy challenges NASA to have a
man walk on the moon by the end of the decade. If
he had not challenged NASA to do this they might never have had the drive to put a man on the moon and win the space race. -
First America to Orbit Earth
First American to Orbit Earth
John Glen circled the earth 3 times in 4 hours and 56
minutes. This event clued that the gap between the USSR
and the U.S. ws only a leap away from being equal. -
First Woman in Space
First Woman in Space
The Soviets launch Valentina Tereshkova on Vostok 6. She spends three days alone in space. Her spacecraft comes within three miles of Valeri Bykovsky in Vostok 5. This is first time two
spacecraft pass this close together while in orbit. -
First Space Walk
First Space Walk
Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov made the first spacewalk
in history, beating out American rival Ed Whiteon Gemini 4
by almost three months. -
First Moon Walk
a>href='http://teacher.scholastic.com/space/apollo11/moonwalk.htm' >First Moon Walk</a>
The first moon walk put the U.S. in the lean for the space race and pretty much got them the win. Neil Armstrong and Buzz
Alrin walked on the moon that day and created history. Neil
Armstorng holds the famos quote "One small step for man,
one giant leap for mankind."
