Who were the two superpowers during
the Cold War?
• The United States and the USSR (The Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics)/ Russia. After the end of
World War Two, both of the states were winners
but on the same time they were building up fear
that their extraneous power would be used to
attack each-other. So during, the Cold War
everything was turned into a race and a in-direct
battle between the U.S and Russia.
MANHATTAN PROJECT
The growth of atomic weapons between
the two superpowers.
• After World War 2, the world was completely
different, the aim of the states especially the two big
superpowers had detoured. The use of the Atomic
Bomb for the first time by the U.S shocked the
Russians and completely impacted them on
developing the same atomic weapon system. The U.S
was of course leading because it had started the
system first, but later on the U.S changed course on
creating less but more powerful bombs. On the other
hand the Russians didn’t stop at all; they Produced
more than you can ever imagine, their quantity was
enormous but not their quality though.
Why was the launch of Sputnik so historically
significant toward the space race?
• Sputnik was the first artificial Earth satellite ever
launched, it was launched by the Russians during the
Cold War. Sputnik was a key event during the Space
Race because it made the United States concentrate
even more on the Space technology development. As
I said the Cold war was a measurement on who was
the best, and both of the states were trying to be the
best, so a such important event as the first artificial
satellite made the Americans think and try real hard.
Sputnik lead the space race; from the first artificial
satellite to the landing on moon. Sputnik not only
made a significant change to the Space Race but it
change the world also.
EXPLORER 1
List the achievements (firsts) of the
Superpowers involved in the Space Race.
• The first ICBM (Intercontinental ballistic missile)- ballistic
missiles with a range of 5500 km or 3400miles- was developed
by the USSR on August 1957. It went on with the release of
Sputnik by the USSR on October 1957. On November 1957 the
first animal was sent in Orbit. The first satellite released by the
Americans was Explorer 1 which was launched on January 31,
1958. On December 1958 the Americans sent the first
communications satellite. On January 2, 1959 the Russians sent
the first satellite to Solar Orbit and near the moon. Everything
was about the Satellites until USSR on 12 April 1961 launched
Vostok 1, where the first human (Yuri Gagarin) traveled into
space and also orbited the Earth. On August 1961 the first
crewed space mission that lasts for more than a day was
launched (Vostok 2).
VALENTINA TERESHKOVA
• On August 1963 the first woman on Earth
(Valentina Tereshkova) was sent to space also by
the USSR in Vostok 6 mission. On December 1965
the Americans launched the longest flight of the
decade (13 days and 18 hours). On December
1968, the U.S launched Apollo 8 mission in which
the first crewed spacecraft left the Earth orbit and
also orbited Moon. On March 1969 the U.S
launched the first crewed flight capable of landing
on the moon (Apollo 9). On July 16, 1969 the U.S
launched the first crewed landing on the moon lead
by the Astronauts: Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.
This achievement ended the Space Race with the
victory of the United States, leaving the USSR
baffled completely.
FIRST ANIMAL IN SPACE
What were the outcomes of the Space race and Arms
race between the two Cold War superpowers?
• The outcomes of the Space Race were really good, one of the best and
the fastest technological advancements ever made. The researches
conducted on satellite technology were hugely important; the
communicative satellites were invented, the weather predicting
satellites and many other inventions that facilitated the life in many
aspects. The U.S also built and now has got the world longest highways
with 47000mi highway networks. During Cold War also the President
made two decisions, one for making the Emergency broadcast system
and the other one for building NORAD( North American Aerospace
Defense Headquarters). On the other hand though the Arms race
didn’t really help the world; it has only put risk and danger throughout
us. That huge development of the nuclear weapons is now just
descended to these generations; even though now the state don’t
develop quantity, they have nuclear weapons that are thousands of
times more powerful than the ones used in Korea.
NORAD
POST COLDWAR NUCLEAR CONDITION
PRES SHIFT+ F5 to watch the GIF.