Arms race and Space Race Flashcards
When was the first atomic bomb? (USA)
6 Aug 1945
When was the first atomic bomb? (USSR)
Aug 1949
When was the first hydrogen bomb? (USA)
November 1952
When was the first lithium bomb? (USSR)
August 1953
When was the Gaither Report?
7th November 1957
What was the Gaither Report?
Eisenhower’s commissioned report which investigated the state of US-Soviet nuclear capability
What were the findings of the Gaither Report?
First presented the concept of a missile gap between the two revealing that a predicted 100 to 30 lead in ICBMs in favour of the USSR
What did Eisenhower place his trust in the Gaither Report of U-2 spy plane?
U-2
How did USA use UK to strengthen nuclear capabilities?
Following the Bermuda Conference the USA stationed IRBMs in Britain
ICBM Missile gap between USSR and USA in 1960
295 for USA, 75 for USSR
3 causes of the arms race
- Growth of international tension
- Arms were viewed as necessary to safeguard interests of East and West
- USA had a monopoly in nuclear warfare from 1945 until the Soviet Union developed it’s own in 1949 - National and personal considerations
- Opportunity to raise national prestige/reputation, which became more and more important - Domestic Factors
Impact of arms race 1949 - 1963
- Nuclear weapons forced each side to think twice before taking any measure to escalate war
- If devastation caused by nuclear weapons was too horrific to contemplate except as a last resort, the importance of conventional arms remained central to military strategy
- Sides had to think before using nuclear (Mutually assured destruction)
- Heightened fear and hostility
When was Sputnik?
4th October 1957
Impact of Sputnik on Eisenhower and USA
- The USA was alarmed and was convinced the USSR had the technology to launch nuclear missiles from space and there was no defence against it
- Eisenhower was accused of allowing the Soviet Union to gain a lead
- Sputnik appeared to fundamentally undermine the effectiveness of the massive retaliation strategy
- Sputnik created a sense of urgency for the USA to develop its own space programme
How much did Eisenhower authorise for technological developments in September 1958 following Sputnik?
$1 billion
When was the first man in space? (USSR)
April 1961
How many space missions had both sides performed by 1962?
USA had launched 63 space missions compared to the USSR’s 15 missions
When was the U2 incident?
1st May 1960
What was the U2 incident?
Powers flight over USSR in a US spy plane and trying to work out USSR’s capabilities and how many weapons they were producing
Impact of the U2 incident
- The Paris meeting collapsed and there was no Test Ban Treaty
- There was no discussion about the problem of Berlin - which, ultimately, led to the Berlin Wall
When was the first US lithium bomb?
March 1954
When did the USSR test the first ICBM?
Summer 1957
What is an ICBM?
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile
- Nuclear warhead delivery system which had a range of over 5600 km and delivered nuclear weapon systems at great speed
What are SLBMs?
Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles
- Ballistic missile that can be launched by submarines from under water
When was the Strategic Air Command (SAC) set up and who headed this?
Headed by General Curtis LeMay from 1948
What was the role of the SAC?
- Organisation set up to serve as a primary defence system for the USA
- Role was to provide 24-hour readiness to respond to an external nuclear threat
- Also responsible for the deployment and management of the USA’s growing nuclear force
