space race Flashcards
John Foster Dulles
Secretary of State 1953-59
Anti-communist, advocated aggressive stance against communism
Advocated ‘massive retaliation’
Believed covert operations were too sensitive and shouldn’t be discussed with the National Security Council
What speech did Khrushchev deliver
Delivered the ‘Secret Speech’ in 25th of feb 1956 in which he denounced Stalins cult of personality and called for ‘peaceful co-existence’ with the west. Nevertheless, his actions precipitated both the Hungarian crisis of 1956 and the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The Speech was also known as ‘On the cult of personality and its consequences’ Beginning the process of desalinization
MAD threat
The threat of Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) created fear. This theory assumed that each superpower had enough nuclear weaponry to destroy the other. If one superpower attempted a first strike on the other, they themselves would also be destroyed.
Space race
Technologically superiority aswell as the prospect that the Moon, Mars or ‘Space’ would go red
First Space achievement by the Soviets
4th October 1957 the Soviet Union put the First man Made object into space, Sputnik was 58cm polished metal sphere that orbited the earth until 5th Jan 1958
Second Russian space success
Sputnik 2 on 3rd of November 1958 containing a dog Laika.
America Space Failure
On December 6 1957, the Vanguard Test Vehicle 3 (TV3) rose about 4 feet into the air, but the main engine lost thrust and the rocket fell back onto the pad, exploding in a huge fireball.
In a televised launch leading to US newspapers to name it ‘Kaputnik’
Significance of Kaputnik
Decreased US prestige of it being the most technologically advanced nation
Werner von Braun
German who aerospace engineer he led to developing in 1958 the Saturn series of rockets which eventually took 12 American men into space
The Arms race
USA and USSR were in a race to develop more powerful bombs with greater range and higher accuracy. By 1953 hydrogen bombs that were 7 times more destructive that what was unleashed in Hiroshima had been developed by both sides. By 1955 the US was keeping a third of its nuclear bombers ready to fly in 15 minutes
Examples of Nuclear weapons
1952- Ivy Mike- USA First Thermonuclear weapon
1955- RDS-37-USSR first USSR thermonuclear bomb test
1961- Tsar Bomba- USSR Largest thermonuclear bomb ever tested
1957 nuclear weapons
USA had a stockpile of 5543 nuclear weapons compared to USSR’s 650
NEW LOOK POLICY
The policy focused on the use of nuclear weapons and was intended as a way for the United States to meet its Cold War military obligations without putting too much strain on the country’s economy.
Suggested by John Dulles
What was the reaction of Eastern Europe to the ‘Secret speech’
When news of the speech broke out in Eastern Europe (allegedly by the help of the CIA) It caused
-Riots in Poland against the communist government
- Protests in Hungary led to the withdraw of Rakosi and his replacement to Nagy who promised free elections, restoration of farmland to private property and neutrality in the Cold War. He also declared that Hungry would leave the Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
Created in 1955 between Soviet-controlled countries in Eastern Europe promising to respond collectively if one was attacked (triggered by western Germany joining NATO)
The CIA
Truman established it as a part of the National Security Act in 1947
In the 1950s alone the CIA was involved in covert operations in Cuba, Hungary, Laos, Guatemala, Iran and North Vietnam
Allen Dulles served as director of the CIA 1953 until 1961 when JFK removed him due to the Bay of pigs Fiasco
Iron Curtain speech significance
The Iron Curtain not only symbolized the Cold War divide between capitalist and communist nations but also led to the creation of opposing alliances. Nations on the capitalist side of the curtain joined N.A.T.O. , while nations on the communist side joined the Warsaw Pact.
15th March 1946
