Space Race Flashcards
When was Sputnik launched and what was the US response?
October 4 1957 – Sputnik is launched to space at 10:28 pm. It was less than 200 pounds in weight and celebrations began when the first beep sounds indicated its first orbit was complete. On November 3 1957, Laika was launched on Sputnik 2 to space.
US response – On December 6th, 1957, Project Vanguard was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, but exploded within a few seconds, and the Soviet delegate at the UN offered the US technological help for backwards nations. On January 31 1958, Juno I was launched at Cape Canaveral and could measure cosmic ray/radiation levels, temperature inside the aircraft, and collision frequency.
When was manual control first expressed, and who was the first woman to space?
On August 6th, 1961, Gherman Titov exercised manual control of Vostok 2, and Vostok 3 and 4 entered orbit on August 11 and August 12, within distance for radio communication. Vostok 4 spent nearly 4 days in space. Valentina Tereshkova was the first woman to enter space on Vostok 6.
What program did Kennedy push forward?
On September 20 1963, Kennedy suggested a joint US-USSR program to get the first man on the moon. Khrushchev was poised to accept by Kennedy’s assassination due to cost benefits but didn’t trust Lyndon Jonhson. On March 18th 1965, a week before the Gemini project, Voskhod 2 was launched, a two-astronaut mission which allowed spacewalks alongside a pressurised cabin.
When was orbit first manually changed in flight? When was NASA made?
On Gemini 3, March 1965, astronauts were able to manually change the orbit for the first time. In July 29 1958 the National Aeronautics and Space Act established NASA to counter the USSR’s space lead.
When did Yugi Gagarin get to space and what was the effect?
Yugi Gagarin: on 12 April 1961, he was the first cosmonaut to enter orbit on Vostok 1, and Cosmonautics Day was named after him. Alan Shephard on May 5 1961 became the first American in space and was able to manually control his orbit on Freedom 7. Kennedy, after Gagarin’s flight, asked for Congressional support on his Special Message on Urgent National Needs, expressing urgency to get a man on the moon. He made a speech at Houston, Texas, rallying support with his ‘we choose to go to the moon’ speech.
Who was John Glenn?
John Glenn: On February 20 1962, he was the first American to orbit Earth and received a NASA service medal by Kennedy.
What was the Outer Space Treaty?
Outer Space Treaty of 1967 – Signed in January 1967, banned countries from placing weapons of mass destruction in Earth orbit, on the moon, or any other celestial body, and limited use of the moon and celestial bodies to peaceful purposes.
What struggles did both sides face?
January 27 1967 – fire in spacecraft cabin for crew of first manned Apollo mission killed them, they were unable to escape through the door hatch. In the USSR, astronaut Komarov was killed in Soyuz 2 which lacked electrical power and had a malfunctioning attitude control system, all due to pressure to celebrate Lenin’s birthday. The USSR also lost N-1, which exploded on July 3 1969, preventing a manned mission to the moon. On July 21, Neil Armstrong on the Apollo 11 mission became the first man to reach the moon. 1/5 of the population witnessed it.
