https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme en-us 2023-02-15 15:11:59 UTC 2025-10-18 15:56:12 UTC hello@padlet.com jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484988732 The Soviet Union launched the Sputnik 1 which was the first Earth-orbiting satellite ever. This was massive for spacecraft technology and engineering and it even shocked the United States. As a result, NASA was created in order to make more money, jobs, and time in the race to space. To most historians, the Sputnik 1 is what officially started the Space Race, as it saw the first artificial piece of technology in space and triggered the events in the years to follow.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:46:07 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484988732 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484990120 The Sputnik 2 is much like the Sputnik 1. It was the second spacecraft to be launched into Earth's orbit by the Soviet Union and this time it was carrying a live dog named Laika. She ended up dying during the process after orbiting around the earth four times before dying of heat exhaustion. She became the first living thing to orbit the Earth which proved to scientists that it was possible to survive in space with technology and suits. Laika provided decisive information to the Soviet Union scientists while it also motivated the US to catch up.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:47:09 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484990120 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484991434 A few months after the Soviet Union launched their satellite into orbit, the US joined them which officially started the Space Race. It signaled to the Soviet Union that the US was now interested in this race and was willing to dedicate time, resources, and money to getting to space. The Explorer 1 collected data in space for around four months and orbited Earth until 1970. Additionally, it provided information that led to the discovery of the "Van Allen radiation belt," another good win for the US in the race.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:48:12 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484991434 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484992349 After Luna 1 escaped the orbit of the moon in January of 1959, Luna 2 was launched and became the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the Moon. It was a significant win for the Soviet Union in the Space Race. They had managed to reach the Moon with one of their objects, something the US had not yet achieved. At this point the Space Race was breaking limits with every exploration that the Soviet Union and the US had achieved. 

]]> 2023-02-16 13:48:54 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484992349 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484996122 A clear win for the Soviet Union in the race came when Yuri Gagarin made a single orbit around the Earth in the Vostok 1. He became the first human to ever reach space, and the first human to experience outer space travel. His orbit lasted an hour and forty-eight minutes before he landed back in western Russia. This was huge for the Space Race, which up until this point hadn't seen a human beyond Earth.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:51:23 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484996122 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484997425 The Soviet Union might have beaten out the US with the first human in space, but only by a few weeks. NASA launched the Mercury-Redstone 3 from Florida, with Alan Shepard onboard. Alan Shepard didn't enter Earth's orbit as Gagarin did, he conducted a 15-minute flight. This made him the first American to enter space and only the second human to engage in spaceflight. It showed the world how close the Space Race actually was and how close both countries were to getting a man to the Moon.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:52:16 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484997425 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484998215 Alexei Leonov became the first person to walk in space. He was sent into space with another crew member named Pavel Belyayev. In the hopes of successfully leaving the spaceship and in his highly specialized spacesuit, he spent twelve minutes "walking" in space. This was huge for the Soviet Union as it proved to them and the US that humans could  leave their spacecraft in space and survive in the middle of space.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:52:48 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484998215 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484998736 There are a lot of dangers of space travel, this year saw the most casualties for both the US and the Soviet Union. Ed White, Gus Grissom, and Roger Chaffee were killed when a fire started in the Apollo 1 spacecraft. Later in the same year of 1967, Vladimir Komarov was killed when his parachute failed to open on his re-entry into Earth. This year of 1967 was gigantic for both countries, with their losses being felt around the whole world.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:53:11 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484998736 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484999475 After years of lots of technology and science research, humans finally reached the Moon. Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the Moon, followed later by Buzz Aldrin. The two of them walked around on the Moon's surface for around three hours. The event was on Tv around the world and watched by 723,000,000 people. It secured a definite win for the US in the Space Race after they had finally put humans on the Moon.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:53:40 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484999475 jpeters147 https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484999901 After being defeated in their race to the moon, the Soviet Union switched ideas and focused on building a Space Station instead. By 1975, the struggles had calmed down between the two nations, and commanders from both countries met on the world's first Space Station. Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov had the first space international handshake. Many see this as the representative end to the Space Race, which inspired countless movies, as it also created the way for future joint Space Missions, and the creation of the International Space Station.

]]> 2023-02-16 13:54:01 UTC https://padlet.com/jpeters147/33twrpj17p4vvlme/wish/2484999901