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Space Race, Sputnik & the U-2 incident

Space Race, Sputnik & the U-2 incident. By: Andrew Nickerson Zach Granillo. The Space Race. The Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and United States president John F. Kennedy both wanted to prove their scientific superiority.

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Space Race, Sputnik & the U-2 incident

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  1. Space Race, Sputnik & the U-2 incident By: Andrew Nickerson Zach Granillo

  2. The Space Race • The Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and United States president John F. Kennedy both wanted to prove their scientific superiority. • Both countries believed that conquering outer space was very important. • The ultimate goal of both countries was to get to the moon first. • “No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space. And none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish." --- John F. Kennedy about sending astronauts to the moon.

  3. Launch of Satellites • On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the Sputnik I • The United States launched a satellite called Explorer I on January 31, 1958. Sputnik Explorer

  4. Sputnik I • 22.8 inches in diameter • 183.9 pounds in weight • The Sputnik took 1 hour and 38 minutes to orbit the earth. • Immediately after the launch of the Sputnik, the U.S. increased funding in schools for math and science in order to keep up with the Soviet Union.

  5. NASA • In 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was formed in the United States.

  6. People In Space • Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit the Earth in 1961 • Later, Alan Shepard, Jr. became the first American astronaut in space. • In 1962, John Glenn, Jr. became the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth. • The first woman to reach space was Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova in 1963.

  7. Yuri Gagarin Alan Shepard John Glenn Valentina Tereshkova

  8. Man On The Moon!!! • In 1969, U.S. astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins made it to the moon. • Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon and was followed by Buzz Aldrin. • By reaching the moon first, the U.S. had won the space race.

  9. U-2 Incident • On May 1, 1960 a U.S. spy plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers was flying over Russia and was shot down. • Powers’ mission was to take aerial photos of two major missile test sites in the Soviet Union. • The incident sparked a verbal battle between the Soviet Union and the U.S. This led to the collapse of the Paris Summit at the height of the Cold War.

  10. Closure • What was Sputnik and why was it important? • Describe the U-2 Incident. • Who do you think won the space race?

  11. Works Cited • http://www.nasm.si.edu/exhibitions/gal100/sputnik.html • http://www.newseum.org/cybernewseum/exhibits/dateline_moon/space.htm • http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/ • http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=7644

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