Space race and Apollo 11
Introduction
The space race consisted of being a competition between two great powers, the USSR and EE.UU., The USSR is called the Soviet Union officially called as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, while the US.UU. It is called to the United States, which are formed by 50 states. This competition was for wanting to reach the moon, which lasted approximately 18 years, starting in 1957 until 1975. The winner of this great competition to step on the moon first, was the US.UU., Directed in 1975 by the great Apollo XI, which aimed for a human being to walk through the moon. The origin of this competition began in 1957. In this year, the USSR launched the first satellite towards the moon called Sputnik I. This satellite was characterized by being the first one that would be orbiting the world. It was described as it was an arms confrontation between both powers, in addition to being both cultural and ideological rivalry. In turn, it occurred during the period of the Cold War, which both suffered failures and obtained successes.
Political, social and economic context
Political
During this period, there was a political instability between these two sides characterized by different ideologies. The US power.UU. It was defined by a liberal political party based by a capitalist economy of free market, individual rights and private property among other aspects. On the other hand, the USSR supported communism supported by the labor movement mainly. These great differences between both powers was a confrontation between them known as the cold war. With this cold war he was one of the main conditions that made the USA.UU. I would like to foster its acquisition before the USSR and therefore, this space race made. In this way, he wanted to demonstrate that it was a more powerful power than the USSR for its arms power.
Social
At this time we find an exhaustive advertising and propaganda in the great US power.UU. To comment and inform daily about all advances, problems or even clashes that were happening in this space competition. One of the most relevant media was television unlike other communicative media such as radios or newspapers. Various restrictions about career information occurred, so many times society was not informed 100% of all the progress that were taking place. When these restrictions occur, people made their own theories and assumptions. This meant, the creation of two sides divided into society, the side of "those of the USSR" and the side of "the Americans", although it should be noted that no violent action occurred between them.
Economic
The origin of the rockets are part of the Germans, their original models were designed in World War II, where they served as a powerful armament.From these models, both the USSR and the US.UU. They were based to carry out their rockets in addition to having the end, transporting people, so they did not make them equal. Similarly, both powers invested billions of dollars to accelerate both their investigations and the development of their rockets. This helped them to be able to get ahead of the enemy team. One of the important aspects is not only the manufacture of these rockets to reach the moon as soon as possible, but the manufacture of satellites to be able to spy on the other side and transmit information as I have mentioned previously with the cold war. In 1963, the president of the time, Kennedy was killed and not to show his purposes, the US.UU. donated a total of 5.000 million dollars to NASA since it was the American research center of the time. This meant that the investigations of this power would increase in an exponential way.
Start of the space race
The beginning of this space race began in 1955 when the USSR sent the first artificial satellite called Sputnik I to the Earth. From this moment on, EE.UU. I did not want to lose strength or power against its competitive power so it joined this space research and be able to achieve it before the USSR. This space race produced many advantages in general, since thanks to its realization even if it was a competition between both powers, much information was discovered about the space that was previously unknown. In addition to having many successes when traveling.
As great milestones we can highlight some by the USSR:
- The launch of the Sputnik I satellite
- Sputnik II launch: characterized by traveling the first animal to space.
- Score: was the first communications satellite.
- Vanguard 2: Considered the first meteorological satellite.
- Luna 2: First satellite that reached the moon.
- Vostok 1: Yuri Gargarin was the first man in space.
- Vostok 6: Valentina Tereshkova, first woman who went to space.
- Vosjod 2: Alekséi Leónov, first space walk.
- Venera 3: It was the first probe to reach another planet, Venus.
- Apollo 8: The first manned mission in lunar orbit.
- Apollo 11: Neil Amstrong, first man on the moon.
- Mariner 9: The first satellite orbiting around another planet, Mars.
- Apollo-Soyuz: the first joint project between the USA.UU. and u.R.S.S.
However, not everything were positive and beneficial news, in these test periods, there were many accidents which ended the life of many astronauts.We can highlight some casualties such as: Laika (Sputnik II), Apollo I, Valentin Bondarenko, Soyuz 1 and 11, Challenger space ferry, among many others.
The trip to the moon
NASA, characterized by being the US space research base.UU., He was in charge of designing, building and sending Apollo Xi to space, to later reach the moon. The crew that were in command in Apollo XI (Neil Amstrong, Edwin, Aldrin. J., among others) were the protagonists for touching the moon and placing the US flag.UU.However, the trip was not easy. As I mentioned before, many astronauts in the test phases, died or were seriously injured by some failure in the system that did not foresee in time. So the mission that the Apollo XI ship had, had to take it with great caution because if not, the consequences would be harmful and even becoming mortal. Next, I will comment on the process that was carried out with Apollo XI to travel to the Moon:
- The first thing he did was the take -off of the rocket from Cabo Cañaveral (Florida). Thanks to the force and promotion of the engines of Saturn V, it is like ascended to the atmosphere of the Earth.
- This rocket was orbiting around the earth for more than 3 days.
- The rocket leaves the terrestrial orbit and heads towards the moon, where the saturn V motor is still maintained.
- Once the Apollo XI ship approached the lunar orbit, the Motor Saturn V was completely separated from the rocket, thus leaving the command module and the lunar module.
- Get into the lunar orbit the ship Apollo XI.
- Then, both the command module and the lunar module separate, leaving the command module in the orbit.
- Once the expedition has been completed, the lunar module stays in the orbit of the moon in the opposite direction to the control module to get together again.
- When both modules come together, they move away from the orbit of the moon and then the lunar module is discarded.
- Subsequently, the control module is separated. Thus leaving a capsule with the crew of the Apollo XI ship.
- Then, they reach the orbit of the earth.
- Finally, they land in the Pacific Ocean where they are rescued.
The end of the space race
In 1969, the Apollo XI ship managed to land on the moon, the great mission was achieved. The first man who stepped on the moon was Neil Amstrong and from that moment, he took the inevitable victory for the great power of the USA.UU. And the defeat towards the USSR. However, the side that supported and defended the USSR proclaimed that this power should have been winner because he did many more previous evidence than the US.UU. as was the first Sputnik I satellite and being Yuri Garain, the first human being that went to space. For this reason, until 1975, the indefinite victory was not decided because although it came and reached the goal of reaching the EE Moon.UU., The USSR had also greatly contributed to achieve it thanks to its milestones and exploits in this space race. Although the decision was finally made that was an aid between both sides for which the two powers benefited, the truth is that it is taken to the USA.UU. As true victors.
Conclusions
In my opinion, this competition served much more for the outside investigation of the planet, that is, of the great space and not to demonstrate who is more powerful.It is funny to think that two superpowers that were in dispute in the middle of a cold period (worth the redundancy) have helped the world more than a moral confrontation.The way of seeing this trip to the moon I consider it as a great historical fact, which teaches us how much we need to know and travel everything that surrounds our planet. In addition, to see everything they were doing for the simple fact of achieving victory and being honored that power for such historical fact instead of joining both forces where they could have achieved much more and surely faster. Although sadly there were many casualties by the two sides, it is worth highlighting the illusion of approximately 500 million viewers who were seeing how the first man arrived at the moon, or even the same man when he touched with his own feet an unknown territory asIt was the moon. Armstrong, or rather the first man in the world played a floor that was not his planet.
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