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It cannot be said that the US definitely won the space race. A common definition of the "space race" during the 1960s was making the first moon first landing. The US is the only nation to have put a man on the moon. However, although the 'space race' was generally interpreted in the US as 'the race to put a man on the moon', this was a self invented definition. The Soviet Union had no manned moon landing program during the period of NASA's push to develop the Apollo missions. The act of getting to the moon was certainly a great achievement, but it was a program in itself, rather than part of a greater plan. Having attained the goal, the US public soon tired of the whole thing, and the moon project was abandoned.

On the other hand, Russia won the race to launch the first live creatures into space. Sputnik 5, also known as Korabl-Sputnik 2, was the second test flight of the Russian Vostok spacecraft. It was launched on 19 August 1960, and carried two dogs, Belka and Strelka, 40 mice, 2 rats and numerous plants. The spacecraft returned to earth on August 20, and all animals were recovered safely.

Russia also put the first man in space (Yuri Gagarin 1961). They put the first satellite in space (sputnik 1-1957) and they put the first space station in space (1971). Russia also performed the first space walk and had launched the first female in space. They also were the first to land a vehicle on the moon, the Luna 2. Wile the US was socncentrating its efforts on getting man to land on the moon, the Soviet Union, in cooperation with the European Space Agency, was achieving major successes in manned orbital satellites and the study of the effects of long term space missions on the cosmonauts.

(N.B. While it's mostly referred to as Russia it was officially called the Soviet Union until 1991, though Russia is recognized as the continuing legal personality of the Soviet Union.)

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13y ago
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13y ago

The us won

Or then again, it didn't. There never was a space race in which two major powers were pitted against each other to be the first to land a man on the moon. The Apollo project was concieved by the US administration as a way to overshadow their constant record as 'runner up' in the race to conquer space.

The USSR had a moon program (Luna), but they had no manned moon project during the Apollo program. Instead, they launched probes to the inner planets, worked on the development of a permanent Space Station, and studied the effects of extended periods of weightlessness on the cosmonauts themselves.

The moon landings were a tremendous achievement, but they were not part of a race. Had the US never gone to the moon, the USSR had no immediate plans to go themselves.

The Soviet space program was always about unmanned probes, which could achieve a great deal without having to devote enormous resources to looking after a human cargo. At the time, many NASA engineers argued the benefits of an unmanned program, but they were overruled for political, rather than technical reasons.

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12y ago

The soviets were the first to launch an object (the artificial satellite Sputnik) into orbit. The US had plans to orbit a spacecraft which would have weighed about 1.8 pounds (one hundredth the mass of Sputnik) but were still months away. A few months after Sputnik, still before the Americans could launch, the Russians put a dog (Laika) into orbit in a space craft that weighed about one ton.

Within a couple of years the Soviet Union orbited Yuri Gagarin, the first human being into space. The Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova was the first woman in space, and on her maiden mission spent more time up there than all the American astronauts combined up to that time.

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13y ago

The USA and the Soviet Union were in a space race in the 60's

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12y ago

to bomb America from space (so that it looked like USSR attacked them) and then declare war on USSR without the UN approval and that's how the cold war started

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12y ago

USSR also known as the soviet union did not win the space race. The United States won the space race by landing Neil Armstrong on the moon.

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10y ago

The US and USSR did compete in space by competing to attain the firsts in space exploration.

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10y ago

i pooped

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Q: Why did the us want to win the space race?
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Continue Learning about General History

Did the US or the USSR win the space race?

The United States won the space race by landing Neil Armstrong on the moon.


What race did the Soviet Union win that terrified the US?

In the late 1950s the Soviet Union appeared to be winning the Space Race. They launched the first earth satellite and put the first human, Yuri Gagarin, in space.


When did the space race happen?

The space race was when the us and the ussr tried to get the newest equipment into space. It happened between 1957 and 1975.


What was the Arms race that occurred between the US and the Soviet Union?

The SPACE RACE


What two races did the US and the Soviet Union engage-in?

The Space Race The Arms Race

Related questions

Why did the US want go to space?

They wanted to win the space race against the Soviet Union.


Did the US or the USSR win the space race?

The United States won the space race by landing Neil Armstrong on the moon.


How did the cold war influence the development and early goals of nasa?

There was a space race going on between US and Russia. The US wanted to win the space race and put a lot of money in the NASA. Main goal in 1969 was the moon, US wanted to go there first.


What year did the US enter the race to get into space?

President Kennedy entered the US into the space race in 1961.


What race did the Soviet Union win that terrified the US?

In the late 1950s the Soviet Union appeared to be winning the Space Race. They launched the first earth satellite and put the first human, Yuri Gagarin, in space.


What countries were involved in the space race?

Russia and us the United States were Involved in the space race


Why was the space program called the space race?

Because it was a "race" between the USSR and the US to reach space milestones first.


When did the space race happen?

The space race was when the us and the ussr tried to get the newest equipment into space. It happened between 1957 and 1975.


How did the cold war influence development and early goals of NASA and space flight programs?

NASA got started because the Russians launched Sputnik and were ahead of the US in space exploration. The US did not want to be left out of the space race and did not want the Soviet Union to steal a march on space exploration.


What event launch the space race between the US and Russian?

When Russia sent his fist manned mission into space, that marked the beginning of the space race between US and Russia.


What was the Arms race that occurred between the US and the Soviet Union?

The SPACE RACE


Why did the US Wanted To Win The Space Race?

to bomb America from space (so that it looked like USSR attacked them) and then declare war on USSR without the UN approval and that's how the cold war started