Chris Trusik

Home Beginnings USA vs. USSR Funding Space Missions/ Technology Bibliography

Beginnings During the late 40’s, the Department of Defense pursued research on rocketry and upper atmospheric sciences as a means of becoming a technological superpower President Eisenhower approved a plan to send a satellite into orbit to research the earth on July 1, 1957, and lasted until December 31, 1958 After the satellites success, Eisenhower created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or, NASA on Oct. 1, 1958 For more information: President Eisenhower signs the NASA Act

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David “Ike” Eisenhower, born Oct. 14, 1890, was a five star general as well as our 34 th president He was the Supreme Commander of Allied European forces and is credited with the successful invasions of France and Germany Oversaw the “Space Race”, a heated competition between the U.S. and the Soviets over who would be the first into space and, later, the moon

USA vs. USSR On Oct. 4, 1957, the Russians beat us to space, launching their satellite Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite The American people had what was called a “Pearl Harbor” effect, or simply, the people were in complete shock As a direct result, the United States launched their own satellite, Explorer 1, on Jan. 31, 1958 For more information on these and other satellites: < Explorer 1 Sputnik 1 >

Explorer 1 First successful US orbital launch, Explorer 1 was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and carried the U.S.-IGY (International Geophysical Year) experiment of James A. Van Allen for the study of cosmic rays, micrometeorites, and for monitoring of the satellite's temperature. Mission Duration: 111 Days Weight: lbs Number of times orbited earth: 56,000

Sputnik 1 The first truly "scientific" satellite to be orbited by the Soviet Union; it was supposed to have been launched first in 1957, but when this spacecraft took longer than planned to be built, it was replaced by two simpler ones. This kg spacecraft was dedicated to study Earth's magnetosphere. Mission Duration: 3 months Weight: lbs Number of times orbited earth: 1,440

Funding As a direct result of the Sputnik 1 satellite, NASA absorbed itself into the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, along with its $100 million budget, 3 major research laboratories and the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory Seal of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics featuring the Wright brother’s famous first flight

National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a U.S. federal agency founded on March 3, 1915 to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958 the agency was dissolved, and its assets and personnel transferred to the newly created National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Space Missions/ Technology NASA began missions mere months after its creation and have continued since. Some examples are: Single astronaut programs to see if man can survive in space ( ) Project Gemini – two astronaut program to practice space operations ( ) Project Apollo – exploration of the moon ( )

Project Apollo The Apollo program was a NASA spaceflight endeavor that landed the first humans on Earth's moon. Conceived during the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Apollo began in earnest after US President John F. Kennedy announced his support for a manned moon landing on May 25, 1961, as part of a special address to a joint session of Congress declaring a national goal of "landing a man on the Moon" by the end of the decade. Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt standing next to a boulder at Taurus-Littrow on the Moon in December 1972 >

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