Space Race

he space race was a period of rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union during which the two nations competed in the exploration of space. The race was at its height in the 1950s and 1960s.

The Cold War

The space race had its origins in the Cold War, a time of mutual suspicion between the United States and the Soviet Union that began after World War II (1939-1945). The hostility resulted from the deep divide between two political systems: Soviet communism and U. S. capitalism, or free enterprise. The two nations became the world’s military super-powers, each building up huge stocks of weapons, including rockets.

In 1945, after Germany’s defeat in World War II, both the United States and the Soviet Union acquired German rock­et technology. The German V-2 rocket could fly faster than sound and reach a height of 60 miles (96 kilometers). German scientists were taken to the Soviet Union and the United States, where they worked on more advanced rockets for their adopted countries.