Real ISS Space Station Maniac Conspiracy Theorists Think It Is Actually Underwater !

The Real International Space Station Program brings together international flight crews, multiple launch vehicles, globally distributed launch and flight operations, training, engineering, and development facilities, communications networks, and the international scientific research community. The International Space Station (ISS) is a 460-ton, permanently crewed platform orbiting 250 miles above Earth. It took 10 years and more than 30 missions to assemble, resulting in unprecedented scientific and engineering collaboration among five space agencies representing 15 countries.Show more

Why, in some of the videos of NASA's astronauts in space, are there air bubbles that rise from their suit? The "air bubbles" seen in some videos of NASA's astronauts in space are often not actually air bubbles, but rather water droplets. These droplets can form from sweat, drinking water, or other liquids that may have escaped from the astronaut's suit or equipment. In the microgravity environment of space, these droplets can appear to move in unexpected ways, including rising up from the astronaut's suit due to surface tension and other forces. It's important to note that these droplets do not indicate the presence of air or water in space suits, as space suits are designed to keep astronauts safe in the vacuum of space.

NASA Admits Fake International Space Station A Global World Wide Satellite Hoax
- https://rumble.com/v3dm5uj-nasa-admits-fake-international-space-station-a-global-world-wide-satellite-.html

NASA Admits Its All Fake National Aeronautics and Space Administration On July 29, 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act into law, establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a civilian agency responsible for coordinating America's activities in space.

Take my answer from the point of view of a person who does greenscreen effects for a living. I’ll try to be objective even thought I have my opinion. Keep in mind the alleged glitch on the posted video is only about 5 seconds long. Here we go!

LIGHTS
One of the telltale signs of greenscreen is the discrepancies between the lights and shadows in the background and those on the green-screened subjects. Matching the light and matching the black levels is not always easy. On this video, I see no matching issues, and the subjects cast subtle shadows on the surrounding walls as expected.

GREENSCREEN vs PHYSICAL SET
Looking at that shot I don’t know why any producer would need to work with a virtual set and a greenscreen. The interior of the space station is not pretty, and you don’t see the outside. This could be shot in a set in a home basement with consumer technology. It would be flawless and easier to produce. Using a greenscreen for this shot is pointless.

THE GLITCH
I have seen many instances of videos where the compression does the same thing. The author of this YouTube video says that the only things that suffer the glitch are the very things that move, suggesting the greenscreen over a static background. Fair enough. However, the way video compression works is precisely by discarding information of pixels that don’t move. Every frame of video holds a lot of information. In order to reduce the amount of data, a video compressor like MPEG-4 will only encode the difference between successive frames. In other words, a frame will use the nonmoving parts of a previous frame and only add the data of the moving parts. The problem is, when you are streaming you rely on a steady connection and when that fails, even if slightly, you get artifacts like Macro-blocking.

Now I would like to point out the things on the video that the author forgot or didn’t care to mention.

THE MICROPHONE
It is clearly not suspended by cables and when passed from one guy to the other it moves as an object with mass but without anything pulling it down to the ground. The guy on the far right has what seems to be some kind of wrist watch attached to his belt which seems to also be gravity-free.

BODY POSITIONS
The awkward stance, specially the arms, is consistent with someone that is floating (no gravity) rather than someone who is suspended by cables. When someone is suspended by cables they still experience the gravity down-pull and the shoulders and arms sit lower. With no gravity (I know, it’s actually freefall) the shoulders feel weightless and the arms sort of levitate awkwardly. Try submerging yourself in a pool and not moving. See where your arms go.

THE VEREDICT
If this is all fake greenscreen why would NASA not produce (post produce) it flawlessly. I mean, if you want to fake reality why not retake the video without the glitches!

My guess is that the person who posted the video on YouTube has never done any greenscreen work and knows very little about video production or video compression. Certainly nothing about space and gravity. But you make an accretive video pretending you know what you are talking about and a flock of dummies run to comment and spread the word that validates their ignorance.

Evidence NASA Faked Apollo Moon Landing Hoax How They Do It Complete Video - https://rumble.com/v48btzf-evidence-nasa-faked-apollo-moon-landing-hoax-how-they-do-it-complete-video.html

Evidence NASA Faked Apollo Moon Landing Hoax and Since its founding in 1958, NASA has pushed the boundaries of scientific and technical limits to explore the unknown for all the citizens of our planet. Discover the history of our human spaceflight, science, technology, and aeronautics programs. Baron Report (1965-1966) Baron was a rank and file inspector at Kennedy from September 1965 until November 1966, when he asked for and received a leave of absence. He had made observations; had collected gossip, rumor, and critical comments from his fellow employees; and had written a set of condemnatory notes. He had detailed, but not documented, difficulties with persons, parts, equipment, and procedures. Baron had observed the faults of a large-scale organization and apparently had performed his job as a quality inspector with a vengeance. He noted poor workmanship, spacecraft contamination, discrepancies with installations, problems in the environmental control system, and many infractions of cleanliness and safety rules.

NASA Admits Faking Space Part 1 The Space Program Is Faked Yes It's A Conspiracy
- https://rumble.com/v3dqlbc-nasa-admits-faking-space-part-1-the-space-program-is-faked-yes-its-a-conspi.html

NASA Admits Faking Space Part 1 The Space Program and shows provable deception in the space program. NASA is a corrupt government organization. It gets worse. NASA was started to create the illusion of going into so-called (non-existent) "outer space". The truth is that no one or nothing has ever been to the fantasy known as "outer space".

NASA Admits Faking Space Part 2 Bonus Proof Stephen Hawking Is A Fraud Conspiracy
- https://rumble.com/v3dssxw-nasa-admits-faking-space-part-2-bonus-proof-stephen-hawking-is-a-fraud-cons.html

NASA Admits Faking Space Part 2 The Space Program and shows provable deception in the space program. NASA is a corrupt government organization. It gets worse. NASA was started to create the illusion of going into so-called (non-existent) "outer space". The truth is that no one or nothing has ever been to the fantasy known as "outer space".

Sorry Antarctica We're Closed Our Hidden Flat Earth This Area Is As Big As U.S.A.
- https://rumble.com/v3e0jrw-sorry-antarctica-were-closed-our-hidden-flat-earth-this-area-is-as-big-as-u.html

Sorry Antarctica We're Closed Our Hidden Flat Earth This Area Admiral Byrd: “An Area As Big As The United States on the Other Side of the South Pole” According most flat earthers, there’s no such thing as the continent of Antarctica. In their imagination, Antarctica is not a continent, but a long ice wall enclosing the Earth. Without having anything to prove that assumption, they look anywhere for any quote they can mine and stumbled into this quote by Admiral Byrd “Strangely enough, there is left in the world today, an area as big as the United States, that’s never been seen by a human being. And that’s beyond the pole, on the other side of the south pole from Little America.”

Space Documentary Amazing Planet Earth Mind Bogglingly Things About Universe - https://rumble.com/v3jscmg-space-documentary-amazing-planet-earth-mind-bogglingly-things-about-univers.html

Everything we were taught about the Earth, History, Science, Space, Energy and our Civilization was a lie. This mind blowing documentary will shift your perspective of the world monumentally.

Stanley Kubrick Fake Apollo 11 Moon Landing Was A Hoax By The U.S.A. Government - https://rumble.com/v2s6afk-stanley-kubrick-fake-apollo-11-moon-landing-was-a-hoax-by-the-u.s.a.-govern.html

NASA faked the historic Apollo 11 Moon landing footage with the help of Hollywood veteran director Stanley Kubrick, book author and filmmaker Jay Weidner has shockingly claimed.

Does water still feel wet in outer space? Does it float or does it fall? With a little help from our friends at NASA we will help you understand exactly how water behaves in outer space.

Here on Earth, we all live in a state of gravity. Not only us, but everything around us, including water, is being pulled towards the center of the planet by gravity. True, it is nice that our dogs don't float off into space, but when a child drops their ice cream (which is full of water, by the way) they don't have to know about gravity to be upset.

NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, Expedition 36 flight engineer, watches a water bubble float freely between him and the camera, showing his image refracted, in the Unity node of the International Space Station.

Water is a sphere in space
But, if you go far enough out in space, for instance, onto the International Space Station, gravity becomes negligible, and the laws of physics act differently than here on Earth. Just how might water act in a place of zero gravity? The photograph below of the water drop and air bubble gives you a good idea of how differently water behaves when the effects of gravity are counteracted.

Actually, on the International Space Station, there is plenty of gravity. According to NASA scientists, the pull of Earth's gravity on the space station and its occupants is substantial: about 90 percent of the force at the Earth's surface. But since the space station is continuously falling around our planet, the astronauts and objects on board are in a kind of free-fall, too, and feel nearly weightless. Water on the space station behaves as if in a zero-gravity environment.

This unique picture shows not only a water drop but also an air bubble inside of the water drop. Notice they both behave the same... according to the laws of physics in space. They both form spheres. This makes sense, as without gravity to tug downward, the forces governing the objects are all the same. So, the water drop (and air bubble) form themselves so they occupy a shape having the least amount of surface area, which is a sphere. On Earth, gravity distorts the shape, but not in space.

Consider what would happen on Earth: The air bubble, lighter than water, would race upward to burst through the surface of the droplet. In space, the air bubble doesn't rise because it is no lighter than the water around it—there's no buoyancy. The droplet doesn't fall from the leaf because there's no force to pull it off. It's stuck there by molecular adhesion.

Sticky water. No buoyancy. These are some of the factors spacefarers must take into account when they plan their space gardens. If water is sprayed onto the base of the plant will it trickle down to the roots? More likely it will stick to the stem or adhere to the material in which the plant grows. As humans spend more time and go farther out in space in the future, the physics of "space water" will need to be well understood.

The Space Station was officially given approval by President Reagan and a budget approved by the US Congress in 1984. NASA Administrator James Beggs immediately set out to find international partners who would cooperate on the program. Canadians, Japanese and many nations of the European Space Agency began to participate in the program soon after.

The Station was designed between 1984 and 1993. Elements of the Station were in construction throughout the US, Canada, Japan, and Europe beginning in the late 1980s.

In 1993, as the Station was undergoing a redesign, the Russians were invited to participate.

Agreement was made to proceed in two phases. During the first phase, NASA Space Shuttles would carry astronauts and cosmonauts to the Russian Mir Orbital Station. The US would help to modify two Russian-built modules to house US and international experiments and to establish working processes between the participating nations. During Phase 2, led by the US and Russia, all of the participating nations would contribute elements and crewmembers to a new International Space Station (ISS).

Phase 1, called NASA-Mir, took place between 1995 and 1998. Eleven Space Shuttle launches went to Mir with the last ten docking to Mir and astronauts and cosmonauts transferring between the two vehicles. Two new Russian modules, Spektr and Priroda were launched, became part of Mir, and housed dozens of US payloads and seven US astronauts.

In Phase 2, the elements of the new ISS were launched beginning in 1998.

Five partner agencies, the Canadian Space Agency, the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the State Space Corporation “Roscosmos”, operate the International Space Station, with each partner responsible for managing and controlling the hardware it provides. The station was designed from the outset to be interdependent and relies on contributions from across the partnership to function. The International Space Station (ISS) is the unique blend of unified and diversified goals among the world’s space agencies that will lead to improvements in life on Earth for all people of all nations. While the various space agency partners may emphasize different aspects of research to achieve their goals in the use of the ISS, they are unified in several important overarching goals. All of the agencies recognize the importance of leveraging the ISS as an education platform to encourage and motivate today’s youth to pursue careers in math, science, engineering, and technology (STEM): educating the children of today to be the leaders and space explorers of tomorrow. All the agencies are unified in their goals to apply knowledge gained through ISS research in human physiology, radiation, materials science, engineering, biology, fluid physics, and technology: enabling future space exploration missions.

Advancing our knowledge in the areas of human physiology, biology, and material and physical sciences and translating that knowledge to health, socioeconomic, and environmental benefits on Earth is another common goal of the agencies: returning the knowledge gained in space research for the benefit of society.

The ISS program’s greatest accomplishment is as much a human achievement as a technological one. The global partnership of space agencies exemplifies meshing of cultural differences and political intricacies to plan, coordinate, provide, and operate the complex elements of the ISS. The program also brings together international flight crews and globally distributed launch, operations, training, engineering, communications networks, and scientific research communities.

Although the primary Mission Control centers are in the US and Russia, several ancillary control centers in Canada, Japan, and Europe also have a role in managing each nation’s elements and crew members.

The intended life span of ISS has been extended several times. Since several elements are now beyond their originally intended lifespans, analyses are conducted periodically to ensure the Station is safe for continued habitation and operation. Much of the Station is modular and so as parts and systems wear out, new parts are launched to replace or augment the original. The ISS will continue to be a working laboratory and outpost in orbit until at least 2030.

DID YOU KNOW?
Construction for the ISS began in 1998. New modules were added as recently as 2021.

image of astronaut looking through a window
How it All Began
The idea of living in space was the very first step towards a space station. The first person to write about living and traveling in space was the noted renaissance astronomer Johannes Kepler in the early 1600s. He was the first to realize that planets were worlds, that there was space between the planets and he wrote that one day people would travel through space.

In the 1860s, Edward Everett Hale wrote the “Brick Moon” which was published in the Atlantic Weekly magazine. The Brick Moon had many of the characteristics of a space station; it was a man-made structure that orbited Earth and provided housing and life support for its crew while serving as a navigation aid for people on Earth.

Others, like the Russian theoretician Konstantin Tsiolkovsky were thinking about designs for space stations that could use sunlight for power and that would serve as miniature Earths, with growth of vegetation in the interior.

The first details of the engineering, design and construction of a space station were described by Herman Noordung, in 1928. He described a “wohnrad” or “living wheel“; a wheel shaped rotating space station. He reasoned that the rotation would be required to create artificial gravity for the crewmembers. He described how it would be assembled first on the ground for testing and then its individual parts launched by rocket for reassembly in orbit.

Willy Ley wrote about life in a space station in 1952. “When man first takes up residence in space, it will be within the spinning hull of a wheel-shaped space station [revolving] around the earth much as the moon does. Life will be cramped and complicated for space dwellers; they will exist under conditions comparable to those in a modem submarine…it will be a self-contained community in which all man’s needs, from air-conditioning to artificial gravity, have been supplied.” [Willy Ley and Chesley Bonestell in The Conquest of Space, Viking Press.] Their ideas went nationwide in Collier’s Magazine and on the Walt Disney television program.

The US government began to develop space station concepts in the 1950s. One of the early concepts was the US Army Project Horizon modular orbital station which would serve to house crews and refuel spacecraft on their way to a moon base. In the early 1960s, NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center (now Johnson Space Center in Houston) elaborated on the requirements for a station and they patented the concept. Concepts for the first US space station, which would later become known as Skylab, started about this time.

Almost simultaneously, the Soviet Union planned a super rocket launcher that would orbit a large space station. The rocket, designated the N-1, would also be pressed into service for the Soviet manned Moon landing program. But test launches beginning in 1969 proved unsuccessful and so the Soviets turned their attention to smaller stations which could be launched by their most powerful functioning rocket, the Proton.

Assembly
The ISS components were built in various countries around the world, with each piece performing once connected in space, a testament to the teamwork and cultural coordination.

Like a Lego set, each piece of the ISS was launched and assembled in space, using complex robotics systems and humans in spacesuits connecting fluid lines and electrical wires.

The ISS is the largest humanmade object ever to orbit Earth. ISS has a pressurized volume of approximately 900 m3 (31,000 ft3) and a mass over 400,000 kg (900,000 lbs). Actual numbers vary as logistics resupply vehicles come and go on a frequent and regular basis.

The ISS solar arrays cover an area of 2,247 m2 (24,187 ft2) and can generate 735,000 kW-hours of electrical power per year.

The ISS structure measures 109 m (358 ft) (across arrays) by 51 m (168 ft) (module length from the forward end of PMA2 to the aft end of the SM).

ISS orbits at an altitude of between 370–460 km (200–250 nmi). Its falls towards Earth continually due to atmospheric friction and requires periodic rocket firings to boost the orbit. The ISS orbital inclination is 51.6°, permitting ISS to fly over 90% of the inhabited Earth.

ISS carries a crew of between 3 and 13 depending on then number of people and passenger vehicles during handover periods, It continually hosts a crew of seven.

Building the ISS required 36 Space Shuttle assembly flights and 6 Russian Proton and Soyuz rocket launches. More launches are continuing as new modules are completed and ready to become part of the orbiting complex.

Logistics, resupply and crew exchange have been provided by a number of vehicles including the Space Shuttle, Russian Progress and Soyuz, Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV), European Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) and commercial Dragon, Cygnus and Starliner vehicles.

A hot new conspiracy theory has dropped — and this one is a faked-Moon-landing-level doozy.

This particular deranged rumor suggests that the International Space Station, which has been orbiting the Earth for well over two decades, is actually an underwater Hollywood soundstage.

Social media users have been flooding comments sections, including ones on Futurism's own Facebook page, suggesting NASA set up a massive rig to fake the orbital outpost.

"Must have been a great swim," one user commented on a recent Futurism post about a crew of tourists visiting the station.

"What a great dive," another user wrote.

Clips being passed around online purport to show the damning evidence: "air bubbles" being released by astronauts during spacewalks, or hidden wires or harnesses being worn by crew members as they float around the station.

The rest, they claim, is just greenscreen and CGI trickery.

A quick search for the terms "air bubbles" and "space" on TikTok brings up a whole host of videos, some with tens of thousands of views, suggesting that NASA was conspiring to fake astronaut footage in a pool.

A lot of these videos also make use of the hashtag "flatearth," suggesting there's considerable overlap with the persistent and idiotic conspiracy theory that the Earth is flat, not round.

Understandably, NASA wants nothing to do with these theories.

"At no time have props, green screen, wires or simulated underwater facilities substituted for actual real-time operation on the space station," Sandra Jones, a Houston-based spokesperson, told the Associated Press last month.

"None of it remotely has merit," Harvard astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell told the AP, adding that to "suggest it’s faked is just silly and ignorant."

YouTuber Dave McKeegan recently debunked the astronaut footage theorists have offered up as proof that the ISS isn't actually in space in a thorough takedown. Spoiler alert: the harnesses and wires are a figment of their imagination and can easily be explained by video compression, noisy video feeds, and artifacts.

Experts are also pointing out that these "air bubbles" are likely dust or ice particles that free themselves from the astronauts during spacewalks.

"Bubbles of gas moving through a fluid do not follow a perfectly straight line as they rise to the surface," Joshua Colwell, a planetary scientist at the University of Central Florida, told the AP.

Yet these purported bubbles "fan from a common point of origin, and they move at a constant speed and in perfectly straight lines," Colwell added.

Then there's the matter of why NASA would be doing all of this in the first place. And if space travel was faked, wouldn't they make it a little more exciting, instead of filled with boring protocols and downtime?

It's difficult to wrap one's head around the belief that the space agency, which spends about $3.1 billion a year on the space station program, would bother creating an elaborate — and uninspired-looking — soundstage.

To actually believe such a thing would require not only suspending one's belief in recorded footage — but in one's very own eyes as well.

You don't even need a telescope to spot the space station from the ground, as it circles the Earth 16 times every 24 hours, though a pair of binoculars could prove helpful. The station is the third brightest object in the sky after the Moon and Venus, thanks to its massive size, reflective quality, and proximity to the ground.

Some have argued that this kind of skepticism has deep roots in the wider crisis of trust in the government, which in the US was exacerbated by events like the Pentagon Papers or the Kennedy assassination.

With the advent of social media, these theories have found a solid new foothold online, allowing them to reach new audiences. Combine that with algorithms that have perfected new ways of accelerating their spread, it's easy to see why they persist to this day — even if that reality is frustrating.

Spacewalks
The complex assembly of space station would have been impossible without the skilled labors of spacewalking astronauts and cosmonauts. Spacewalks, or Extravehicular activity (EVA) were conducted in Earth orbit, on the Moon’s surface, and in deep space between the Earth and Moon in prior programs.

The cumulative experience of the EVAs conducted prior to the start of ISS assembly formed a solid basis on which to build the necessary spacewalking skills but during the ISS Program more spacewalks have been conducted than in all prior programs, combined. At one time ‘the wall of spacewalks‘ was seen as a formidable obstacle to assembling the ISS but spacewalks and assembly missions have proceeded almost with no hindrances.

In the two+ decades since station assembly began, more than 260 spacewalks for assembly, maintenance, and reconfiguration have been required. Spacewalks were essential to preparing the ISS to accommodate its first occupants.

Astronauts Jerry L. Ross and James H. Newman conducted the first ISS EVA on December 7, 1988, during the STS-88 mission, to connect electrical and data cables between the station’s first two modules, FGB Zarya and Node 1 Unity. Over the course of the first five shuttle assembly missions, 12 crew members conducted 10 spacewalks prior to the Expedition 1 crew taking up residence on the station. During STS-96, the second assembly mission in May 1999, Tamara E. “Tammy” Jernigan became the first woman to perform an EVA at ISS. Astronaut Edward T. “Ed” Lu and cosmonaut Yuri I. Malenchenko conducted the first U.S.-Russian EVA at station during the June 2000 STS-101 mission. The two connected electrical and data cables between FGB Zarya and the newly arrived Service Module Zvezda. In preparation for that spacewalk Russian engineers modified the Hydrolab facility at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center to accommodate the U.S. EMU spacesuits. American engineers adapted the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center to accommodate the Expedition 1 crew train using either the US EMU or Russian Orlan spacesuits.

Following the arrival of Expedition 1 crew members William M. Shepherd, Yuri P. Gidzenko and Sergei K. Krikalev aboard the space station on Nov. 2, 2000, the pace of assembly and the number of spacewalks increased significantly. Between December 2000 and April 2003, 38 astronauts and cosmonauts completed 41 EVAs, including the first staged from station itself, using an ISS airlock, rather than from the visiting Space Shuttle. On March 10, 2001, Expedition 2 astronauts James S. Voss and Susan J. Helms conducted a spacewalk during STS-102 that, at eight hours and 56 minutes, still stands as the longest EVA in history. In April 2001, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris A. Hadfield became the first Canadian to conduct a spacewalk at the orbiting laboratory during STS-100, the flight that brought the Canadarm2 robotics system to the space station. On June 8, Voss joined Expedition 2 cosmonaut Yuri V. Usachev for the first Russian segment EVA, an ‘internal’ spacewalk inside Zvezda’s Transfer Compartment to prepare it for the arrival of a new module.

The STS-104 mission in July 2001 brought the US-built Quest ‘Joint’ Airlock to the station, providing station a standalone EVA capability with accommodations for either the U.S. Extravehicular Mobility Unity (EMU) or Russian Orlan suits. Michael L. Gernhardt and James F. Reilly performed the first EVA from Quest on July 20. The Russian Pirs (Pier) module arrived at station on Sept. 17, 2001, providing the Russian segment with its own airlock capability. On Oct. 8, Expedition 3 cosmonauts Vladimir N. Dezhurov and Mikhail V. Tyurin staged the first EVA from Pirs.

Along with American and Russian crewmates, international partners continued to play a role in spacewalking, with Philippe Perrin becoming the first astronaut from France to perform a spacewalk at station during the STS-111 mission in June 2002.

Following the Space Shuttle Columbia accident, station spacewalks continued, but only from the Russian segment with the added complication that with the resident crew size was reduced to two, the pair of spacewalking crew members left no one inside to monitor its systems. Although this posed a slightly increased risk should something go wrong, these “two-person” spacewalks proved essential during the shuttle hiatus. Expedition 8 crew members Aleksandr Y. Kaleri and Mike Foale conducted the first of these EVAs on Feb. 26, 2004. Foale had prior experience with the Orlan suit, as he had completed an EVA during his long-duration stay aboard Mir in 1997. The crew had to cut the spacewalk short due to Kaleri’s suit overheating and water droplets forming inside his helmet. The crew later identified the problem as a kink in the water line in his liquid cooling garment. The incident provided a preview of a more serious problem, which would occur in an EMU during an EVA more than nine years later.

On the STS-114 shuttle Return to Flight mission, Soichi Noguchi became the first astronaut from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to conduct an EVA at station on July 30, 2005. The first ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut to perform a station spacewalk was Expedition 13 crew member Thomas A. Reiter from Germany on Aug. 3, 2006.

Although all spacewalks carry a certain amount of risk, two examples illustrate how some are riskier than others. The objectives of the STS-120 mission in October 2007 included not only the delivery of the Harmony module to station, but also the relocation of the P6 truss segment from its location atop the Z1 truss, where it had been since December 2000, to the outboard port-side truss. During the overall reconfiguration of the station’s power systems earlier in 2007, the P6’s solar arrays were rolled up. After the crew members relocated P6 to the outboard truss, they began to unfurl the two arrays. The first array opened without incident, but with the second array nearly unfurled, the astronauts noticed a tear in a small portion of the panel and immediately halted the deployment to prevent further damage. Working with the crew aboard, mission managers devised a plan to have one of the astronauts essentially suture the tear in the panel. Appropriately enough, one of the two STS-120 spacewalkers, Scott E. Parazynski, was also a physician, and he put his suturing skills to good use. Attached to a portable foot restraint, Parazynski was hoisted atop not only the station’s robotic arm, but also the shuttle’s boom normally used to inspect the shuttle orbiter’s tiles — the impromptu arrangement providing just enough reach for Parazynski to successfully repair the torn array using improvised “cufflinks.” After he secured five cufflinks to the damaged panel, crew members inside the station fully extended the array as Parazynski monitored the event.

International Cooperation
The International Space Station (ISS) Program’s greatest accomplishment is as much a human achievement as it is a technological one—how best to plan, coordinate, and monitor the varied activities of the Program’s many organizations.

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the ISS. The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.

Research and Science
The International Space Station is an unprecedented achievement in global human endeavors to build and utilize a research platform in space. Since 2000, the station evolved from an outpost into a highly capable microgravity laboratory.

In its third decade of continuous human presence, the International Space Station has a far-reaching impact as a microgravity lab hosting technology, demonstrations, and scientific investigations from a range of fields. Results are compounding and new benefits are emerging.

Expeditions
The International Space Station has been continuously inhabited for over 20 years beginning with Expedition 1 when it docked on November 2, 2000, when it was just three modules. The orbiting laboratory has expanded to the size of a football field hosting over 260 individuals from 21 countries comprising over 60 Expeditions. The orbital outpost will continue to provide advanced research benefitting humans on and off the Earth through 2030.

Commercial Space
NASA is developing a human spaceflight economy enabled by a commercial market. To achieve that goal, NASA is committed to developing a robust low Earth orbit economy and enabling both the supply side and the demand side. The low Earth orbit economy is a new and growing market of private companies providing access to, and services in, space. Customers include NASA, other government agencies, academic and research-based institutions, and other private companies.

Space Shuttle Crews
The Space Shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft, and the first spacecraft in history that can carry large satellites both to and from orbit. The Shuttle launches like a rocket, maneuvers in Earth orbit like a spacecraft and lands like an airplane. Each of the three Space Shuttle orbiters now in operation — Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour — is designed to fly at least 100 missions. So far, altogether they have flown a combined total of less than one-fourth of that.

Columbia was the first Space Shuttle orbiter to be delivered to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in March 1979. Columbia and the STS-107 crew were lost Feb. 1, 2003, during re-entry. The Orbiter Challenger was delivered to KSC in July 1982 and was destroyed in an explosion during ascent in January 1986. Discovery was delivered in November 1983. Atlantis was delivered in April 1985. Endeavour was built as a replacement following the Challenger accident and was delivered to Florida in May 1991. An early Space Shuttle Orbiter, the Enterprise, never flew in space but was used for approach and landing tests at the Dryden Flight Research Center and several launch pad studies in the late 1970s.

Commercial Crew Program
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is delivering on its goal of safe, reliable, and cost-effective human transportation to and from the International Space Station from the United States through a partnership with American private industry.

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program has worked with several American aerospace industry companies to facilitate the development of U.S. human spaceflight systems since 2010. The goal is to have safe, reliable and cost-effective access to and from the International Space Station and foster commercial access to other potential low-Earth orbit destinations.

Current Management
Joel Montalbano – International Space Station Program Manager

Dana Weigel – International Space Station Deputy
Program Manager

Dina Contella – International Space Station Program Operations Integration Manager

Melissa Gard – International Space Station Program Chief of Staff

Transition
The International Space Station is a unique laboratory that is returning enormous scientific, educational, and technological developments to benefit people on Earth and is enabling our ability to travel into deep space. The Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to extend space station operations until 2030 will enable the United States to continue to reap these benefits for the next decade while U.S. industry develops commercial destinations and markets for a thriving space economy.

As NASA looks forward to a decade of results from research and technology development aboard the International Space Station, the agency is taking steps to ensure a successful transition of operations to commercial services.

The NASA Glenn Research Center was originally established as the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory (AERL), part of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1941.

The laboratory became a national resource for innovations in aircraft engine technology, which influenced commercial and military propulsion systems. The AERL was renamed the Lewis Research Center and became part of the new National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958. In 1999, NASA Lewis was renamed the John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field.

For decades, our scientists and engineers have advanced technology in both aviation and space exploration. These innovations have given the U.S. a leading role in the aerospace industry.

Timeline
1940s - The Beginning
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) transforms the site of the National Air Races in Cleveland into a world-class Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory (AERL), which quickly makes contributions to the World War II effort.

1940 – The NACA announces on November 25 that it will build its new lab in Cleveland.
1941 – Groundbreaking ceremony for the AERL takes place on January 23.
1942 – E. Raymond Sharp officially named laboratory manager on December 1.
1943 – First research flight takes place on March 17 with a Martin B-26. AERL dedication ceremony held on May 20.
1944 – First test is performed in the Altitude Wind Tunnel with a jet engine. The Icing Research Tunnel is completed.
1945 – Lab's first supersonic wind tunnels begin operation in June. AERL undergoes major reorganization in October to focus on jet propulsion.
1946 – Post-war visitors include Dwight Eisenhower, Curtis LeMay, Frank Whittle and James Doolittle.
1948 – In honor of the late George Lewis, the lab’s name changed to NACA Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory.
1949 – 8-by-6 Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel begins operation on April 3. First sponsored rocket testing at the lab is conducted for the Navy. Abe Silverstein is appointed chief of research on August 29 and reorganizes the staff.

1950s – New Types of Propulsion
The laboratory’s research activities are reorganized to focus on high energy rocket propellants and nuclear propulsion. The launch of Sputnik in the fall of 1957 leads to the lab’s incorporation into the new NASA space agency.

1950 – New water droplet system perfected in the Icing Research Tunnel.
1951 – Initiation of transonic compressor research.
1952 – Abe Silverstein is appointed associate director. Propulsion Systems Laboratory No. 1 and 2 begins operation.
1953 – Lewis researchers receive safety award for their full-scale aircraft crash investigations.
1954 – First firing of a liquid hydrogen-oxygen engine takes place at the Rocket Lab.
1955 – Neil Armstrong begins his NASA career as a test pilot at Lewis. Silverstein co-authors report on the potential use of liquid hydrogen as a jet fuel.
1956 – The NACA breaks ground at Plum Brook for a nuclear test reactor. Dedication of the 10-by 10-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel. 10 x 10 testing of the inlet system for the world’s first supersonic bomber.
1957 – Lewis conducts first flights of a hydrogen-powered aircraft. Lewis staff discusses rocket work and space missions at the NACA’s 1957 Inspection. Lewis staff make recommendations for the NACA’s role in the space program. Rocket Engine Test Facility begins operation.
1958 – Laboratory incorporated into the new NASA space agency as the Lewis Research Center. NASA leases additional acreage at Plum Brook of new Rocket Systems Area facilities. Lewis acquires the West Area property and the Guerin House.
1959 – Launch of Big Joe capsule (assembled at Lewis) for Project Mercury. President Eisenhower approves official NASA seal designed by James Modarelli.

1960s – The Space Program
The center contributes to the space program with a series of tests for Project Mercury, an intensive study into the storage and handling of liquid hydrogen, and management of the Centaur upper-stage rocket. By the late 1960s, the center was again shifting back toward aeronautics.

1960 – Mercury 7 astronauts, including John Glenn, train in Lewis' Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility (MASTIF). Space Nuclear Propulsion Office (SNPO) created with Lewis responsible for engine technology. Retirement of original center director Raymond Sharp.
1961 – Abe Silverstein is named center director. Electric Propulsion Laboratory begins operation. Plum Brook Reactor Facility goes critical for first time.
1962 – Transfer of the Centaur upper stage rocket program to Lewis. Center hosts NASA’s largest public exhibition to date at Public Hall.
1963 – Transfer of the Agena upper stage rocket program to Lewis. Lewis manages first successful Centaur rocket launch (AC-2). NASA formally acquires Plum Brook Station from the Army.
1964 – First edition of Lewis News newsletter is issued. Space Electric Rocket Test (SERT I) conducts the first in-space ion thruster test. Stephen Papell invents magnetic fluids, leading to the creation of a ferrofluids industry. Opening of the Development Engineering Building in the North Area.
1965 – Cryogenic Tank Facility (K Site) begins operation at Plum Brook.
1966 – Atlas Centaur-8 becomes the first successful two-burn Centaur. Atlas-Centaur-10 launches the Surveyor spacecraft to the Moon. Center celebrates its 25th anniversary and hosts an Inspection for 2000 invited guests. Zero Gravity Facility begins operation.
1967 – Irving Pinkel participates in the Apollo 1 fire investigation
1968 – 9-by 15-Foot Low Speed Wind Tunnel begins operation.
1969 – Atlas Centaur rockets launch Mariner 6 and 7 flyby missions to Mars. Bruce Lundin becomes Lewis' third center director. Completion of the Space Power Facility and Space Propulsion Research Facility.

1970s – Quiet Engines and Loud Rockets
Cutbacks to traditional aerospace programs spurred the center to explore new areas of research such as renewable energy and communication satellites. The aero-propulsion work concentrated on noise and emissions reductions. The center’s most high-profile successes during the 1970s were the Titan-Centaur launches of Viking and Voyager spacecraft.

1970 – Launch of the second Space Electric Rocket Test (SERT II). Lewis performs combustion testing to support the Apollo 13 investigation.
1971 – YF-12 Blackbird inlet testing conducted in the 10-by 10-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel. NASA establishes the Aerospace Safety Research and Data Institute at Lewis.
1972 – Launch (AC-27) of Pioneer 10, the first man-made object to leave the solar system. Propulsion Systems Laboratory No. 3 and 4 begins operation.
1973 – NASA cancels its nuclear programs, resulting in layoffs of hundreds of Lewis employees. Shutdown of Plum Brook Station begins with the closure of the reactor facility. Lewis’ Wind Energy Conversion Workshop spurs wind turbine development program.1974 – First successful launch Titan-Centaur launch sends Helios 1 on mission to the sun.
1975 – Titan-Centaur launches the Viking 1 and 2 spacecraft to Mars. Dedication of the Mod-0A wind turbine at Plum Brook Station.
1976 – Launch of the Lewis-managed Communications Technology Satellite (CTS). Prop testing for the Advanced Turboprop Program begins in the 8-by-6 Wind Tunnel.
1977 – Titan-Centaur launches Voyager 1 and 2 on missions to explore the outer solar system.Cleveland Clinic begins using the Lewis Cyclotron for its Neutron Therapy Program.
1978 – John McCarthy becomes the fourth Lewis center director. Lewis activates the world’s first solar electric village in Schuchuli, Arizona. Dedication of the Lewis Visitors Information Center.
1979 – Peak of Lewis’ wind energy research efforts.

1980s – The Shuttle Era Begins
NASA Lewis goes for major roles in mainstream programs. New programs include the space station power system, the Shuttle/Centaur upper-stage vehicle, and the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS).

1980 – Dedication of the Research Analysis Center (RAC). Isidore Warshawsky becomes the first NASA employee with 50 years of service.
1981 – Center is assigned responsibility for the Shuttle-Centaur program.
1982 – Andy Stofan becomes Lewis' fifth center director. Center’s first strategic plan is issued.
1983 – Lewis makes first significant staffing increase in 20 years.
1984 – Center is assigned responsibility for the space station power system.
1985 – Lewis holds first Simulated Shuttle Program for local students.
1986 – Cancellation of the Shuttle-Centaur program. Reactivation of the Space Power Facility begins at Plum Brook.
1987 – The Icing Research Tunnel is designated an ASME Historic Engineering Landmark . John Klineberg becomes Lewis center director. NASA wins Emmy for developing the Communications Technology Satellite.
1988 – Advanced Turboprop team receives Robert J. Collier Trophy on May 13.
1989 – Space Electric Rocket Test (SERT II) is reactivated nearly 20 years after its launch. Dedication of the Power Systems Facility to support the space station program. Atlas-Centaur 68 is the last Lewis-managed commercial Centaur launch.

1990s - A New Name
The Center continues its leading aero-propulsion, space power and space propulsion work. Lewis assumes a lead role in the microgravity program as the program manager for Fluid Physics and Combustion Microgravity Research.

1990 – Larry Ross becomes Lewis center director.
1991 – Center celebrates its 50th anniversary. Dedication of new Edward R. Sharp Employee Center.
1992 – 1-by 1-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel reaches 5,000 hours of run time. Joseph Nieberding travels to Moscow to explore the use of Russian spacecraft for the space station. Dedication of the Ohio Aerospace Institute.
1993 – Center given responsibility for propulsion system for the new High Speed Research program. Lewis staff help transition Space Station Freedom into the International Space Station. STS-51 deploys the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS).
1994 – Donald Campbell is appointed center director.
1995 – Delivery of Lewis-managed Mir Cooperative Solar Array to Russian space station Mir. Lewis rolls out DC-9 aircraft modified for microgravity research.
1996 – Deployment of Lewis-managed Mir Cooperative Solar Array on Mir.
1997 – Mars Pathfinder lands on the Martian surface with Lewis experiments. Last Lewis-managed Centaur launch sends the Cassini spacecraft toward Saturn.
1998 – Launch of Deep Space I powered by Lewis' NSTAR ion thruster.
1999 – The center is renamed the John H. Glenn Research Center.

2000s – The 21st Century
The center makes key contributions to the Columbia Accident Investigation and Constellation Project. The campus also undergoes transformation with the addition of the Mission Integration Center and the removal of several historic facilities.

2000 – Dedication of the Ballistics Lab in the Materials and Structures Building. Glenn-designed solar arrays delivered to the International Space Station.
2001 – STS-107 crew visits Glenn to train on the Combustion Module-2.
2002 – Graphics and Visualization (GRUVE) Lab and Telescience Support Center facilities open.
2003 – Julian Earls becomes center director. Ballistics Lab performs impact testing for the Columbia accident investigation.
2004 – Center formally acquires the S-3 Viking aircraft.
2005 – Woodrow Whitlow becomes Glenn center director.
2006 – NASA assigns Glenn responsibility for Orion service module.
2007 – Rededication of the Space Power Facility (SPF). Launch of the NSTAR thruster-powered Dawn asteroid mission
2008 – Demolition of the Altitude Wind Tunnel commences. Assembled Ares I-X segments leave Glenn for delivery to Kennedy Space Center.
2009 – Commercial Aviation Safety Team Robert J. Collier Trophy. Glenn-designed Ares I-X Upper Stage Simulator is successfully launched.
2010 – NASA Glenn Visitor Center moves to Great Lakes Science Center. Ramon Lugo becomes center director.
2011 – Dedication of the new main gate and security building.
2012 – Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) sent to the ISS.
2013 – Jim Free becomes Glenn center director. NEXT thruster completes record-setting 5 1/2-year duration test.
2014 – Glenn dedicates new Mission Integration Center building.
2015 – The center inducts first class into the Glenn Hall of Fame.
2016 – Janet Kavandi becomes center director. Orion Crew Module acoustics testing conducted at the Space Power Facility.
2017 – Glenn celebrates its 75th anniversary.
2018 – Orion spacecraft for Artemis I is tested at the Space Power Facility Groundbreaking for the Research Support Building.
2019 – Software Defined Radio team inducted into Space Technology Hall of Fame.
2020 – Dr. Marla E. Pérez-Davis becomes center director. Plum Brook Station is renamed the Neil Armstrong Test Facility.

What was the space race? The space race was a 20th Century struggle between two nation-states, the Soviet Union (USSR) and the United States (US). The pursuit for both was the domination of space flight technologies. The competition began on 2 August 1955, when the Soviet Union responded to the US announcement of their similar intent to launch artificial satellites.

The space race has its origins in the nuclear arms race between the two nations following the Second World War. Both sides were aided by German missile technology and scientists from their missile programme. The technological advantages required for such power were seen as necessary for national security and political superiority. The space race produced groundbreaking efforts to launch artificial satellites; space probes of the Moon, Venus, and Mars, and human space voyages in low Earth orbit and lunar missions.

The space race between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) was a remarkable time in history with many far-reaching achievements in science, space exploration, and technology. This timeline shows the twenty-year competition between the two nations.

Space race timeline
2 August 1955: The USSR responds to the US announcement that they intend to launch the first artificial satellite into space with a satellite of their own.

4 October 1957: The USSR successfully launches Sputnik 1, the first Earth-orbiting satellite in history.

3 November 1957: The USSR successfully launches Sputnik 2, carrying a dog named Laika into space. They become the first nation to successfully send a living organism into orbit.

31 January 1958: The US enter the space race by launching Explorer 1, the first US satellite to reach orbit. It carried experimental equipment that led to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belt.

1 October 1958: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is created in the US, replacing the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA).

18 December 1958: The US launch SCORE, the world's first communications satellite. It captured world attention by broadcasting a pre-recorded Christmas message from US President Dwight D. Eisenhower, becoming the first broadcast of a human voice from space.

2 January 1959: The USSR launches Luna 1, known as the first "cosmic rocket" as it accidentally escaped the orbit of the Moon due to the object having too much speed. Luna 1 becomes the first human-made object to leave the orbit of the Earth and orbit the sun instead.

2 August 1959: The US launches Explorer 6, the world's first weather satellite and obtains the first pictures of Earth from space.

12 September 1959: The USSR launches Luna 2 and accomplishes its mission of creating the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the Moon.

4 October 1959: The USSR launches Luna 3 and succeeds in their mission of sending an object into orbit around the Moon and photographing the far side of the Moon.

19 August 1960: Aboard the Soviet Union's Sputnik 5, the first animals (two dogs, Belka and Strelka) and a range of plants are returned alive from space.

31 January 1961: Ham, a US chimpanzee, becomes the first hominid (or great ape) in space and the first to successfully survive the landing.

12 April 1961: The Soviet Union achieve a clear triumph in the space race. Aboard the Vostok 1, Yuri Gagarin makes a single orbit around the Earth and becomes the first man to reach space. He remained in space for one hour and forty-eight minutes before landing in Saratov Oblast, west Russia.

5 May 1961: The US achieve the first pilot-controlled journey and first American in space with Alan Shepard aboard the Mercury-Redstone 3 (or Freedom 7) spacecraft. On this flight, Shepard did not orbit Earth. He flew 116 miles high. The flight lasted about 15 minutes.

16 June 1963: Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first civilian and first woman in space. She spends almost three days in space, orbiting the Earth 48 times aboard her spacecraft, Vostok 6.

18 March 1965: Alexei Leonov leaves his spacecraft, the Voskhod 2, in a specialized spacesuit and conducts a twelve-minute spacewalk, the first of its kind.

14 July 1965: The US satellite, Mariner 4, performs the first successful voyage to the planet Mars, returning the first close-up images of the Martian surface.

1967: This year proves the most deadly of the space race for both the US and Soviet Union. In January, American astronauts Ed White, Gus Grissom, and Roger Chaffee die when a fire ignited in their Apollo 1 capsule on the launch pad. Only a few months later the Soviet cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov is also killed when the parachute on his Soyuz 1 capsule fails to open on his reentry into Earth's atmosphere.

21 December 1968: US spacecraft Apollo 8 becomes the first human-crewed spacecraft to reach the Moon, orbit it, and successfully return to Earth.

20 July 1969: Neil Armstrong and later Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin become the first men to walk on the Moon while their crewmate Michael Collins continues to orbit the Moon aboard the Apollo 11. This secured a victory for America in the space race with a televised landing witnessed around the world by 723 million people.

11 April 1970: The US Apollo 13 mission is known as the first explosion onboard a spacecraft where the crew survived.

19 April 1971: The USSR launches the first space station. Parts of this spacecraft will become core segments of the International Space Station (ISS) almost thirty years later in November 2000.

1 August 1971: David Scott, commander of the Apollo 15 mission, becomes the first person to drive on the Moon. He's also remembered for paying tribute to the Soviet Union and US astronauts who died in the advancement of space exploration. When walking on the Moon, Scott places a plaque with a list of the dead. Alongside this, he leaves a small aluminium sculpture of an astronaut in a spacesuit, created by Belgian artist Paul Van Hoeydonck.

15 July 1975: With tensions between the US and USSR softening, the first cooperative Apollo-Soyuz mission is launched. With two separate flights, the Apollo and Soyuz spacecraft dock in space and the two commanders Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov exchange the first international handshake. This act can be seen to symbolically end the space race, paving the way for future joint missions, such as the International Space Station and the Shuttle-Mir programme.

Space race facts
The first animals sent into space were fruit flies
These were carried aboard a Second World War V2 rocket on 20 February 1947. Find out more about the first animals in space

Dogs were sent into space
While the US often sent primates on test flights, the Soviet Union preferred to use dogs. They were seen to be more obedient, and Moscow stray dogs were reckoned to be more equipped to deal with the extreme conditions and potential hunger of space travel.

There is a solar powered satellite
The US Navy's Vanguard 1 was the first solar-powered satellite. Launched on 17 March 1958, it remains the oldest human-made probe in orbit. Although communication with the satellite is now lost, it will stay in space for many years to come.

Yuri Gargarin started a tradition
On the 12 April 1961, the first man in space, Yuri Gagarin asked the bus driver to stop on the route to the launchpad and urinated against the right-hand back tyre of the bus. This act has become a tradition for all astronauts travelling into space. Female astronauts bring vials of their urine to splash on the wheel.

Astronauts were nearly cosmonauts
In the 1950s an ongoing discussion began at NASA between astronauts and cosmonauts. The deputy administrator wanted to name US travellers in space as cosmonauts, the term applied to Russian spacemen. He felt that "cosmos" was more applicable to space travel than just the term used to stars (or "Astro"). However, while he made a clear point, he was outvoted by his peers.

Alan Shepard played golf on the Moon
On 2 February 1971, Alan Shepard became the first human to play golf on the Moon. After smuggling a makeshift golf club aboard his Apollo 14 lunar mission, Shepard hit two balls just before liftoff. Find out about what's been left on the Moon.

The Mercury Seven were the oldest
The Mercury Seven were the group of seven astronauts that piloted all the crewed spaceflights of the Mercury programme, occurring from May 1961 to May 1963. Of the Mercury Seven, John Glenn went on to become a US senator and on 29 October 1998 (while still a senator), he became the oldest person to fly in space at the age of 77.

Apollo 12 was struck by lightning
On 14 November 1969, Apollo 12 was sent on its lunar mission. The launch was the most distressing of the Apollo programme, as a series of lightning strikes just after liftoff temporarily disabled their power and guidance systems. On stepping onto the lunar surface five days later, Conrad joked, "Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that's a long one for me."

The last person to walk on the Moon was Eugene Cernan
Cernan was the Mission Commander of the Apollo 17 mission that occurred between 11 and 14 December 11 1972. Only twelve people (all US astronauts) had done so before, and none have done so since. He walked on the Moon with geologist and astronaut, Harrison Schmitt.

Who won the space race?
With no official measure of success, the winner of the space race is a point of controversy. Most historians agree that the space race ended on 20 July 1969 when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon for the first time. As the climax of space history and exploration, the lunar landing led to a triumph for the US.

While the US set a man on the Moon first, their success was fed by a series of pioneering achievements by the Soviet Union. The Space Race can be seen as a climactic comeback for the United States starting in 1968, rather than a decisive victory.

Following the Moon landing, the Soviet Union concentrated their efforts on building a space station. On 7 June 1971, the Soyuz 11 spacecraft successfully docked with the Salyut 1 space laboratory and completed a record 22-day stay - demonstrating that space exploration would continue.

Furthermore, in May 1972, the US and the Soviet Union negotiated an easing of hostile relations. This "thaw" in the cold war led to cooperation between the two nations on future missions, and the space race became a joint venture.

The space race and the Cold War
Following the Second World War in 1946, tensions rose between two of the victors; the Soviet Union (USSR) and the United States (US) The primary source of conflict arose from the struggle between two political beliefs of communism (USSR) and capitalism (US). This conflict became known as the Cold War.

The term cold in this context meant that there was no direct fighting between the two sides, but each sponsored and supported many conflicts across the world. The Cold War lasted until 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The space race played a significant part in the Cold War as the Americans and Soviets competed to prove their technological and intellectual superiority by becoming the first nation to put a human into space. From beginning to end, the world's attention was captivated by this contest for dominance.

How did the space race affect the world?
The space race has had a broader impact on society than just space exploration; here are some of the ways the world has changed.

Communication
The Earth is now surrounded by a network of satellites, which provide broadband communications and high-definition television, data used for weather reporting and GPS navigation and positioning. Many of these tools and systems were created and developed during the space race.

Medical
The image processing used in CAT scans and radiography were both initially developed for deep space imaging and photography. NASA's innovations into shock absorbent materials also helped create more functionally dynamic artificial limbs.

Technology
The world's first portable computer and mouse were created for space exploration and adapted for the commercial markets. Even the wireless headsets we use today originate from NASA creating hands-free equipment for astronauts and pilots. One of the classic examples is NASA's creation of the ball-point pen for writing in space. However, the Soviet Union found a cost-effective method of using a pencil.

President Kennedy space race speech
On 12 September 1962, President John F. Kennedy delivered a speech to a large crowd gathered at the Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas. The speech called for an ambitious space exploration programme that included not just missions to put astronauts on the Moon, but various other space projects such as communications and weather satellites. The quotation "We choose to go to the Moon" is remembered as the tagline from the speech. The US would succeed in this mission eight years later, but Kennedy would not be around to see it. He was assassinated two years later in Dallas, Texas on 22 November 1963.

What even started the space race?
Following the Second World War, the United States and the Soviet Union competed to see who had the best technology in space. This included events such as the first satellite to orbit Earth, the first human-crewed spacecraft and the first person to walk on the Moon. The space race was considered vital by the two nations as it showed the world which country had the superior scientific, economic and political systems.

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