The 1960s were full of questions, and one of the biggest questions facing the world was about the Space Race: the United States would they defeat their communist enemy, the Soviet Union? The Space Race was a series of events that helped symbolize and determine in the eyes of the world which form of government was better, communism (the Soviets) or democracy (the United States)? At the start of the race, the Soviets were in the lead, and it didn't look good for America. Then, the United States stepped up its pace and spent more than eight billion dollars to finance space studies. This period made many scientists and astronauts heroes in the eyes of Americans. The space race was a combination of determination, intelligence, space projects, and American pride, all used to achieve our exploration goals and surpass the Soviets. At the start of the race, the USSR enjoyed great success. In 1957, the Soviets launched Sputnik, which triggered the start of the space race (John F. Kennedy). The United States began scrambling to try to catch up with the Soviets. However, soon after, the Soviet Union achieved another huge success. They sent the first man into orbit around the Earth (John F. Kennedy). In 1961, Yuri Gagarin of the USSR became the first human to orbit the Earth (John F. Kennedy). The United States still hasn't succeeded and is starting to look weak. After that, America got serious. On May 25, 1961, President Kennedy asked Congress for approximately eight billion dollars to develop the space program over the next five years (John F. Kennedy). The President said, “This nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before the end of the decade, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth” (John F. Kennedy). The American...... middle of paper ...until you succeed. Works Cited Dunbar, Brian. Apollo 13. May 14, 2014. Dunbars, Brian. nd.Garber, Stephen J. The Friendship Mission 7. February 22, 2010. April 21, 2014. History.com - A&E Television Networks. Space race. 2014. April 21, 2014. John F. Kennedy - Presidential Library and Museum. Space program. 2014. April 16, 2014. National Air and Space Museum. Apollo 11 (AS-506). 2014. Williams, Dr. David R. The Apollo Program. September 16, 2013. April 21 2014 .