Beginning in 1955, the Space Race was a technological “race” between the United States and the USSR, the primary goal of which was to establish a leader in space flight. Rivals believed that the technology gained from spaceflight was necessary for national security and research potential, as well as demonstrating the technological superiority of each ideology. Early efforts included launching probes and satellites to Mars, Venus, the Moon, and the space race also began with manned spaceflight into low Earth orbit. The space race officially began on August 2, 1955 when the USSR declared that it intended to launch its own probe 4 days later in response to the United States' announcement to launch an unmanned satellite into space for the International Geophysical Year. The Soviets quickly took the lead with the launch of Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957. The most popular event of the space race was the Apollo 11 moon landing. In April 1972, tensions calmed thanks to a cooperative project agreed upon Apollo-Soyuz, which paved the way for an in-orbit meeting between American astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts, and further cooperation between the USSR and the United States. Let's start a little earlier and get a more detailed view. The roots of the space race date back to the early 1930s, shortly before Nazi Germany came to power. In these years, German scientists experimented with liquid propellant rockets, aspiring to reach the limits of space. This technology was realized at the end of World War II, when Germany built the first ballistic missile. Lieutenant Colonel Karl, head of the German Munitions and Ballistics Department, formed a team of scientists and engineers to transform rockets into a form of artillery in order to circumvent the Versailles Treaty's ban on using paper... half the length. .....would strive to achieve the goal, before the end of this decade, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth." Some were surprised when he announced his support for NASA, because of the Kennedy's record of criticizing the US space program during his space candidacy was supported by his claim that a Moon landing would be beneficial to national security and would concentrate national resources elsewhere verbalized in his famous speech "We choose to go to the Moon", at the Rice University stadium. The place where he gave the speech would soon be very close to the Johnson Space Center. Years later, after a multitude of tests and the fire of the 'Apollo 1, NASA began test launches of the famous Saturn V rocket. Other spacecraft tested included the Apollo 4 and 6 launch vehicles and the Apollo lunar module 5.