History+of+the+United+States+Space+Program+Maria+1

=History of United States Space Program=

America's space program is the one that has the most innovative technology. But, before today, a lot of advances in the world's solar system knowledge were all thanks to NASA. After the Soviet Union launched //Sputnik,// NASA launched its first satellite, "Explorer 1". Since then, NASA has had a unique history about its roots and its future. Read along, as we 'explore' the history of America's space program.

From NACA to NASA [[image:nasa.jpg width="139" height="86"]]
America's space program began as NACA. NACA stands for National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics and was founded in 1915. After the Soviet Union launched "Sputnik", Eisenhower put NACA in charge of non-military space exploration. In 1958, a year later, Congress reorganized the NACA organization to be NASA. NASA is an acronym for National Aeronautics Space Administration. NACA researched in labs in Virginia, Ohio, and California. NASA used these labs, while also taking control of labs in Alabama, Florida, and New Mexico. NASA built an astronaut training and flight control center (Johnson Space Center) in Houston and a communications facility (Goddard Space Flight Center) in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The Space Race Continues
The United States and the Soviet Union have been in a race against time for a long time. The space race continued as both the Soviet Union and the United States both wanted to be the first country to have a man orbit Earth. On April 12, 1961 the Soviet Union sent Yuri Gogarin up in space to orbit Earth. The journey was successful. In order to measure up to the Soviet Union's success, NASA launched Alan Shepard in to space on May 5, 1961. Unfortunately, the shuttle was not able to travel high enough into space to even enter the orbit. NASA was not willing to give up. They tried again, launching John Glenn into space on February 20, 1962. Glenn orbited Earth five times.

**Moon Race**
The United States and Soviet Union were racing once again, as they tried to reach the moon. It took a great deal of research, but NASA was in its final steps. Project Apollo was going through a ground test on January 27, 1967. A fire broke out in the spacecraft and killed three people. Roger Chaffe, Gus Grissom, and Edward White were the first people to die while participating in the NASA space program. The first Apollo launched into space on October 11, 1968. It successfully orbited Earth, but did not reach the moon. Finally, after a lot of hard work, NASA successfully landed the Apollo 11 on the moon on July 20, 1969. The moon welcomed Americans Neil Armstrong and Edwin (Buzz) Aldrin.

[|Apollo 11 Moon Landing]

**SPOTLIGHT PROFILE: NEIL ARMSTRONG AND BUZZ ALDRIN**
Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin were the first people ever to walk on the moon. What happened before the moon landing? What happened after the buzz died down?

Neil Armstrong was born on August 5, 1930 in Ohio. From a very young age, Neil took an interest to flying. In 1947, Armstrong started school at Purdue University. His major was aeronautical engineering. In 1949, the Navy drafted Neil for duty. He served in the Korean War until 1952, when he returned to Purdue. Armstrong received his degree in aeronautical engineering in 1955 from Purdue. After setting foot on the moon, Armstrong resigned from the NASA space program in 1970. After resignation, he earned his master's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Southern California. He went on to teach aerospace engineering for eight years at the University of Cincinnati.

Edwin Aldrin was born on January 20, 1930 in New Jersey. His family gave him the nickname "Buzz". It stuck, and as and adult, Edwin legally changed his name to Buzz. He graduated from the US military Academy in 1951 and became an air force officer. He left for the Korean War, in 1952. After returning from the war, he became an astronaut and he became a part of NASA in 1964. After Buzz walked on the moon, he remained a part of America's space program until 1971. When he resigned, he returned to the airforce for about a year, retiring in 1972.

Why NASA?
NASA has made great leaps and strides. They have successfully accomplished such achievements as orbiting Earth to having the first man walk on the moon. NASA has had such a big effect on history because America's space program has made so many scientific advances. NASA persevered as they competed with the Soviet Union in multiple "space races". NASA hasn't always won the race, but they have completed the tasks better. When the Soviet Union orbited Earth once, NASA followed with a journey that orbited Earth five times. Why do we learn about NASA? We learn about NASA because we should learn about all the things that our space program has done and how it impacted our country.

Bibliography

Oberg, James. "National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)." World Book Online Reference Center. 2007. [Place of access. Date of access.] <[|http://www.worldbookonline.com.ezproxy.cooklib.org:2048/wb/Article?id=ar382000>.]

Tocci, Salvatore. New York: Watts Library (Franklin Watts), 2003. 9-52

www.redorbit.com/.../ nasa_1gal_logo.jpgwww.redorbit.com/.../ nasa_1gal_logo.jpg

Kozloski, Lillian D. "Aldrin, Buzz." World Book Online Reference Center. 2007. [highland middle school. Feb 12 2007.] <[|http://www.worldbookonline.com.ezproxy.cooklib.org:2048/wb/Article?id=ar700422>.]

www.spacefacts.de/.../astronauts/aldrin_buzz.jpg

www.spacefacts.de/.../armstrong_neil.jpg Kozloski, Lillian D. "Aldrin, Buzz." World Book Online Reference Center. 2007. [highland middle school. Feb 12 2007.] <[|http://www.worldbookonline.com.ezproxy.cooklib.org:2048/wb/Article?id=ar700422>.]

www.spacefacts.de/.../astronauts/aldrin_buzz.jpg

www.spacefacts.de/.../armstrong_neil.jpg

http://www.worldbookonline.com.ezproxy.cooklib.org:2048/wb/Media?id=vd000009&st=neil+armstrong