Question

How did the launch of Sputnik lead to the creation of NASA?

The U.S. space agency acquired secret technology from Soviet defectors.
Desire to attract top Soviet scientists led to the development of a space program.
The Soviet satellite was a joint venture with the United States and Soviet Union.
Fear of Soviet expansion into space led to the development of the U.S. space program.

Answer 1

@Nnesha you know history right?

Answer 2

@zepdrix @zzr0ck3r @jim_thompson5910 @jabez177

Answer 3

13

Answer 4

Anything the Soviets did (in terms of military) scared people in the US. So that fear made people invest tons of money, time, energy, etc into the space program. Before Sputnik, the space program wasn't too popular. After Sputnik, space exploration got more attention.

The reason why Sputnik was so feared was because satellites could be used to help track missiles or even launch missiles. That was the thinking back then (at least I think that's what the mindset was)

Answer 5

Or maybe Sputnik was used simply as a spy satellite. I'm not so sure now

Answer 6

btw there was a space program before NASA, but it was part of the air force. They didn't use rockets. They used helium balloons

But like I said, not much attention or money was given to it, so it's not widely known

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/spacemen-balloon-innovation/

Quote from the page
`On July 28, 1934 the United States launched Project Explorer -- one of the country's first attempts at sending men into the stratosphere in a balloon`

I guess it depends on how you define "space" though

Answer 7

i dont think sputnik 'did' anything... it was just proof of concept.
and the american space program at that time was headed by german engineers!

Answer 8

actually @baru I disagree. Space at the time wasn't on the collective minds of the American people. In 1957, Sputnik launched and it was all over the news. It made people genuinely terrified. Keep in mind this is at a time when the threat of nuclear annihilation was very real. It still is real but not as bad as back then. Anyways, Sputnik launched and sparked so much fear that NASA was formed in 1958. I don't think NASA would come along if it weren't for a big threat like Sputnik.

Thankfully Sputnik didn't actually do anything, but the threat of what it could possibly do was what pushed for the creation of NASA

Answer 9

`american space program at that time was headed by german engineers!`
that sounds about right, but I'm not sure 100%

Answer 10

hmm

Answer 11

so b r D?

Answer 12

both say space program in them... @jim_thompson5910

Answer 13

ALso I have a few more...


The U.S. Congress banned trade with which of the following countries in response to the policy of apartheid?

Nicaragua
South Africa
El Salvador
Soviet Union

Answer 14

apartheid was a policy in South Africa I think. Something to do with segregation

Answer 15

@jim_thompson5910 i agree with you..
when i said sputnik did not do anything, i mean the satellite itself had no functionality other than emitting radio pulses... i was not talking about its implications on the space program.

Answer 16

oh gotcha @baru

Answer 17

@jim_thompson5910


Which of these nations held U.S. hostages during the late-1970s?

Iran
Libya
Lebanon
Afghanistan

ANy ideas?

Answer 18

i think D

Answer 19

@jim_thompson5910 @jabez177 @Nnesha

Answer 20

have you seen the movie 'argo'
starring ben aflek?