How Did The Space Race Cause The Downfall Of Soviet Communism?

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The space race was a heated battle of technological and national power between the U.S. and Russia. This went on for many years until the U.S. eventually sent the first man to the moon. The question to be asked about the space race is, did the space race cause the downfall of Soviet communism? By the mid-1950s, the U.S.-Soviet Cold War had worked its way into everyday life in both countries, fueled by the arms race and the growing threat of nuclear weapons, wide-ranging espionage and counter-espionage between the two countries, war in Korea and a clash of words and ideas carried out in the media. These tensions would continue throughout the space race, exacerbated by such events as the construction of the Berlin Wall and the outbreak of war …show more content…

"There are many explanations for the ultimate success of the U.S. in the space race, which is the dependent variable, but the most significant of these explanations can be narrowed to three independent variables. The three independent variables determining the ultimate success of the U.S. space program in comparison to the Soviet Union space program are the focuses of the space programs; the economic philosophies of the two states; and a penchant for excessive secrecy, or lack thereof, in their respective scientific communities." This quote indicates that the Soviet space program's narrow focus, economic challenges, and secrecy contributed to the US ultimately surpassing it, supporting the idea that the Soviet space race came at the expense of broader reforms. The overall dislike of government control and tyranny was forced out of people even more during this time, as the Russian people were enraged over the economic downfall caused by the overspending toward the space efforts. Soon enough people began to speak out over the issue, and new ideas erupted and Russia was engulfed in the flames of …show more content…

Occurring at the same time as the space race was the arms race between the U.S. and the USSR, because of this military spending by Russia skyrocketed. This was in response to the Regan presidency and proposals like the Strategic Defense Initiative. “Outside estimates of Soviet military spending ranged between 10 and 20 percent of GDP, and, even within the Soviet Union itself, it was difficult to produce an exact accounting because the military budget involved a variety of government ministries, each with its own competing interests”. This quote provides us with the information that the country's money was being funneled into the buildup of a military that never needed to be used at all, as the Cold War never escalated into a full scale war. The military took priority over everything else when it came to research and development, and because of this Russia's brightest minds and creators were all forced into the building of armaments and the creation of new weapons which ceased any other kind of development in Russia at the

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