TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 The Space Race Begins 5 CHAPTER 2 Testing Spacecraft 11 CHAPTER 3 The Mercury Astronauts 17 CHAPTER 4 Into Orbit 23 PERSON OF IMPACT John Glenn 28 CHAPTER 5 Project Gemini Begins 31 FOCUS ON TECHNOLOGY The Gemini Capsule 36 CHAPTER 6 Facing New Challenges 39 CHAPTER 7 Shooting for the Moon 43 Focus on NASA and the Astronauts 46 Glossary 47 To Learn More 48 Index 48
CHAPTER 1 THE SPACE RACE BEGINS On October 4 1957 the Soviet Union launched a basketball sized object into orbit around Earth Known as Sputnik 1 this satellite was the first human made object sent into space News of the launch shocked people in the United States At the time the United States and the Soviet Union were racing to build the most nuclear weapons Each country was eager to show its dominance Sputnik 1 had several antennas that sent radio signals down to Earth
