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Can I recommend "Cosmonauts: How Russia Won the Space Race" by the BBC. It's a fascinating deep dive into this, and the difference in long-term goals between t
by sambeau 4y ago
Can I recommend "Cosmonauts: How Russia Won the Space Race" by the BBC.
It's a fascinating deep dive into this, and the difference in long-term goals between the USA and the USSR. It explores how close the USSR were to getting to the moon first, the reaction of the USSR's team (some swearing, some shrugging), the grief over the loss of their chief rocket scientist, and why there was no need for a "pivot"—the long term goal had always been to populate and explore space.
The interviews are great and there is some amazing footage.
It is a testament to their long-term plan that, despite the collapse of the USSR, the Russians were—for a long time—the only country capable of putting anyone into space.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04lcxms https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04lcxms
- wolverine876 4y ago> despite the collapse of the USSR, the Russians were—for a long time—the only country capable of putting anyone into space. For a few years?
- adolph 4y agoAbout 9. > Space Shuttle which retired from service in 2011. > 30 May 2020 (crewed) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Dragon_2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Dragon_2 EDIT: Sorry, I forgot the capability of China. I mentally equated "putting anyone in space" with putting people into the ISS. With China in the picture, the Soviet-only gap would be between Skylab and Shuttle, I guess? China's first crewed mission in space on October 15, 2003, which carried Yang Liwei in orbit for 21 hours and made China the third nation to launch a human into orbit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_Manned_Space_Program https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_Manned_Space_Program
- UncleSlacky 4y agoMore like between Apollo-Soyuz and Shuttle, so about 6 years (1975-81).
- DylanSp 4y agoI'm curious what the BBC doc has to say about the Soviet lunar program; my impression (mostly from reading Asif Siddiqi's history Challenges to Apollo) is that the lack of political support and focus post-Gagarin lead to a late start on a lunar landing program, plus lack of funding and splitting resources between Korolev's N1-L3 architecture and Chelomei's programs. Between those factors, the uncertainty caused by Khrushchev's overthrow, and Korolev's death, it doesn't seem like the Soviets had much of a chance of beating the US to a lunar landing.
- mannerheim 4y agoThey tried to get Lunokhod on the Moon before Apollo 11 in '69 as a consolation prize, but the rocket blew up and they scattered polonium over much of Russia. Not sure the documentary was referring to that, though.