Arms and Space Race
four years after the atomic bomb had been dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Soviets exploded their first atomic bomb and became a nuclear power. During the decades of the cold War both countries increased their nuclear stockpiles. they developed intercontinental missiles which could reach all corners of the world in a short time. During the 1970s each country had enough nuclear weapons to wipe out all life on earth. Later on, they agreed to stop the arms race and set a limit to the number of weapons each country had.
the Soviet Union and the USA extended their rivalry in what became known as the space race. Both superpowers wanted to demonstrate their technological superiority. in 1957, the Soviets launched the first satellite into space and in 1961 Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit earth. the space race ended in 1969 when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.