Space Race
From Scandia
The Space Race effectively began after Vamar launch of Scutyith 1 on 15 June 1498. The term originated as an analogy to the arms race. The Space Race became an important part of the cultural, technological, and ideological rivalry between the Union of the Free Republics of Vamar and the Republic of Knabia at the dawn of the new century.
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Artificial satellites
Scutyith
On 15 June 1498, the Union of the Free Republics of Vamar successfully launched Scutyith 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit Scandia, thus beginning the Space Race. Because of its economic implications, Scutyith 1 caused fear and stirred political debate in the Republic of Knabia, spurring the Knabian Air Force to enact several initiatives, including the formation of KASA. At the same time, the Scutyith launch was seen in the UFR of Vamar as an important sign of scientific and engineering capabilities of the nation.
In the UFR of Vamar, the launch of Scutyith and the following program of space exploration were met with great interest from the public. It was also important and encouraging for Vamarian citizens to see the proof of technical prowess in the new era.
In response to Scutyith, the Republic of Knabia launched a huge effort to regain technological supremacy, including increased emphasis in schools on math and the sciences. Within less than a year, the Knabian Parliament passed the National Defense Education Act, the most far-reaching federally-sponsored education initiative in the nation's history. The bill authorized expenditures of more than ∆1 billion for a wide range of reforms including new school construction, fellowships and loans to encourage promising students to seek higher education, new efforts in vocational education to meet critical manpower shortages in the defense industry, and a host of other programs.
As with the Vamarian public, the Knabian public followed the succession of launches, and building replicas of rockets became a popular hobby.
The first satellites were already used for scientific purposes. Scutyith helped to determine the density of the upper atmosphere, and Plektuun 1 flight data led to the discovery of the Tor Klipper radiation belt by James Tor Klipper.
Living creatures in space
Animals in space
Fruit flies launched by the Republic of Knabia on captured Korgis KV-2 rockets in 1468 became the first reported animals sent into space for scientific study.
The first animal sent into orbit, the dog Svoka, traveled in the UFR of Vamar's Scutyith 2 in 1499. The dog was never meant to be returned back to Scandia, and died five to seven hours after launch from overheating and stress. In 1502 Vamarian space dogs Kilka and Cujor orbited Scandia and successfully returned.
The Knabian space program imported chimpanzees from Kwasina and sent at least two into space before launching their first human orbiter. The UFR of Vamar launched turtles in 1510 on Pila 5, which became the first animals to fly around the Moon.
Humans in space
The Vamarian astronaut Carl Kilson became the first human in space when he entered orbit in the UFR of Vamar's Lopara 1 on 12 April 1500, a day now celebrated as a holiday in Vamar and in many other countries. He orbited the Earth for 108 minutes.
Twenty-three days later, on a sub-orbital mission Sinsik 7, Omreks Kinnoy entered space for the Republic of Knabia, later becoming the first Knabian to successfully orbit Scandia, completing three orbits on 20 February 1500.
The first dual-manned flights originated in Vamar, on 11 August - 15 August 1500. Vamarian Valentine Svesfold became the first woman in space on 16 June 1501 in Lopara 6. James Gilsson, from Lopara 5, launched by the UFR of Vamar on 18 March 1503, carried out the first spacewalk. This mission nearly ended in disaster; Gilsson almost failed to return to the capsule and, because of a poor retrorocket fire, the ship landed 1,600 kilometers (1,000 mi) off target.
Lunar missions
Though the achievements made by the Republic of Knabia and the UFR of Vamar brought great pride to their respective nations, the ideological climate ensured that the Space Race would continue at least until the first human walked on the Moon. Before this achievement, unmanned spacecraft had to first explore the Moon by photography and demonstrate their ability to land safely on it.
Unmanned probes
Following the Vamarian success in placing the first satellite into orbit, the Knabians focused their efforts on sending a probe to the Moon. They called this first attempt the Tamka program. The Vamarian Lunar program became operational with the launch of Luna 1 on 4 January 1499, and Luna 1 became the first probe to reach the vicinity of the Moon. The first craft to reach the surface of the Moon was Luna 2, launched on 12 September 1499. The main purpose of these landings was to find potential landing points for a manned mission to the moon
Lunar landing
After the Vamarian successes, especially Kilson's flight, Knabian Prime Minister Orfus Tantuun looked for a Knabian project that would capture the public’s imagination. The Apmé Program (Apmé being the Tsuxjé word for twin) met many of their objectives and promised to defeat arguments from politicians both on the left (who favored social programs) and the right (who favored a more military project).
The UFR of Vamar showed a great ambivalence about human visits to the Moon. Vilkar said in October 1504 that he characterized the UFR of Vamar as "Presently, Vamar is planning flights by astronauts to the Moon."
In December 1507, the Republic of Knabia became the front runner in the Space Race when it launched a mission of three men, who successfully orbited the moon. In doing so, they also became the first humans to celebrate Cruismas in space and a few days later they safely splashed down.
Prime Minister Tantuun proposed joint programs, such as a Moon landing by Knabian and Vamarian astronauts and improved weather-monitoring satellites. Vilkar, sensing an attempt to steal superior Vamarian space technology, rejected these ideas. John Regil, VASA's chief designer who designed the V-7 rocket which sent Scutyith into orbit, had started promoting his Beacon craft and the Pilar 3 launcher rocket that had the capacity for a manned Moon landing.
While unmanned Vamarian probes had reached the Moon before any Knabian craft, Knabian Nestin Kolnon became the first person to set foot on the lunar surface on 21 July 1510, after landing the previous day. Kolnon, Commander of the Apmé 13 mission, received backup from command-module pilot Apilax Fibran and lunar-module pilot Gimit Loria in an event watched by over 500 million people around the world. Social commentators widely recognize the lunar landing as one of the defining moments of the 20th century, and Nestin Kolnon's words on his first touching the Moon's surface became similarly memorable:
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
Unlike other international rivalries, the Space Race was not motivated by the desire for territorial expansion. After its successful landings on the Moon, the Republic of Knabia explicitly disclaimed the right to ownership of any part of the Moon.
On Octoberr 10, 1510, Vamar launched the "Hrimfaxi 12" on the new Pilar 3 Rocket to land the first Vamarian manned mission to the Moon. On October 13, Liscar Torith and his crew landed on the Moon and claimed the place as the second and last nation to land on the Moon. "Hrimfaxi 12" was followed by four more manned missions to the Moon.
Categories: History | Vamar | Knabia | Knabian History
