Financial History 25th Anniversary Special Edition (104, Fall 2012) | Page 23

By Peter Kline

Left (top): Astronaut Buzz Aldrin stands beside an
American flag on the moon, 1969. Left (bottom):
Illustration celebrating the launch of Sputnik I
and II, 1957.

rocket and the Apollo program’s Command Module. Members of the Grumman team that designed the Apollo Lunar
Lander are still venerated in the scientific
community for their achievements.
The successful launch of the first manmade satellite, Sputnik I, by the Soviet
Union on Friday, October 4, 1957 sparked
the Space Race by creating the widespread
perception that the US had fallen behind
the Soviets both technologically and militarily. The nation’s star struck and fearful
response proved a pivotal one in American
history because it led directly to greatlyincreased federal government involvement
in higher education and scientific research
and development. It also provided the
political cover needed to fund direct
human exploration of the lunar surface.
Sputnik did not encourage sky high
confidence in American industry. This was
reflected in the stock market at large when
on Monday, October 7, 182 companies
posted record lows while no companies

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