Neil Armstrong: An American Life

Neil Armstrong: An American Life

August 27, 2012

The Race Against the Russians

From 1961 to 1969, the United States and the USSR were engaged in an intense battle to land the first man on the moon. Five days after Apollo 11 lifted off into space on July 16, 1969, as millions of Americans watched on TV, this country won the race.

<p>From 1961 to 1969, the United States and the USSR were engaged in an intense battle to land the first man on the moon. Five days after Apollo 11 lifted off into space on July 16, 1969, as millions of Americans watched on TV, this country won the raceprevnext

REUTERS/Handout

<p>The handy navigating device in nearly every car and Smartphone was also originally developed by the Defense Department in the 1970s to follow the exact locations of nuclear missiles and calculate their proper trajectories. Funding for the system was

10 World-Changing Inventions from Government Funding