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Historical calendar/ What happened on September 14?

2023-09-14 09:32:00, Blog CNA

1959 - The Soviets land their first space probe on the Moon

A Soviet probe managed to land on the surface of the Moon, becoming the first man-made object sent from Earth. That momentous event gave the Soviets a short-lived advantage in the "space race" and further fueled the United States' efforts to develop its own space program.

Two years ago, the Soviets shocked the US by becoming the first country to launch a satellite into Earth orbit. The success of Sputnik scared many Americans, who believed that the Soviets would soon develop a new type of weapon that could be fired from space.

Of course, American officials were most concerned, since the success of "Sputnik" was a direct criticism of American claims of technological and scientific superiority over the communist regime in the Soviet Union. And in fact, that event was a major propaganda victory for the Soviets, giving them the advantage of drawing less developed countries into their orbit through promises of economic and technological aid.

The United States responded by accelerating its space program. And just a few months after the launch of "Sputnik", an American satellite was launched into orbit. But in September 1959, the Soviets upped the ante when they announced that a probe bearing the flag of the Soviet Union had landed on the surface of the Moon.

From Washington there was a formal congratulations to the Soviet scientists who managed the operation. But at the same time, the United States warned the Soviet Union that sending the Russian flag to the Moon did not give the Soviets territorial rights over the celestial body closest to Earth.

Historical calendar/ What happened on September 14?

Vice President Richard Nixon assured Americans that "the United States is far ahead" in the space race. In 1960, presidential candidate John F. Kennedy made it one of the central themes of his campaign. After winning the election, Kennedy significantly increased spending on the space program and vowed that America would send a man to the moon by the end of that decade. And in 1969, American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon.

Other important events:

1321 - The great Italian writer Dante Alighieri, the writer of the world masterpiece "Divine Comedy", dies.

1638 - John Harvard, founder of the most famous university in the world today, dies.

1812 - A week after achieving a bloody victory at the Battle of Borodino, Napoleon Bonaparte's large army enters the city of Moscow. The city was deserted, as the Russians had left to the east.

1911 - Russian Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin is mortally wounded during an assassination attempt at the Kiev Opera House.

1960 - Iraq, Iran, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia form OPEC.

1979 - Afghan President Nur Muhammed Taraki is killed during a coup./ Adapted from CNA