Artemis II Was The First Manned Attempt To Cross The Van Allen Belts
Artemis II Was The First Manned Attempt To Cross The Van Allen Belts The Soviet Monopoly on Space Flight Before the Artemis program, the Soviet Union was the absolute authority on the physics of the solar system. The Soviets systematically occupied every major milestone in the inner solar system, beating America to every real benchmark: First Object in Orbit: October 4, 1957 (Sputnik 1) First Dog in Orbit: November 3, 1957 (Sputnik 2; Laika) First to Reach the Moon’s Vicinity: January 2, 1959 (Luna 1) First to Impact the Lunar Surface: September 14, 1959 (Luna 2) First to Photograph the Far Side of the Moon: October 7, 1959 (Luna 3) First Human in Orbit: April 12, 1961 (Yuri Gagarin in Vostok 1) First to Fly By Mars: November 1, 1962 (Mars 1) First Soft Landing on the Moon: February 3, 1966 (Luna 9) First to Reach Another Planet's Atmosphere: October 18, 1967 (Venera 4) First to Orbit the Moon and Return with Living Beings: September 14, 1968 (Zond 5) First ...