The Space Race Quiz

Question 1

Which country launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik, in 1957?

Accepted Answer

USSR (Soviet Union)

Answer

USA

Answer

UK

Answer

Germany

Question 2

Who was the first human to travel to space?

Accepted Answer

Yuri Gagarin

Answer

Neil Armstrong

Answer

Buzz Aldrin

Answer

Alan Shepard

Question 3

Who was the first American to orbit the Earth?

Accepted Answer

John Glenn

Answer

Alan Shepard

Answer

Gus Grissom

Answer

Gordon Cooper

Question 4

Which US space programme successfully landed humans on the Moon?

Accepted Answer

Apollo

Answer

Mercury

Answer

Gemini

Answer

Skylab

Question 5

Neil Armstrong's famous words when stepping onto the Moon were: 'That's one small step for...'

Accepted Answer

'...a man, one giant leap for mankind.'

Answer

'...mankind, one giant leap for man.'

Answer

'...humanity, one giant leap for Earth.'

Answer

'...Neil Armstrong, one giant leap for America.'

Question 6

Who was the third astronaut on Apollo 11 who orbited the Moon but did not land?

Accepted Answer

Michael Collins

Answer

Buzz Aldrin

Answer

Pete Conrad

Answer

Jim Lovell

Question 7

The first dog in space was named what?

Accepted Answer

Laika

Answer

Sputnik

Answer

Belka

Answer

Strelka

Question 8

The Apollo 13 mission is famous for what?

Accepted Answer

An oxygen tank explosion that forced an emergency return to Earth

Answer

The first Moon landing

Answer

The first space walk

Answer

The first Moon buggy drive

Question 9

Who was the US President who challenged the nation to reach the Moon before the end of the decade in 1961?

Accepted Answer

John F. Kennedy

Answer

Dwight Eisenhower

Answer

Lyndon Johnson

Answer

Richard Nixon

Question 10

Who was the first woman in space?

Accepted Answer

Valentina Tereshkova

Answer

Sally Ride

Answer

Svetlana Savitskaya

Answer

Mae Jemison

Question 11

What famous rocket was used to carry Apollo missions to the Moon?

Accepted Answer

Saturn V

Answer

Titan II

Answer

Falcon 9

Answer

Atlas V

Question 12

What was the first US satellite, launched in January 1958?

Accepted Answer

Explorer 1

Answer

Vanguard 1

Answer

Sputnik 2

Answer

Pioneer 1

Question 13

What was the joint US-Soviet mission in 1975 where American and Soviet spacecraft docked?

Accepted Answer

Apollo-Soyuz

Answer

Vostok-Mercury

Answer

Shuttle-Mir

Answer

Skylab-Salyut

Question 14

Buzz Aldrin's real first name is?

Accepted Answer

Edwin

Answer

Harold

Answer

Walter

Answer

Frank

Question 15

Which space shuttle disaster occurred in 1986, shortly after launch?

Accepted Answer

Challenger

Answer

Discovery

Answer

Atlantis

Answer

Columbia

Question 16

What was 'Skylab'?

Accepted Answer

America's first space station (1973–1979)

Answer

NASA's Moon rover

Answer

The first space shuttle

Answer

A Soviet spy satellite

Question 17

How many Apollo missions successfully landed on the Moon?

Accepted Answer

6

Answer

5

Answer

7

Answer

8

Question 18

The 'Space Race' was primarily a competition between which two countries?

Accepted Answer

USA and USSR

Answer

USA and China

Answer

USSR and UK

Answer

France and USSR

Question 19

What spacecraft took the famous 'Blue Marble' photograph of Earth in 1972?

Accepted Answer

Apollo 17

Answer

Apollo 11

Answer

Voyager 1

Answer

Skylab

Question 20

Who directed the Nazi V-2 rocket programme before working for NASA on the Saturn V?

Accepted Answer

Wernher von Braun

Answer

Robert Goddard

Answer

Konstantin Tsiolkovsky

Answer

Sergei Korolev