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Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit the Earth
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President Kennedy publicly congradulates the Soviets on their success. He asks his advisors if there is any place that we (the U.S.) can beat the Soviets.
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The U.S. successfully had Alan Shepard complete a sub-orbital flight.
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President Kennedy announces his intentions to have a man on the moon by the end of the decade.
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John Glenn leaves Earth in the Mercury spacecraft Friendship 7, which is lifted into space by an Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile. Glenn spent five hours in space and orbited the Earth three times.
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When John Glenn is put in orbit, it equalizes the space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
