The space race officially began on October 4, 1957, at 7:28 PM Moscow Time. That was when Sputnik was launched into orbit as the first artificial satellite, and from that moment, it was on.

But when did the space race end? That is a much trickier question and there is no formal answer.

However, I think an excellent case can be made for July 17, 1975.

Learn more about the Apollo/Soyuz Test Program and the handshake that ended the space race on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices