Chasing the Moon Season 1 Episode 1 A Place Beyond the Sky

Chasing the Moon is an American documentary television series that chronicles the history of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1960s. The show covers multiple events in the history of space exploration, including the launch of Sputnik 1 and the first manned missions to the moon. The series includes interviews with key figures in the space race, as well as archival footage from the era.

In the first episode of season one, titled "A Place Beyond the Sky," Chasing the Moon explores the early days of the space race, focusing on the years immediately following the launch of Sputnik 1. The episode examines the fear and anxiety that spread across the United States in the wake of Sputnik's launch, as Americans began to realize that the Soviet Union had taken the lead in the race to space.

To combat this growing threat, the U.S. government launched a massive effort to catch up to the Soviet Union in the fields of rocketry and space exploration. The episode takes a close look at the establishment of NASA and the development of the Saturn rocket, which would eventually be used to send astronauts to the moon.

Throughout the episode, Chasing the Moon highlights the work of key figures in the space race, including rocket scientists Wernher von Braun and Sergei Korolev, as well as astronauts like John Glenn and Alan Shepard. The show also touches on the role that race and gender played in the space race, with Black mathematician Katherine Johnson and female astronaut Sally Ride both receiving attention.

As the episode progresses, Chasing the Moon examines the triumphs and failures of the early space program, including the disastrous launch of the Vanguard rocket and the successful Mercury missions that sent astronauts into space for the first time. The episode features interviews with surviving members of the Mercury program, as well as archival footage from the era.

Overall, "A Place Beyond the Sky" sets the stage for the rest of the series, introducing viewers to the early days of the space race and showing how the United States began its ambitious journey to land a man on the moon. The episode is a must-watch for anyone interested in the history of space exploration and the incredible achievements of the human race.