Space Exploration Milestones · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

The Race to Space

Science · Space Exploration · ages 9-11
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. Who was the first person to travel into space?

    • Neil Armstrong
    • Yuri Gagarin
    • Buzz Aldrin

  2. What was Sputnik?

    • The first person in space
    • The first satellite in space
    • The first Moon landing rocket

  3. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin both walked on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission.

    Circle one:   True   False

  4. Sputnik launched in 1957. The Apollo 11 Moon landing happened in 1969. How many years passed between them?

    Answer: ______________

  5. Sputnik launched in 1957. What year did Yuri Gagarin make his famous spaceflight?

    • 1957
    • 1961
    • 1969

  6. Which current programme is working to send astronauts back to the Moon?

    • Artemis
    • Sputnik
    • Apollo

  7. Sputnik's launch, Gagarin's flight, and Apollo 11 all happened during the Space Race. Which of these is different because it is happening today?

    • Sputnik's launch
    • Gagarin's flight
    • The Artemis programme

  8. A classmate says the International Space Station was the first thing humans ever put in space. What is the mistake?

    • Sputnik went up first, decades before the ISS
    • The ISS actually came before Sputnik
    • There is no mistake
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

The Race to Space W1-mt_H9RAGGiHBL-s1

  1. Yuri Gagarin · Yuri Gagarin flew into space in 1961. Armstrong and Aldrin walked on the Moon later, in 1969.
  2. The first satellite in space · Sputnik was a small satellite, not a person or a Moon rocket. It launched in 1957.
  3. True · Both astronauts walked on the Moon in 1969, while Michael Collins orbited above.
  4. 12 · 1969 minus 1957 is 12 years.
  5. 1961 · Gagarin flew four years after Sputnik, in 1961. 1969 was the year of the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
  6. Artemis · Artemis is NASA's programme running today. Sputnik and Apollo were part of the earlier Space Race.
  7. The Artemis programme · Artemis is a current mission. Sputnik and Gagarin's flight both happened during the Space Race, decades ago.
  8. Sputnik went up first, decades before the ISS · Sputnik launched in 1957. The ISS did not start until 1998, over 40 years later.
Worksheet · LightMySky