Arms race to space race

At the end of world war II, nuclear weapons had been used for war. By 1949, the USSR had successfully tested their own atom bomb. Everyone scrambled to build rockets that could launch their terror weapons at any part of the globe, especially at each other. The same rockets being built for war were used to reach into space.

Here are a few videos on specific impulse, with much clearer explanations than ours.

Specific Impulse - Easy Way to Understand Jets and Rockets

Specific Impulse - Why is it Measured In Seconds?

Understanding Specific Impulse

Here’s a site about the space race.

The Space Race: Timeline, Cold War & Facts