Documentary stories detailing America's determination to put a man on the moon ahead of Soviet Russia, beginning with how the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957 compelled the USA to join the Space Race.

In little more than six months, America's John Glenn had matched Yuri Gagarin's feat of orbiting the Earth. But it was an event back on Earth that spurred America's ambition to win the Space Race.

On 27 January 1967, the disastrous failure of Apollo 1 risked the cancellation of America's space programme altogether.

Within two years of the Apollo 1 fire, Apollo 8 became the first manned mission to escape the Earth's gravity and orbit the moon

As Nasa chooses which astronauts will crew Apollo 11, the Soviet Union announces that it intends to schedule a mission to the moon of its own to coincide with America's lunar landing.

The success of Apollo 11 suggested the beginning of a new age of exploration. Instead, the lunar landing proved to be the highpoint of manned missions into space.