TIM MAGUIRE

Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev speaking at the UN Assembly in 1960.

President John F. Kennedy addresses the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 20, 1963. Kennedy spoke for what
would be his last address to that body.

An optimistic and upbeat President John F. Kennedy suggests that the
Soviet Union and the United States cooperate on a mission to mount an
expedition to the moon. The proposal caught both the Soviets and many
Americans off guard.

In 1961, shortly after his election as president, John F. Kennedy announced
that he was determined to win the “space race” with the Soviets. Since 1957,
when the Soviet Union sent a small satellite–Sputnik–into orbit around the
earth, Russian and and American scientists had been competing to see who
could make the next breakthrough in space travel.

President Kennedy closed his speech by urging, “Let us do the big things together.”

“An army of Romanian civilians, men and women, both young and
old (above) dig anti-tank ditches in a border area, on June 22, 1944,
in readiness to repel Soviet armies.” (AP)   

On August 22, 1944, Soviet forces break through to Jassy, in northeastern 
Romania, convincing Romania’s king to sign an armistice with the Allies  
and concede control of his country to the USSR.

 
Soviet tanks occupy Bucharest.

  
           
            The Romanian Communist Party

      
CAMILLE
BOHANNON

On this day in 1977, Voyager 2 was launched by NASA from a
spaceport in Cape Canaveral, Florida with a Titan IIIE / Centaur
rocket . The spacecraft was carrying a copper phonograph
record containing greetings in dozens of languages and
samples of music (below).

Singer Robert Anthony Plant is 71 today.

Led Zepplin reunited for a show at London’s O2 arena, 2007.

CARLATA BRADLEY

On this day in 1972, the last U.S. combat troops depart Vietnam.