Two Sides Of The Moon Essay

The Space Race of the fifties and sixties was hardly a race; The Soviet Union dominated the playing field by quickly racking up dozens of “firsts”, such as the first satellite in orbit and the first spacewalk. The latter, completed by Alexei Leonov in 1965, demonstrates the superiority of the early Soviet program, ran by Sergei Pavlovich Korloev, the Chief Designer of OKB-1. Leonov states that Korolev’s “power, influence, and responsibilities...were almost impossible to comprehend” (Leonov and Scott, 79). However, even with his technical brilliance, the success of the early Soviet missions lies not only in the intelligence of the engineers, but also the personalities of the leaders. Korolev’s trust of the cosmonauts and competitive nature allows
In Two Sides of the Moon, Leonov recalls how Korolev tasked him with testing the exit on the Vokshod II capsule. Afterwards, Leonov discusses the design flaws, as well as potential solutions with the engineers and Korolev himself (Leonov and Scott, 78-79). By introducing another user into the situation- the cosmonaut who would rely on the usability of the exit in particular- Korolev gains an unbiased insight into the true quality of the engineering of the capsule. While the engineers may have the skills and the competency to construct the exit, the lack of perspective often leads to unintended consequences, such as inhibited usability. Korolev succeeds in mitigating these issues, through which he demonstrates a strong understanding of the effect of user experience. Usability.gov indicates that “user experience practices promote improving the quality of the user’s interaction with and perceptions of your product and any related services” (User Experience Basics). In devoting attention to the cosmonaut’s opinions, Korolev effectively builds a working relationship with the cosmonauts, such as