The Apollo landings marked the conclusion of the Space Race. America had gotten to the moon first, and Mars was too far a future target for the Soviet Union to continue pushing the boundries of it's space program. The technology involved was more than Russia wanted to spend it's money on; there was no longer a reason to push the frontiers of it's technology. With the Soviet Union out of the running, there was no longer anyone to compete with America for space dominance. Space was peaceful again. The U.S. had won, and it spread its ideals there.