What is the main idea of the passage? The history of the space race between the Soviets and the U. S. is just as storied as the Cold War between both nations. Americans knew that the Soviets were constructing something similar to the U. S. space shuttle. This was made more real by the discovery of Soviet test models recovered from the ocean.
When the Soviets announced the launch of their first shuttle, Buran, the U. S. was not surprised. What did surprise them was how closely the pictures of Buran mirrored their own shuttle design. Despite this, there were stark differences. The Buran orbiter did not have large engines of its own. It was instead strapped to a powerful booster called the Energia. The Energia was the most powerful booster rocket on the planet.
In addition, the Buran was able to be run without any crew aboard. Its first flight in 1988 was without a crew. It safely orbited the Earth twice before returning. All of this without one human on board.

26. What is the main idea of the passage?
a. The United States was unaware of the Soviet Union's interest in exploring space.
b. The Soviet Union launched a shuttle, Buran, which was similar to the U. S. shuttle.
c. The Soviet Union's space program was superior to the United States' space program.
d. The American space shuttle is never launched into orbit without a human crew.