I have an idea for an alternate history scifi novel set in the mid 50s to present and explores a possible history where the United States becomes first in space before '57s Sputnik, and Project Orion gets picked up as a small project, which quickly overtakes Apollo. The novel not only will explore how the astronauts felt during 'The great expansion' (What I'm calling the era when humanity rapidly begins colonizing the solar system) but society as a whole as technological progress quickly accelerates, and we begin exploring the stars.
What do you guys think? There aren't any novels like that, are there?
Also, as you can tell, I like alternate histories related to space exploration