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Fifty years have passed since
the United States answered Soviet Union’s challenge and launched Explorer I into
space on January 31, 1958, as part of the International Geophysical Year
program, from LC-26 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The mission was the result of a
time trial race, after the Soviet satellite Sputnik I had already made its
space debut on October 4, 1957. The project was completed in 84 days, 6 days
earlier than the initial deadline, an impressive effort from the American
scientists. The “space race” how it has been called had begun.
The U.S. took the lead after the
launch, reaching beyond Sputnik I’s discoveries, that simply orbited the Earth,
and identifying the high and low activity regions now known as the Van Allen
belts, which further opened the path to learning the origins of the aurora
borealis and the propagation of radio waves.
The discovery of the Van Allen
belts was an intensely celebrated moment by the media and an outstanding moment
for the International Geophysical Year. The three people responsible for the
great success of the Explorer I were Dr. William H. Pickering, Dr. James A. van
Allen and Dr. Werhner von Braun.
The first American satellite into
space weighted 13.97 kg, much lighter than the Soviet one (83.6 kg) and was
placed on an orbit with 360 kilometers perigee and 2,520 kilometers apogee. The
electrical power was based on mercury chemical batteries, and lasted until May
23, 1958, when the satellite stopped transmitting data.
The journey into space of
Explorer I ended 12 years later, when the satellite made an appearance over the
Pacific Ocean on March 31, 1970. Similar spacecrafts have been sent into space
the same year, including Explorer 3, successfully launched on March 26, 1958,
and Explorer 4, launched July 26, 1958.
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