ExplorerDe’Aja Koontz & La’keya Martin

America's first artificial satellite

Facts on Explorer

Length: 203 cmWeight: 13.9 k.gDiameter: 15 cmLaunch Vehicle: Juno |

Team Members

Creator: William H. Pickering Designer: James A. Van Allen Builder-of-engine: Wernher Von Braun

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On Jan. 20, 1958, technicians lowered the Explorer 1 satellite payload onto the launch vehicle's fourth-stage motor. The photo was taken in the gantry at Launch Complex 26, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida. Explorer 1 launched successfully on Jan. 31, 1958.

Explorer 1 timeline

March 16, 1926Robert H. Goddard flies first successful liquid-fueled rocket.

Continuing timeline

January 31, 1958Explorer 1 becomes the first U.S. satellite to orbit around the Earth, discovering the Van AllenJanuary 31, 1958

Continuing timeline October 1, 1958

NASA is born. May 28, 1959

A Jupiter rocket launches Able, a rhesus monkey, and Miss Baker, a squirrel monkey, to become the first living beings to successfully return to Earth after traveling in space on a suborbital flight.

Questions

Where was Explorer 1 launched ?