Vanguard TV-3, was the first attempt of the United States to launch a satellite into orbit around the Earth, after the successful Soviet launches of Sputnik 1 and Sputnik 2. Vanguard TV-3 was a small
The Vanguard rocket explodes on launch
The NRL engineers place Vanguard 1 atop the third stage of the launching vehicle. Shown here (from left to right, Roger L. Easton, Sandy J. Smith, Robert C. Bauman, and Joseph B. Schwartz. (Bauman and Schwartz transferred with the Vanguard Project to NASA). On 17 March 1958, Vanguard 1 started its historic journey into space (U.S. Navy photo).
The Vanguard 1A satellite on display at the National Air and Space Museum, 2009.
Sputnik 1, often referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet
Vanguard TV-3
…Vehicle-Three), was the first attempt of the United States to launch a satellite into orbit around the Earth, after the successful Soviet launches of Sputnik 1 and Sputnik 2. Vanguard TV-3 was a small satellite designed to test the launch capabilities of the three-stage Vanguard and study the effects of the…
Replica of Sputnik 1 in the Museum of Space and Missile Technology (Saint-Petersburg)
Last remaining piece of Sputnik 1: metal arming key which prevented contact between batteries and transmitter prior to launch; on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum
30 kopek USSR stamp depicting Sputnik 1 orbiting the Earth, the Earth orbiting the Sun and the Sun orbiting the centre of the Milky Way galaxy
First ground track of Sputnik 1 on 13 October 1957 4:51 from Rodewisch