|
Project Beacon
Beacon was one of America's first satellite programs. A balloon satellite, its objective was to study atmospheric density at its orbital altitude and to be the first United States satellite visible to the naked eye. Booster problems caused both orbital attempts to end in failure. Background Beacon was an International Geophysical Year (IGY) satellite program developed by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Space Vehicle Group at Langley under aeronautical engineer William James O'Sullivan, Jr. O'Sullivan held the belief that measuring the air density at orbital altitudes would be of critical importance to a space agency and that a simple balloon satellite, several meters in diameter, would be well suited to the task as their relatively large size and low mass make them especially sensitive to air drag effects. After the Soviets launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, on October 4, 1957, a high priority was placed on orbiting an American satellite th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juno 2
Juno II was an American Launch vehicle, space launch vehicle used during the late 1950s and early 1960s. It was derived from the PGM-19 Jupiter, Jupiter missile, which was used as the first stage. Development Solid rocket motors derived from the MGM-29 Sergeant were used as upper stages, eleven for the second stage, three for the third stage, and one for the fourth stage, the same configuration as used for the upper stages of the smaller Juno I launch vehicle. On some launches to low Earth orbit the fourth stage was not flown, allowing the launch vehicle to carry an additional nine kilograms of payload. Development of the Juno II was extremely fast due to being completely built from existing hardware. The project began in early 1958 and the first vehicle flew at the end of the year. Chrysler were responsible for the overall contract, while Rocketdyne handled the first stage propulsion and Jet Propulsion Laboratory handled the upper stage propulsion. The first three were conve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balloon Satellite
A balloon satellite is inflated with gas after it has been put into orbit. It is also occasionally referred to as a "satelloon", which is a trademarked name owned by Gilmore Schjeldahl's G.T. Schjeldahl Company. List of balloon satellites abbreviations: * pcr = passive communications reflector, satellite reflects microwave signals. * ado = atmospheric density observations * spc = solar pressure calculations, estimate impact of solar wind on orbit. * tri = satellite triangulation, measuring the Earth's surface. * SC = Sensors and camera for earth curvature images Echo 1 and Echo 2 balloon satellites The first flying body of this type was Echo 1, which was launched into a high orbit on August 12, 1960, by the United States. It originally had a spherical shape measuring , with a thin metal-coated plastic shell made of Mylar. It served for testing as a "passive" communication and geodetic satellite. Its international COSPAR number was 6000901 (9th satellite launched in 1960, 1s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 26
Blockhouse of LC-26 Launch Complex 26 (LC-26) is a deactivated launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. LC-26 consisted of two pads, ''A'' and ''B''. Pad A was used for the Jupiter-C and Juno I rockets, and was the launch site for '' Explorer 1'', the United States' first satellite, in 1958. Pad B was used for Juno II. Jupiter IRBMs were launched from both pads. On February 1, 1958 (January 31 local time), the US Army Ballistic Missile Agency launched '' Explorer 1'' from LC-26A. LC-26 is also the home of the Air Force Space and Missile Museum. Access to the museum at LC-26 as well as the adjoining LC-5 and LC-6 by the general public can be arranged through the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Center "Cape Canaveral Early Space Tour". The Cape Canaveral Space Force Station also offers monthly tours. See also * List of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island launch sites * Jupiter IRBM * Jupiter-C The Jupiter-C was an American research and development vehicl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spacecraft Launched In 1958
A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, planetary exploration, and transportation of humans and cargo. All spacecraft except single-stage-to-orbit vehicles cannot get into space on their own, and require a launch vehicle (carrier rocket). On a sub-orbital spaceflight, a space vehicle enters space and then returns to the surface without having gained sufficient energy or velocity to make a full Earth orbit. For orbital spaceflights, spacecraft enter closed orbits around the Earth or around other celestial bodies. Spacecraft used for human spaceflight carry people on board as crew or passengers from start or on orbit (space stations) only, whereas those used for robotic space missions operate either autonomously or telerobotically. Robotic spacecraft used to support scientific re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1959 In Spaceflight
Luna 1 was the first spacecraft to leave the gravitational influence of Earth. Also in 1959, Luna 2 was the first spacecraft to reach the surface of another celestial body, impacting the Moon, and Luna 3 returned the first images of the far side of the Moon The far side of the Moon is the lunar hemisphere that always faces away from Earth, opposite to the Near side of the Moon, near side, because of synchronous rotation in the Moon's orbit. Compared to the near side, the far side's terrain is ru .... Launches January February March April May June July August September October November December Deep Space Rendezvous ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1958 In Spaceflight
Explorer 1 was the first American satellite to reach orbit on 31 January 1958. Launches January February March April May June July August September October November December Orbital launch summary By country By rocket By family By type and configuration By launch site By orbit See also * Timeline of spaceflight References Footnotes {{Orbital launches in 1958 1958 in spaceflight Spaceflight by year ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balloon Satellites
A balloon is a flexible bag that can be inflated with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, and Atmosphere of Earth, air. For special tasks, balloons can be filled with smoke, liquid water, granular media (e.g. sand, flour or rice), or light sources. Modern day balloons are made from materials such as Natural rubber, rubber, latex, Neoprene, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, and can come in many different colors. Some early balloons were made of dried animal urinary bladder, bladders, such as the pig bladder. Some balloons are used for decorative purposes or entertaining purposes, while others are used for practical purposes such as Weather balloon, meteorology, Angioplasty, medical treatment, Barrage balloon, military defense, or Balloon (aeronautics), transportation. A balloon's properties, including its low density and low cost, have led to a wide range of applications. The rubber balloon was invented by Michael Faraday in 1824, during experiments with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Explorer 9
Explorer 9, known as S-56A before launch, was a NASA satellite which was launched in February 1961 to study the density and composition of the upper thermosphere and lower exosphere. It was a reflight of the failed Explorer S-56 mission, and consisted of a , balloon which was deployed into a medium Earth orbit. The mission was conducted by NASA's Langley Research Center. Spacecraft The spacecraft consisted of alternating layers of aluminium foil and Mylar polyester film. Uniformly distributed over the aluminium surface were -diameter dots of white paint for thermal control. The sphere was packed in a tube in diameter and long and mounted in the nose of the fourth stage of its Scout X-1 launch vehicle. Experiment Satellite Drag Atmospheric Density Because of its symmetrical shape, Explorer 9 was selected for use in determining upper atmospheric densities as a function of altitude, latitude, season, and solar activity. Density values near perigee were deduced from se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Project Echo
Project Echo was the first passive communications satellite experiment. Each of the two American spacecraft, launched in 1960 and 1964, were metalized balloon satellites acting as passive reflectors of microwave signals. Communication signals were transmitted from one location on Earth and bounced off the surface of the satellite to another Earth location. The first transmissions using Echo were sent from Goldstone, California to Holmdel, New Jersey on 12 August 1960. The last Echo satellite deorbited and burned up in the atmosphere on 7 June 1969.Astronautix.com, ''Echo'' Background The concept of using orbital satellites to relay communications predated space travel, first being advanced by Arthur C. Clar ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), to give the U.S. space development effort a distinctly civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. NASA has since led most American space exploration, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968-1972 Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. NASA supports the International Space Station and oversees the development of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System for the crewed lunar Artemis program, Commercial Crew spacecraft, and the planned Lunar Gateway space station. The agency is also responsible for the Launch Services Program, which provides oversight of launch operations and countdown management f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 5
Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 5 (LC-5) was a launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida used for various Redstone and Jupiter launches. It is most well known as the launch site for NASA's 1961 suborbital Mercury-Redstone 3 flight, which made Alan Shepard the first American in space. It was also the launch site of Gus Grissom's July, 1961, Mercury-Redstone 4 flight. The Mercury-Redstone 1 pad abort, Mercury-Redstone 1A, and the January, 1961, Mercury-Redstone 2 with a chimpanzee, Ham, aboard, also used LC-5. A total of 23 launches were conducted from LC-5: one Jupiter-A, six Jupiter IRBMs, one Jupiter-C, four Juno Is, four Juno IIs and seven Redstones. The first launch from the complex was a Jupiter-A on July 19, 1956 and the final launch was Gus Grissom's ''Liberty Bell 7'' capsule on July 21, 1961. LC-5 is located next to the Air Force Space and Missile Museum which is located at LC-26. The original launch consoles and computers are on display in the LC-5 bloc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
International Geophysical Year
The International Geophysical Year (IGY; french: Année géophysique internationale) was an international scientific project that lasted from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific interchange between East and West had been seriously interrupted. Sixty-seven countries participated in IGY projects, although one notable exception was the mainland People's Republic of China, which was protesting against the participation of the Republic of China (Taiwan). East and West agreed to nominate the Belgian Marcel Nicolet as secretary general of the associated international organization. The IGY encompassed eleven Earth sciences: aurora and airglow, cosmic rays, geomagnetism, gravity, ionospheric physics, longitude and latitude determinations (precision mapping), meteorology, oceanography, seismology, and solar activity. The timing of the IGY was particularly suited for studying some of these phenomena, since it covered th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
