Explorer I Satellite-Diagram

Explorer I Satellite- Diagram

Oct 4, 1957

following of the Soviet Sputnik I on 4 October 1957, ABMA was directed to proceed with the launching of a satellite using the Jupiter C, which had already been flight tested in nose cone re-entry tests for the Jupiter intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM). Working closely together, ABMA and JPL completed the job of modifying the Jupiter C and building the Explorer I in 84 days.

Elopler I Satellite- Digram

Jan 31, 1958

The satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral (now Cape Kennedy) in Florida at 10:48 P.M. EST on 31 January 1958 by the Jupiter C vehicle - a special modification of the Redstone ballistic missile that was designed, built, and launched by the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) under the direction of Doctor Wernher Von Braun. Jupiter C, a direct descendant of the German A-4 (V-2) rocket, was originally developed in 1955-1956 as a high-performance rocket for testing purposes.

Explorer I Satellite- Diagram

Mar 26, 1958

Dr. Van Allen theorized that the equipment may have been saturated by very strong caused by the existence of a belt of charged particles trapped in space by the earth's magnetic field. The existence of these Van Allen Belts, discovered by Explorer I, was confirmed by Explorer III, which was launched by a Jupiter C on 26 March 1958.