American Defenders of Land, Sea & Sky
A New Era at Home and Abroad After World War II (1945-1958)
We orbited the earth.
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American Defenders of Land, Sea & Sky A New Era at Home and Abroad After World War II (1945-1958) |
We orbited the earth. |
| Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
You probably know more about the Apollo and Saturn missions than our very first flight into space. On the
night of January 31, 1958, the U.S. Army Ballistic Missile Team placed a 30-pound, pencil-shaped satellite
called Explorer I into earth orbit. Major General John B. Medaris headed the team. A special Geiger
counter designed by Dr. James Van Allen was also on board Explorer I. The belt of radiation that
surrounds the earth was discovered that night, and later named the "Van Allen radiation belt." The Control
Room at Launch Pad 26-with all its incredible buttons and dials--is now part of the U.S. Air Force Space
and Missile Museum.
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 Follow our history to... United States Marine Corps Barracks and Commandant's House |
