EXPLORER 1
The first successful satellite launched into the space by the U.S.A is Explorer 1. This satellite was sent to space on January 31, 1957 from the site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This space program was started against the success of Soviet Union’s sputnik launch. The success of explorer 1 was obtained after a series of failures in the attempt to launch a satellite. The satellite was operated by an elite panel of engineers belonging to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory under the direction of Dr. William H. Pickering. The engineers behind this success are German rocket engineers who immigrated into United States after the end of World War II. This launch was the first step taken by the United States in the space race with the Soviet Union. The spacecraft is equipped with a Geiger-Muller Tube, to detect the cosmic rays, protons, electrons in the space. There are five temperature sensors used to determine the existing conditions. It also consists of an acoustic detector and a wire grid detector. After this successful launch many advanced level Explorer series were sent to space.