Explorer 1 stopped transmission of data on May 23, 1958 when its batteries died, but remained in orbit for more than 12 years. It reentered the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean on March 31, 1970 after more than 58,000 orbits. Read more
Explorer 1 was launched on February 1, 1958 at 03:48 UTC atop the first Juno booster from LC-26 at the Cape Canaveral Missile Annex, Florida. Read more
On this day in 1958, the Explorer 1 satellite stopped transmission of data on May 23, 1958, when its batteries died, but remained in orbit for more than 12 years. It reentered the Earth atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean on March 31, 1970.
Montana State University students who only know about the Cold War from history books plan to launch a satellite later this year to commemorate the country's first successful satellite. Explorer-1 was launched 50 years ago, on Jan. 31, 1958, after the Soviets sent up Sputnik on Oct. 4, 1957. The U.S. satellite discovered the Van Allen Radiation Belt around Earth, a find said to be the first major scientific discovery of the space age.