Explorer 1 satellite

The Explorer-1 satellite was the first artificial Earth satellite launched by the United States, marking the country as the second nation to have the capability to launch satellites after the Soviet Union. This satellite was launched on January 31, 1958, using the Juno 1 launch vehicle. It had a total mass of 13.97 kilograms and an effective payload of 8.3 kilograms. The satellite had a conical-cylindrical design and operated in an orbit with a perigee altitude of 360 kilometers and an apogee of 2531 kilometers, with a period of 114.8 minutes. As a product of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, this satellite validated the value of space science exploration through the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belts. Eventually, it burned up in the atmosphere on March 31, 1970.