64th anniversary of the successful launch of Explorer 1, America's first satellite

We've already talked in earlier posts about the successful launches of Sputnik 1 and Sputnik 2, and the failed launch of Vanguard TV3.

On this date, Jan. 31, in 1958, the U.S. successfully launched its first satellite, Explorer 1, into orbit. Much credit was given to the team of: William H. Pickering, director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory which built and operated the satellite; James A. Van Allen, physicist at the State University of Iowa who designed and built the instrument on Explorer that discovered the eponymous radiation; and Wernher von Braun, leader of the Army's Redstone Arsenal team which built the first stage Redstone booster that was part of the Jupiter C rocket that carried Explorer 1 into space. The Army had replaced the Navy as the developer of the rocket after the failure of Vanguard TV3, a coup for the ambitious von Braun.

William Pickering, James Van Allen and Wernher von Braun (NASA)

This short JPL video summarizes the preparation, launch, and celebration of Explorer 1:

Explorer 1's orbit had a perigee of 220 miles and an apogee of 1,600 miles. It made one orbit every 115 minutes. The satellite weighed 30 pounds, and was 80 inches long, the same (or similar) size as the model shown in the upstretched arms of the men above. Explorer 1 made its final transmission on May 23, 1958. It entered Earth's atmosphere and burned up on March 31, 1970, after more than 58,000 orbits. 

The U.S. did not initially issue a stamp commemorating Explorer 1. I had speculated to myself that the U.S. did not want to highlight this great accomplishment because it was beaten into space by its Cold War rival, the Soviet Union. This was confirmed for me by Matin Modarressi, who I mentioned in a previous post. Matin sent me the link to this document from the Operations Coordinating Board (OCB), dated on Oct. 8, 1958, signed by CIA director Allen Dulles. It states in item #3 that

A suggestion by the Army was then brought up having to do with the possibility of a commemorative postage stamp in honor of the launching of Explorer 1. The majority of the Board felt that it might be unwise to issue such a stamp in view of the obvious disparity which now exists between our accomplishments in the satellite field and those of the USSR.

Fascinating! Also present at that OCB meeting was Abbott Wasburn, mentioned in earlier posts as Deputy Director of the United States Information Agency and a member of the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee and also as the head of public relations for General Mills, which was involved in Cold War biological warfare. I am so grateful that Matin shared this with me. 

Matin has a very interesting presentation about The Role of Stamps in U.S. Foreign Relations:

Finally, in 1999, Explorer 1 got its philatelic due, as part of the series of 10 sheets with the theme of Celebrate the Century:

Scott catalog #3187d (1999), Explorer 1

Obverse of Scott catalog #3187d

From my collection - Celebrate the Century: 1950s, Scott catalog #3187, with 15 se-tenant stamps

There have also been IGY covers issued on various anniversaries of the Explorer 1 launch. I showed one with a cachet in an earlier post, with Van Allen's signature. I'll show a few more when I review the IGY Bulletin article on Explorer 1 in its March 1958 issue. 

I am currently watching on PBS the new adaptation of Around the World in 80 Days. It's different from both the original 1872 novel by Jules Verne and the 1956 (IGY-era) film adaptation

starring David Niven, Cantinflas, and Shirley MacLaine, complemented with a slew of cameo appearances (including flamenco legend José Greco, who was a visiting professor here at Franklin & Marshall College in the last few years of his life). I saw the film (which won the Oscar for Best Picture of the year) as a youngster, and just re-bought a related book that I had owned for many years after we bought it at the movie theater so long ago.

I am now also re-reading -- after maybe 55 years -- Verne's novel (a free Kindle version is available on Amazon). I was thinking that the latest film adaptation was unfaithful to the book. Then I realized that the hot air balloon trip over the Alps in the new adaptation was also in the 1956 movie but was not in the book, so faithfulness is, well, relative. Anyway, the current adaptation is a new version of the story for a new era, and that's fair enough. I can't help but think that the 1956 movie was made at such a time as to be envisioning the imminent satellite journeys around the Earth. Those newest circumnavigations would take only two hours, about 1000 times faster than Phileas Fogg's trip around the world in 80 days.