---
title: "Explorer 1 Satellite Launch"
year: 1958
country: "United States"
canonical: "https://recap.at/1958/explorer-1-launch"
slug: "explorer-1-launch"
recapType: "global_event"
startDate: "1958-01-01"
---

# Explorer 1 Satellite Launch

> America's first successful satellite revealed the existence of the Van Allen radiation belts and reasserted U.S. credibility in the Space Race after Soviet early victories.

## Summary

Explorer S-1, also known as NASA S-1 or Explorer 7X, was a NASA Earth science satellite equipped with a suite of scientific instruments to study the environment around the Earth. The spacecraft and its Juno II launch vehicle were destroyed five seconds after launch on 16 July 1959, in a spectacular launch failure caused by complications with the launch vehicle's power supply. A relaunch of the mission in October 1959, Explorer 7 (S-1A), was successful.

## Sources

- [Explorer S-1 (satellite)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explorer_S-1_(satellite)) - Wikipedia

---
Canonical: https://recap.at/1958/explorer-1-launch