1958 Beta 2

E87463

1958 Beta 2 is the alternative designation for Vanguard 1, one of the earliest American satellites and the oldest human-made object still in Earth orbit.


Statements (47)
Predicate Object
instanceOf Earth satellite
artificial satellite
spacecraft
alternativeName Vanguard 1 satellite
surface form: "Vanguard 1"
apogee about 3969 kilometers
carriedInstrument micrometeorite detector
radio transmitter
temperature sensor
category 1958 in spaceflight
Vanguard 1 satellite
surface form: "Vanguard satellites"
communication telemetry
countryOfOrigin United States of America
surface form: "United States"
designLife a few months
diameter 16.5 centimeters
followedBy Vanguard 2
hasCOSPARID 1958-002B
hasNSSDCID 1958-002B
inclination about 34.25 degrees
launchComplex LC-18A
launchDate 1958-03-17
launchSite Cape Canaveral NERFINISHED
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station NERFINISHED
launchVehicle Vanguard TV-4
manufacturer Naval Research Laboratory
mass 1.47 kilograms
missionType geophysics
ionospheric research
notableFor oldest human-made object still in Earth orbit
operator United States Navy
orbitalPeriod about 134 minutes
orbitType low Earth orbit
perigee about 654 kilometers
powerSource chemical batteries
solar cells
precededBy Explorer 1
Sputnik 1
Sputnik 2
program Vanguard program
purpose scientific research
radioFrequency 108.00 MHz
108.03 MHz
shape sphere
status in orbit
transmissionsEnded 1964
usedFor studying atmospheric drag
studying density of the upper atmosphere
tracking Earth’s shape

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Vanguard 1 satellite alsoKnownAs 1958 Beta 2
subject surface form: "Vanguard 1"

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