Wernher Von Braun

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was successfully tested at Cape Canaveral in August 1953; it was the USA’s first ballistic missile (Sandmen). Expected to be a medium-range guided missile, it could without a payload, reach space in sub orbital flight only (Lampton, 108).
With this line of technology von Braun composed a proposal he dubbed Project Orbiter in 1954. Von Braun’s plan suggested that a Redstone rocket would launch a satellite into space within a 2 year window. The project was to use existing and proven technology unlike many other schemes which called for the application of untested machinery (Bergaust, 310). If put into action, Project Orbiter would make the U.S. first in space, however von Braun thought it necessary to move quickly because he foresaw competition from other countries such as the Soviet Union (Lampton, 110).
In 1956, an International Committee of scientists announced International Geophysical Year (IGY). During this 18 month period in 1957-58, scientists would pool their expertise and try to learn as much about the Earth as possible (Bergaust, 313). As part of this occasion, the ...