Vanguard 1

Vanguard 1.

Category.	Statistic.
Launch vehicle.	Vanguard rocket.
Launch date.	March 17, 1958, 12:15:41 UTC.
Launch site.	Cape Canaveral LC-18A.
Ceased operations.	May 1964.
Owner(s).	U.S. Navy.
Major contractor(s).	Naval Research Laboratory.
Is it still in orbit.	Yes, until either 2198 or 3958 depending on who you believe. Vanguard 1 is the oldest satellite still in orbit (as of 2015).
Launch mass.	1.47 kilograms (3.2 lb).
Nationality(s).	American.
Satellite type.	Earth science (geodetic measurements).
Links.	http://heavens-above.com/SatInfo.aspx?satid=5, http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1958-002B, http://www.satflare.com/track.asp?q=00005http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanguard_1, http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1958-002B, http://www.robsv.com/cape/c18a6_h.html, http://airandspace.si.edu/collections/artifact.cfm?id=A19761019000, http://code8200.nrl.navy.mil/vanguard.html, http://code8200.nrl.navy.mil/vanguard.html, https://usspaceobjectsregistry.state.gov/search/index.cfm, http://www.nrl.navy.mil/ssdd/http://www.modelingmadness.com/review/misc/scifi/previews/603.htm and http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1958-002B.

Image of the satellite Vanguard 1. Vanguard 1 satellite (NASA). Composite illustration assembled from static display of satellite, Earth from orbit and telescope photo of stars.

Vanguard 1 1 30 12

Vanguard 1 1/30/12.

Vanguard rocket launch "TV-4 satellite on orbit", (blockhouse AUDIO), March 17 1958-0

Vanguard rocket launch: "TV-4 satellite on orbit", (blockhouse AUDIO), March 17 1958. TV-4 achieved a stable orbit with an apogee of 3,969 kilometers (2466 mi) and a perigee of 650 kilometers (404 mi).

Vanguard 1 was once described by then-Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev as, "The grapefruit satellite." due to its physical size.