Science: Durable Orange
Nikita Khrushchev laughed when the U.S. finally got Vanguard I into space, and likened it to an orange. Last week the 3¼-lb. satellite soared into its second year in regions where huge Russian satellites have long since died. Vanguard's orbit, which climbs up to 2,500 miles and never comes lower than 400 miles, has hardly changed. Vanguard I has traveled something over 132 million miles. Its clear radio voice, powered by solar batteries, is still chirping as cheerily as ever, is expected to hold out for at least 200 years.
Vanguard has proved so...
To read the entire article, you must be a TIME subscriber. Already registered? Sign in below
Current print subscribers to register
Subscribe now to get TIME All Access
Email, Password or Region is incorrect
A required form parameter was missing.
The System is currently down. Please try again in a few minutes.
Email Address is invalid
Password is blank
Most Popular »
- 50 Best iPhone Apps 2012
- Deadly Cold Grips Europe
- Your Turn, Canada: A Second-By-Second Look at Jeremy Lin Lighting Up Toronto
- What's in Your Lipstick? FDA Finds Lead in 400 Shades
- Iowa Welcomes Back China's Next President
- Rick Santorum Wants to Fight 'The Dangers Of Contraception'
- Linsanity Heads East, Linfects China and Taiwan
- Why Obama's Re-Election Fortunes Are Suddenly Looking Up
- After Whitney Houston, Musicians Say: I'm Afraid
- Why I Won't Be Boycotting Chick-Fil-A
- Harvard's Hoops Star Is Asian. Why's That a Problem?
- Iowa Welcomes Back China's Next President
- The Upside Of Being An Introvert (And Why Extroverts Are Overrated)
- Beirut: Where Valentine's Day Belongs to Another Kind of Saint
- Friends With Benefits
- With Syria's Rebels: A Visit to a Bombmaker's Factory
- Europe's Deep Freeze: Why Climate Change Is Not (Entirely) to Blame
- Study: Lead Poisoning Could Lurk in Spices
- Romney's Cruel Canine Vacation
- New York City: 10 Things to Do




