SPACE: Voyage of the Explorer

Hear the sum of the whole matter—every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.

—Aeschylus

A bright, waxing moon rode through the racing cumulus clouds above Florida's Cape Canaveral. At the floodlit launching pad, a gangling service structure, standing like a jeweled skyscraper, nestled against the U.S. Army's Jupiter-C rocket. A homely creature it was, its streamlined shell topped with a bucketlike piece and a long, thin, cylindrical nose. This was the Explorer, the Promethean gift that the U.S. aimed to fling against the invisible doors of space.

Only the week before, the...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!