Why NASA's First Spaceflight Isn't What Most People Think

The US was launching satellites in the space race for months before NASA existed, when NASA was formally created it inherited an ambitious launch from the Air Force, aimed at taking a spacecraft around the moon. This was ambitious, and ultimately the mission fell short of this lofty goal, but, it still set an altitude record for a satellite before falling back to the Earth.
The spacecraft eventually got the name 'Pioneer 1', and was the first spaceflight in a series of spacecraft which would eventually become the first to leave the solar system.

Видео Why NASA's First Spaceflight Isn't What Most People Think канала Scott Manley