Космодром Байконур, 4 октября 1957 года. (“Baikonur Cosmodrome, 4 October 1957.”)
4 October 1957: At 19:28:34 UTC, the world’s first artificial satellite, Простейший Спутник-1 (Sputnik 1, or Elementary Satellite 1) was launched from Tyuratam, Kazakh S.S.R. (now, the Baikonur Cosmodrome) aboard a two-stage Sputnik 8K71PS rocket, a variant of the R-7 Semyorka intercontinental ballistic missile. The satellite entered an elliptical orbit, circling Earth every 96.2 minutes.
Sputnik I launch, Site No. 1, Scientific-Research Test Range No. 5, Tyuratam, Kazakh S.S.R., 19:28:34 4 October 1957 UTC (5 October, Tyuratam). (RKK Energiya/Solaris ID 38466)Запуск спутника. (“The launch.”)
Sputnik 1 launched at 22:28:34 Moscow time. After 116.38 seconds, the first and second stages separated. The second stage and satellite entered orbit 295.4 seconds after liftoff at an altitude of 228.6 kilometers (142.05 miles) and velocity of 7,780 meters per second (17,403.36 miles per hour). The satellite separated from the second stage 5 minutes, 14.5 seconds after launch.
The second stage reentered the atmosphere 2 December 1957. Sputnik made 1,440 orbits before it reentered the atmosphere, 4 January 1958.
An unidentified engineer with Sputnik 1.
The satellite was designed at OKB-1 (the Special Design Bureau) by a team of Mikhail Stepanovich Khomyakov, Maksim Khramov and Oleg Genrikhovich Ivanovsky. It was constructed as a sphere with a diameter of 58.0 centimeters (22.84 inches), made from an aluminum alloy with a thickness of 2 millimeters (0.08 inch). The two halves were joined by 36 bolts and filled with pressurized nitrogen. Four “whip” antennas were equally spaced around the satellite’s shell, angled at 35° from the longitudinal axis. With three silver-zinc batteries and equipment, the Sputnik 1 mass was 83.6 kilograms (184.3 pounds).
The satellite entered an elliptical orbit, with a perigee of 215.0 kilometers (133.6 miles) and apogee of 939.0 kilometers (583.5 miles). The duration of each orbit was 1 hour, 36 minutes, 12 seconds.
Cutaway illustration of the Sputnik I 8K71PS launch vehicle. (RKK Energia via Drew Ex Machina)
The Sputnik 8K71PS launch vehicle, serial number 1 M1-PS, was a two-stage, liquid-fueled rocket based on the R-7 Semyorka intercontinental ballistic missile. The R-7 rocket was designed by Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, known as The Chief Designer. It had a length of 29.167 meters (95.69 feet) and maximum diameter of 10.3 meters (33.79 feet) at the base, including stabilizers. Its mass was 267.13 tons (588,921 pounds) at liftoff. The propellant was Kerosene T-1 with liquid oxygen.
The first stage consisted of four “strap-on” boosters surrounding the second, or “core” stage, each with an RD-107 four-chamber rocket engine, for a total thrust of 323.6 tons (713,409 pounds) of thrust. The first stage burn time was 120 seconds.
The second stage (core) was powered by one RD-108 four-chamber engine, producing 93 tons (205,028 pounds) of thrust. Burn time for the second stage was 180 seconds.
The Chief Designer, Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (1907–1966)
4 October 1943: In an effort to interrupt the supply of iron ore from Norway to the Third Reich, the Royal Navy and United States Navy staged Operation Leader. Task Force 121, a combined task force of two British battleships, two cruisers and nine destroyers, along with the American aircraft carrier USS Ranger (CV-4) and its escorts of a heavy cruiser and five destroyers, sortied from Scapa Flow on 2 October. The mission was to attack German convoys at the Norwegian sea port of Bodø.
By early morning, 4 October, the task force had arrived at a position in the Vestfjord Sea, about 100 miles west of the Norwegian coastline. At 0618, Ranger launched a strike force of 20 Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless dive bombers with an escort of 8 Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters. The airplanes flew at 50–100 feet (15–30 meters) above the water to avoid detection. The squadrons maintained total radio silence.
Photographed looking southeast, VB-4 Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless 4-B-19, Lt.(j.g.) Clyde A. Tucker and ARM2c Stephen D. Bakran. Kunna Head, south of Bodø, is at upper right. 4 October 1943. (U.S. Navy)
The air strike was undetected and sunk or severely damaged several ships.
A second air strike of 10 Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers with 6 Wildcats followed. They damaged several more ships in the harbor.
This attack was the United States Navy’s only aircraft carrier operation north of Arctic Circle during World War II.
Operation Leader. Bombs detonate close aboard S.S. Malaga. (U.S. Navy)
It was later determined that the steamship Rabat (2,719 tons) and the freighter Vaagen (687 tons) were sunk. The tanker Schleswig (10,762 tons), Topeka (4,991 tons) and the freighter La Plata (8,056 tons) were heavily damaged. La Plata was run aground to prevent its sinking, as was another ship, Kaguir (1,536 tons). A German troop transport, Skramstad, carrying more than 800 enemy soldiers, was damaged beyond repair. More than 200 soldiers were killed.
Enemy shipping under attack at Bodo, 4 October 1943 NH 84255
Strike force losses consisted of two SBD dive bombers and a TBF. Five airmen were killed, and the two survivors captured and held as Prisoners of War. One F4F, one TBF, and 4 SBDs were damaged. One airman was wounded.
Luftwaffe bombers counterattacked. A Junkers Ju 88D-1 and a Heinkel He 115B float plane were shot down by Ranger‘s Combat Air Patrol fighters.
Gun camera image of Junkers Ju 88 4N+EH on fire, 4 October 1943. (U.S. Navy via AirGroup4.com)
The Operation Leader task force retired and arrived back at Scapa Flow on 6 October.
Major William J. Knight, United States Air Force, with the North American Aviation X-15A-2, 56-6671. (U.S. Air Force)
3 October 1967: The 188th flight of the X-15 Program was the 53rd for the Number 2 aircraft, 56-6671. It had been extensively modified by North American Aviation to an X-15A-2 configuration following a landing accident which had occurred 9 November 1962. The fuselage was lengthened 28 inches (0.711 meters) to accommodate a liquid hydrogen fuel tank for a scramjet engine that would be added to the ventral fin, a new tank for additional hydrogen peroxide to generate steam for the rocket engine turbo pump, and external propellant tanks to allow the rocketplane to reach higher speeds and altitudes. The entire surface of the X-15 was covered with an ablative coating to protect the metal structure from the extreme heat it would encounter on this flight.
Minor issues delayed the takeoff but finally, after they were corrected, and with Pete Knight in the X-15’s cockpit, it was carried aloft under the right wing of Balls 8, a Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress, 52-008.
At 45,000 feet (13,716 meters) over Mud Lake, Nevada, the X-15 was droppeded at 14:31:50.9 local time. Knight fired the Reaction Motors XLR99-RM-1 rocket engine and began to climb and accelerate. After 60 seconds, the ammonia and liquid oxygen propellants in the external tanks was exhausted, so the the tanks were jettisoned to eliminate their weight and aerodynamic drag.
The X-15A-2 climbed to 102,100 feet (31,120 meters) and Pete Knight leveled off, still accelerating. After 140.7 seconds of engine burn, Knight shut the XLR99 down. He noticed that thrust seemed to decrease gradually and the X-15 continued to accelerate to 6,630 feet per second (2,021 meters per second), or Mach 6.72.
North American Aviation X-15A-2 56-6671 is carried to launch altitude under the right wing of the Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress 52-008. The scramjet is attached to the ventral fin. (U.S. Air Force)North American Aviation X-15A-2 56-6671 immediately after being released from the mothership, Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress 52-008, Balls 8, over Mud Lake, Nevada, 3 October 1967. The steam trail is hydrogen peroxide used to power the rocket engine turbopump. (U.S. Air Force)The X-15A-2’s XLR99-RM-1 rocket engine ignites after release from the mothership, Balls 8, 3 October 1967. (U.S. Air Force)
Shock waves from the dummy scramjet mounted on the ventral fin impinged on the fin’s leading edge and the lower fuselage, raising surface temperatures to 2,700 °F. (1,482 °C.) The Inconel X structure started to melt and burn through.
Pete Knight entered the high key over Rogers Dry Lake at 55,000 feet (16,764 meters) and Mach 2.2, higher and faster than normal. As he circled to line up for Runway One Eight, drag from the scramjet caused the X-15 to descend faster and this set him up for a perfect approach and landing. Because of heat damage, the scramjet broke loose and fell away from the X-15.
Knight touched down after an 8 minute, 17.0 second flight. His 4,520 mile per hour (7,274 kilometers per hour) maximum speed is a record that still stands.
Firefighters cool down the ventral fin of the North American Aviation X-15A-2 56-6671 after its final landing on Rogers Dry Lake, 3 October 1967.(U.S. Air Force)
The X-15A-2 suffered considerable damage from this hypersonic flight. It was returned to North American for repairs, but before they were completed, the X-15 Program came to an end. This was 56-6671’s last flight. It was sent to the National Museum of the United States Air Force where it is part of the permanent collection.
In a ceremony at the White House, President Lyndon B. Johnson presented the Harmon International Trophy to Major William J. Knight.
The Harmon International Trophy at the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum. (NASM)
Mercury-Atlas 8 lifts off from Launch Complex 14, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Cape Canaveral, Florida, 12:15:12 UTC, 3 October 1962. (NASA)
3 October 1962: At 08:15:12 a.m., Eastern Daylight Time, Commander Walter M. Schirra, Jr., United States Navy, lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8). This was the fifth U.S. manned space flight and the third orbital flight.
The spacecraft, which Wally Schirra had named Sigma 7, entered a low earth orbit with the altitude varying from 84 nautical miles (156 kilometers) to 154 nautical miles (285 kilometers). Each orbit took 88 minutes, 54.6 seconds.
Schirra experimented with the manual flight control systems, took photographs and performed spatial-orientation exercises. There were some difficulties with the cooling of his pressure suit.
Wally Schirra took this photograph of Earth while in orbit over South America, 3 October 1962. (Walter M. Schirra, Jr./NASA)
Sigma 7 completed 6 orbits and at T+8:52, fired the retro rockets to de-orbit. Reentry was successful and Sigma 7 landed within 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) of the primary recovery ship, the aircraft carrier USS Kearsarge (CVS-33).
The Mercury spacecraft, named Sigma 7, was built by McDonnell Aircraft Corporation, St. Louis, Missouri. It was the 16th Mercury capsule built. Designed to carry one pilot, it could be controlled in pitch, roll and yaw by thrusters. It was 9 feet, 7.72 inches (2.939 meters) long, and, bell-shaped, had a maximum diameter of 6 feet, 2.5 inches (1.885 meters). The spacecraft weighed 2,700 pounds (1,224.7 kilograms) at launch.
Wally Schirra, wearing a B.F. Goodrich full-pressure suit, is helped into the Sigma 7 Mercury capsule. (NASA)
The rocket, a “1-½ stage”, liquid-fueled Atlas LV-3B, number 113-D, was built by Convair at San Diego, California. It was developed from a U.S. Air Force Atlas D intercontinental ballistic missile, modified for use as a “man-rated” orbital launch vehicle. The LV-3B was 94.3 feet (28.7 meters) tall with a maximum diameter of 10.0 feet (3.05 meters). When ready for launch it weighed 260,000 pounds (120,000 kilograms) and could place a 1,360 kilogram payload into Low Earth orbit. The Atlas’ three engines were built by the Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation, Canoga Park, California. The XLR89 booster had two 150,000 pound thrust chambers, and the LR105 sustainer engine produced 57,000 pounds of thrust. The rocket was fueled by a highly-refined kerosene, RP-1, with liquid oxygen as the oxidizer.
Mercury-Atlas 8 stands on the pad at Launch Complex 14 on the morning of 3 October 1962. (NASA)
Schirra was the first astronaut to wear an Omega Speedmaster chronograph during spaceflight. (Omega Reference No. CK2998). The Speedmaster would become flight-qualified by NASA, and the Speedmaster Professional is known as the “moon watch.”
Sigma 7 is on display at the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, Titusville, Florida, near the Kennedy Space Center.
Wally Schirra commanded Gemini 6A during the orbital rendezvous mission with Gemini 7. Later, he commanded Apollo 7, an 11-day orbital mission.
Captain Walter M. Schirra, Jr., USN, died 3 May 2007 at the age of 84 years.
Commander Walter M. Schirra, Jr., United States Navy. (NASA)
Lieutenant Commander James B. Verdin, United States Navy. (J. R. Eyerman)
3 October 1953: Lieutenant Commander James B. Verdin, United States Navy, a test pilot assigned to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, flew the second prototype of the Douglas Aircraft Company’s XF4D-1 Skyray, Bu. No. 124587, over a three kilometer course at the Salton Sea, California. Flying at approximately 150 feet (46 meters), Commander Verdin made four passes, with two in each direction. He set a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed over a 3-kilometer course, averaging 1,211.75 kilometers per hour (752.95 miles per hour).¹
The surface of the Salton Sea, is 236 feet (72 meters) below Sea Level. The air temperature at the time of Verdin’s flight was 98.5 °F. (36.9 °C.). His four runs were measured at 1,200.691, 1,225.377, 1,200.656, and 1,222.294 kilometers per hour (746.075, 761.414, 746.053 and 759.498 miles per hour). The total elapsed time for the flight, from take off to landing at NAS El Centro, was 20 minutes, 25 seconds. The XF4D-1 burned 575 gallons (2,177 liters) of fuel.
Verdin had broken the record set 25 September 1953 by Michael J. Lithgow, chief test pilot for Vickers Supermarine, flying a Supermarine Swift F. Mk.4, WK198, at Castel Idris, Libya.²
In an interview with famed writer Bob Considine for his newspaper column, Verdin said,
“Douglas had its high priced help there at the course, and they iced my fuel for the Skyray while I took a look at the course from a Grumman Cougar,” he remembered. “They ice the fuel because that shrinks it and you can pack more in.
“We towed her out to the starting line to save the stuff. Didn’t even use blocks on the wheels after the engine was started. Just started rolling. I was in the air a little over a minute after the engine started, and headed for the measured course, 40 miles away.
“It was marked for me by smudge pots and burning tires, and orange-red markers to tell me when to turn off my afterburner, which eats fuel like crazy. About five miles short of the line I was doing 620 and turned on the afterburner. It gave me another hundred miles an hour right away, and I held her steady and low over the course. It doesn’t take long. . . about nine seconds for the just under two miles.”
—Bob Considine, On the Line—By Considine, International News Service, published in The Daily Review, Hayward, California, Vol. 62, No. 21, 20 October 1953, Page 14 at Columns 1–3
Douglas XF4D-1 Skyray Bu.No. 124587. (U.S. Navy)
The Douglas XF4D-1 Skyray was a single-place, single-engine delta-winged fighter powered by a turbojet engine. It had retractable tricycle landing gear and was to operate off of the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carriers as a high altitude interceptor. The Skyray was designed by the legendary Ed Heinemann, for which he was awarded the Collier Trophy in 1954. Two prototypes were built (Bu.Nos. 124586, 124587). It was a delta-winged aircraft, though the wingtips were significantly rounded.
The Douglas F4D-1 Skyray was 45 feet, 4¾ inches (13.837 meters) long, with a wingspan of 33 feet, 6 inches (10.211 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 8 inches (4.166 meters). The empty weight was 16,024 pounds (7,268 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight was 27,116 pounds (12,300 kilograms).
Originally built with Allison J35-A-17 turbojet engines, both prototypes later had a Westinghouse J40-WE-8 afterburning turbojet installed. The Skyray was equipped with the Westinghouse engine when it set the speed record. Production Skyrays used a Pratt & Whitney J57-P-8 afterburning turbojet.
The Westinghouse J40-W-8 was a single-shaft, axial-flow, afterburning turbojet engine with an 11-stage compressor and two-stage turbine. It produced 10,500 pounds of thrust (46.706 kilonewtons) at 7,600 r.p.m. The engine was 25 feet, 0 inches (7.620 meters) long, 3 feet, 4 inches (1.016 meters) in diameter and weighed 3,500 pounds (1,588 kilograms).
Douglas XF4D-1 Skyray, Bu.No. 124587. (U.S. Navy)
The F4D-1 was the first U.S. Navy fighter able to reach supersonic speeds in level flight. The production aircraft had a maximum speed of 722 miles per hour (1,162 kilometers per hour), and service ceiling of 55,000 feet (16.764 meters). Its rate of climb was 18,300 feet per minute (92.97 meters per second) and the maximum range was 1,200 miles (1,931 kilometers).
The Skyray was armed with four 20 mm Colt Mk 12 autocannon, with 65 rounds of ammunition per gun. It could also carry 2.75-inch FFAR rockets, four AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, or two 2,000 pound (1,588 kilogram) bombs.
The Douglas Aircraft Company built 420 F4D-1 Skyrays. They were in service with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps from 1956 until 1964.
Douglas XF4D-1 Bu.No. 124587 as a flight test aircraft for General Electric, at Edwards Air Force Base, circa 1955. (U.S. Navy)
The record-setting XF4D-1 was transferred to General Electric in July 1955 and used to test GE’s J79 afterburning turbojet engine and the commercial CJ805.
XF4D-1 Bu. No. 124587 was returned to the Navy in May 1960. It is on display at the U.S. Navy Museum of Armament and Technology, NAWS China Lake, California.
Lieutenant Commander James B. Verdin, USN (1918–1955)
James Bernard Verdin was born at Miles City, Montana, 23 February 1918, the son of James Harris Verdin, a farmer, and Nellie Cambron Verdin.
He attended Abraham Lincoln High School in Council Bluffs, Iowa, graduating in 1937, then studied at Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa. He was a member of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC), and the Theta Chi (ΘΧ) fraternity.
In 1940, Verdin was employed by the Standard Varnish Works, in Chicago, Illinois. He registered for Selective Service (conscription) 16 October 1940. He was described as being 5 feet, 9 inches (1.75 meters) tall, and weighing 160 pounds (72.6 kilograms). He had black hair, brown eyes, and a dark complexion.
He entered the United States Navy as a Seaman, 2nd Class, 11 July 1941. His enlistment was terminated 7 January 1942 and he was accepted as an Aviation Cadet. He was assigned to NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, for flight training. Verdin was commissioned as an Ensign, 18 June 1942.
Miss Kathryn Jane Marschner
Ensign Verdin married Miss Kathryn Jane Marschner at St. Michael’s Church, Pensacola, Florida, 4 August 1942. The ceremony was officiated by Rev. W. J Cusik. They lived in Coronado, California, near NAS North Island. They had one child. They divorced in 1948. Later, he married his second wife, Miss Muriel Carolyn Larson. They had three children and lived in Brentwood, California.
He was promoted to Lieutenant (Junior Grade), 1 May 1943, and then promoted to Lieutenant, 1 July 1944.
During World War II, Lieutenant James Bernard Verdin, U.S.N., was a fighter pilot flying the Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat, assigned to VF-20 aboard USS Enterprise (CV-6). He was awarded the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, 25 October 1944:
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant James Bernard Verdin, United States Naval Reserve, for extraordinary heroism in operations against the enemy while service as a Pilot of a carrier-based Navy Fighter Plane in Fighting Squadron TWENTY (VF-20), attached to the U.S.S. ENTERPRISE (CV-6), on a strike against the Japanese Fleet during the Battle for Leyte Gulf on 25 October 1944, in the Philippine Islands. With complete disregard for his own personal safety and in the face of intense anti-aircraft fire, Lieutenant Verdin attacked and scored a direct bomb hit on an enemy battleship. His outstanding courage and determined skill were at all times inspiring and in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
General Orders: Commander 1st Carrier Task Force Pacific: Serial 046. 31 January 1945
Grumman F6F Hellcats on the flight deck of USS Enterprise (CV-6), 30 October 1944. The aircraft carrier USS Belleau Wood (CVL-24) is burning on the horizon. (U.S. Navy)
Lieutenant Verdin flew more than 100 combat missions during World War II and the Korean War. In addition to the Navy Cross, Lieutenant Commander Verdin was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with one gold star, and the Air Medal with five gold stars.
Verdin resigned from the U.S. Navy 27 May 1954 and joined the Douglas Aircraft Company as a test pilot, June 1954.
While testing a Douglas YA4D-1 Skyhawk, Bu. No. 137815, 13 January 1955, Lieutenant Commander Verdin encountered violent vibrations during a high speed run near Victorville, California. He was forced to eject, but his parachute failed to open and he was killed. His body was not found until the following day, located 2½ miles from the crash site. Verdin was 37 years old.
During his career in the United States Navy, Lieutenant Commander Verdin had been awarded the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross with one gold star (two awards), and the Air Medal with five gold stars (six awards). His remains were buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, California.
Douglas Aircraft Company YA4D-1 Skyhawk, Bu. No. 137820, sister ship of Verdin’s Skyhawk. (Navy Pilot Overseas)
