Doctor: "I've got some bad news and some really bad news. The bad news is you only have a week to live."
Patient: "What could be worse news than that?"
Doctor: "I've been trying to contact you for the last 6 days."
First rocket to reach outer spaceIn 1949, "the first recorded man-made object to reach extraterrestrial space" was launched from the White Sands Proving Grounds, New Mexico. The two-stage rocket, called "Bumper WAC Corporal" Round 5, had a first stage that was a V-2 rocket (German A-4) rocket with the warhead replaced by a launching compartment. After the V-2 reached its highest altitude, the second stage was launched having received its "bump" toward outer space from it. From its mount in the nose cone a modified "WAC Corporal" sounding rocket which completed the flight. It was the first to carry telemetry transmitting technical information to groud stations, including high-altitude temperature measurements. It reached a record speed of 5,150 mph and a record altitude of 244 miles.« |
