Birth of Satellite Navigation
US Air Force Scout rockets launched the first global navigation satellites. A constellation of satellites called “Transit” operated by the US Navy guided military ships and submarines starting in 1964 and later aided commercial ships. Transit also helped increase Earth mapping accuracy. The Global Positioning System (GPS) replaced Transit after 1996.
The Air Force launched most military Scout rockets from Vandenberg AFB, California. The USAF launched 51 Scout rockets including an early test variant called Blue Scout. USAF Scout rockets also launched a series of Explorer satellites to study Earth and space. Some USAF suborbital Scout launches tested missile ballistics.
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(Published August 20, 2013) DAYTON, Ohio - In 1959 the city of Tucson, Ariz., presented the Doolittle Raiders with a set of silver goblets, each bearing the name of one of the 80 men who flew on the Doolittle Tokyo Raid in April 1942.
