Fantastic Plastic Spacecraft & Missiles Banner

Project Vanguard Satellite (1958)

Project Vanguard Satellite - 1

Hawk Models Logo

SCALE: 1/5

INITIAL RELEASE: 1958

MEDIUM: Polystyrene

RARITY: (4)

 

Project Vanguard Satellite - 2

 

Project Vanguard Satellite - 3

Project Vanguard Satellite - 4

 

Project Vanguard Satellite - 5

 

Project Vanguard Satellite - 6

Vanguard Satellite in Orbit

 

ABOUT THE DESIGN

ABOUT THE KIT

In 1955, the United States began to plan for the upcoming International Geophysical Year (1957-1958) by preparing to launch what it believed would be the world's first artificial satellite.  Dubbed "Project Vanguard" and developed under the auspices of the U.S. Navy, the Vanguard satellite was a grapefruit-sized sphere packed with simple scientific instruments designed to transmit basic data about low orbit conditions back to Earth.  Unfortunately, Russia's surprise launch of Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957, took bragging rights away from the United States, a situation made doubly dire by the televised failure of the first Vanguard launch on December 6 of that same year.  Vanguard finally did make it into orbit on March 17, 1958 -- but only after the U.S. Army's successful launch of Explorer 1 the previous February.

This simple but dramatic "See-Thru" model of the Vanguard satellite was based on early designs. (The actual Vanguard had solar cells on its exterior.)  Like many space models of the period, it was designed to have an "educational" purpose, thus the decals that identified each of the satellite's instruments.

Released by Hawk Models in 1958, the the kit was re-released with its original box art in 1966,

This model was built from the 1966 re-issue.

 

Project Vanguard Satellite - Hawk Box Art

Original Box Art

 

Spacecraft & Missiles

1900-1930

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

Home   X-Planes   Concept Aircraft   Spacecraft & Missiles   Concept Spacecraft   Science Fiction   Grab Bag