Vanguard

A French adaptation of two works by Martin Caidin (Vanguard! and Countdown for Tomorrow, 1957), this volume chronicles the development of the American Vanguard satellite program during the International Geophysical Year (1957–1958). The first nine chapters detail the program's origins, the technical design of the three-stage launch vehicle (modified Viking, X-405, Aerobee-Hi), and launch operations at Cape Canaveral; the final four broaden the perspective to the history of astronautical projects since the 1920s, the political impact of Sputnik on the United States, and the Soviet roots of the space race. Written before the first launches of 1957–1958 and published after the fact, the book stands as a contemporaneous record of expectation and urgency at the dawn of the Space Age.