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Sputnik Declassified
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Program Overview
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Through declassified documents, archival photos, and interviews with
historians, participants, and experts, NOVA reveals the story behind
America's pursuit of a satellite, and what caused the United States
to lag behind Sputnik 1, the first satellite launched in 1957.
The program:
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points out that the story begins in World War II, with the
experiences of two significant figures: Dwight D. Eisenhower and
Wernher von Braun.
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reports on how Eisenhower's 30-plus years in the military made
avoiding another war his highest priority.
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chronicles von Braun's childhood dream of pioneering space
travel in order to explore, and reports on how that dream was
harnessed by the German military for its own purposes.
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discloses that Pearl Harbor showed Eisenhower the need for
having accurate information about the intentions and
capabilities of America's enemies.
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reviews Eisenhower's formation of a secret committee to
determine the best way to avoid a surprise attack by the
Soviets.
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discloses the committee's recommendations to develop
reconnaissance satellites to provide reliable information on
threats to the United States.
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explains the committee's directive to establish the freedom of
space for all nations through a scientific Earth satellite
program, as a means to set a precedent that would allow the spy
satellite Eisenhower wanted.
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illustrates how in 1687 Isaac Newton first described how firing
a cannon from the top of a mountain could create a satellite.
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traces Germany's development of the ballistic missile and
reports how the team led by Wernher von Braun tackled
propulsion, cooling, aerodynamic, and guidance challenges.
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recounts how during World War II the German V-2 ballistic
missiles were mass-produced in an underground factory staffed by
slave laborers from concentration camps.
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notes how the 1957–58 International Geophysical Year set
the stage for development of the first satellite.
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details the two leading proposals in the U.S. efforts to build a
satellite—one by an army team led by von Braun and another
by the Naval Research Laboratory—and reports on the
controversy surrounding the choice, and secret reasons behind
it.
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chronicles how the Soviets, after experiencing serious delays
with their original satellite development, switched gears and
quickly assembled and successfully launched the beach-ball
sized, 184-pound satellite named Sputnik.
Taping Rights: Can be used up to one year after program is
recorded off the air.
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