50th Anniversary
The Vanguard 1 satellite holds the record for being in space longer than any other man-made object. On March 17, 2008 it logged its 50th year in Earth orbit.
A small group of former NRL and NASA workers had been in communication, and a number of government agencies were asked to commemorate the event. The Naval Research Laboratory commemorated the event with a day-long meeting at NRL on March 17, 2008. The meeting concluded with a simulation of the satellite's track as it passed into the orbital area visible from Washington, D.C. (where it is visible from the Earth's surface). The National Academy of Sciences scheduled some seminars to mark the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year, which were the only official observances known.
Read more about this topic: Vanguard 1
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“The second day of July 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more”
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