The First GPS Satellite Launched (1978)

Hello there. My name is Gladys West, and I absolutely love numbers. To me, numbers are like a secret code to understand our big, beautiful world. When I was a little girl, I used to wonder, 'How do we know exactly where we are.'. I imagined a magical map that could tell you, 'You are right HERE.' so no one would ever get lost again.

My friends and I had a super-duper idea. What if we sent a special helper, a shiny satellite, way up into the sky to live with the stars?. This helper would be very smart and could send tiny, invisible messages down to Earth. On a very exciting day, February 22nd, 1978, we all watched as a big rocket got ready. With a loud countdown, 5-4-3-2-1. WHOOSH. The rocket blasted off, carrying our first little star, named Navstar 1, up, up, up into space.

And guess what?. It worked. Our little star started sending its secret messages. Soon, we sent up more satellite friends to join it. Now, when your family uses a map on a phone to find the way to the playground, they are listening to my stars. They help us all find our way. So next time you look up at the sky, remember that my friends and I put some helpful stars up there, all because we were curious and worked together.