Final answer:
The U.S.'s initial attempts to launch a satellite failed under the Vanguard program, with crashes and explosions, until Explorer 1 was successfully launched by a military vehicle called Jupiter-C. The Galileo mission's technical problems were solved by mission engineers with various adjustments.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first two attempts by the United States to launch a satellite into space were part of the Vanguard program, and both attempts ended in failure, with each of the early launches crashing or exploding. This was during a time when the Soviet Union had successfully launched Sputnik 1, the world's first human-made satellite, thereby starting the space race. The U.S. government, motivated by a need to maintain the nation's prestige, spurred its scientists and engineers toward greater efforts in space exploration. A military launch vehicle known as Jupiter-C, which was quietly developed by a separate team of rocket engineers and scientists, eventually carried a small satellite designed with instruments spearheaded by Van Allen. This led to the successful launch of the United States' first satellite, Explorer 1, on January 31, 1958. Quentin's answer to technical problems during space missions likely refers to resolving engineering challenges, such as the Galileo mission's technical issues en route to Jupiter, which were addressed by mission engineers through diagnostics and adjustments.