Cape Canaveral marks 75 years since its first rocket launch

It is 75 years since the first rocket launch from Cape Canaveral: a two-stage rocket consisting of a German V-2 missile and a US sounding rocket.

The system, dubbed the "Bumper V-2," was launched from Cape Canaveral on July 24, 1950.

The first six Bumper flights had been conducted from the White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico, eventually reaching a speed of 5,000 mph and an altitude of more than 244 miles. However, Florida would provide engineers with a site offering a far greater horizontal range over water.

The program began in 1947 and was intended to demonstrate a two-stage rocket, with separation occurring at high speed. The plan was also to set altitude and velocity records, which was achieved in New Mexico, but not replicated in Florida.

The first stage was the V-2 missile, developed by Nazi Germany during ...