After numerous failures, the US Navy also managed to launch its own satellite into orbit with the Vanguard rocket. Competition between the three agencies (US Army, US Navy, and US Air Force) during the early stages of the space race proved detrimental to the United States; this was also the reason NASA was created. Vanguard I began orbiting the Earth and is still there today, making it the oldest artificial satellite still in orbit. It was the first US Navy launch, and the initial competition between the various agencies (USAF, US Army, and US Navy) in the United States, efforts that would strategically converge within the civilian agency NASA for civilian launches. This did not happen in the Soviet Union, where the various bureaus continued to compete with each other and compete for scarce funding. Vanguard I is still in orbit, and is in fact the oldest artificial satellite in orbit. It is estimated that it will re-enter the atmosphere around 2198.
