The Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) was established on February 1, 1956 to turn  the experimental Redstone rocket into an operational weapon and to develop a new Jupiter Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM).

The Redstone missile development continued with routine missile qualification tests and several improvements were made to the Interim Test Stand.
 A load cell was added to directly measure the thrust of the missile.
 A cutoff system was added to detect rough combustion in the engine and automatically stop tests.
 This system prevented engine damage while engineers solved the problem.
 The first Redstone built by Chrysler was tested at the Interim Stand.
 Chrysler built thirty-eight developmental Redstone missiles and all sixty-three tactical Redstones in Detroit.
 In addition, several of the Redstone missiles were modified to aid the Jupiter missile development program.
 These longer missiles were called Jupiter-C and test fired on the Interim Stand after it was enlarged and strengthened.
 A series of tests using propellants chilled to −25 °F (−32 °C) established that the Redstone could be deployed in the Arctic.

In 1957 the permanent Propulsion and Structural Test Facility was finally completed using the funds appropriated by Congress for the Redstone, but the ABMA decided to continue using the Interim Test Stand for the Redstone.
 After four years of development, the interim facilities had proven adequate for testing the Redstone and Jupiter-C, and the Army felt that a move to the new facilities would be disruptive to its busy schedule.

Dr. von Braun had proposed to Project Orbiter  using a Redstone as the main booster for launching artificial satellites on June 25, 1954.
 The day Sputnik 1 launched, October 4, 1957, von Braun had been showing incoming Defense Secretary Neil McElroy around the Redstone Arsenal.
 They received the news about Sputnik as they relaxed that afternoon.
 Von Braun turned to McElroy.
 "We could have been in orbit a year ago," he said. "
We knew they [the Soviets] were going to do it!
 Vanguard will never make it.
 We have the hardware on the shelf… We can put up a satellite in 60 days."
 McElroy was not confirmed until the next week and did not have the power to back their proposal.
 On November 8, McElroy directed the Army to modify two Jupiter-C missiles and to place a satellite in orbit by March 1958.

The first stage was soon test fired.

Eighty-four days later, on January 31, 1958, the ABMA launched the first US satellite, Explorer I, into orbit.
 Following this successful launch, five more of these modified Jupiter-C missiles (subsequently re-designated Juno I) were launched in attempts to place additional Explorer satellites in orbit.
 During this satellite program, the Department of the Army gathered a great deal of knowledge about space.
Explorer I gathered and transmitted data on atmospheric densities and the earth's oblateness.
It is primarily remembered, though, as the discoverer of the Van Allen cosmic radiation belt.

Because of its proven reliability and accuracy, the Department of Defense decided to use the Redstone missile in tests to study the effects of nuclear detonations in the upper atmosphere, Operation Hardtack I.  After being static-fired at the Interim Stand in January 1958, two missiles were shipped to the Pacific Test Range.
 In July and August, the missiles became the first missiles ever to detonate atomic warheads.

In 1958, Redstone development ended and Chrysler began mass production for deployment.
 Only a few of these missiles were tested at the Interim Test Stand because the propulsion system had become so reliable.
The Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) was established on February 1, 1956 to turn  the experimental Redstone rocket into an operational weapon and to develop a new Jupiter Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM).
The Redstone missile development continued with routine missile qualification tests and several improvements were made to the Interim Test Stand.  A load cell was added to directly measure the thrust of the missile.  A cutoff system was added to detect rough combustion in the engine and automatically stop tests.  This system prevented engine damage while engineers solved the problem.  The first Redstone built by Chrysler was tested at the Interim Stand.  Chrysler built thirty-eight developmental Redstone missiles and all sixty-three tactical Redstones in Detroit.  In addition, several of the Redstone missiles were modified to aid the Jupiter missile development program.  These longer missiles were called Jupiter-C and test fired on the Interim Stand after it was enlarged and strengthened.  A series of tests using propellants chilled to −25 °F (−32 °C) established that the Redstone could be deployed in the Arctic.
In 1957 the permanent Propulsion and Structural Test Facility was finally completed using the funds appropriated by Congress for the Redstone, but the ABMA decided to continue using the Interim Test Stand for the Redstone.  After four years of development, the interim facilities had proven adequate for testing the Redstone and Jupiter-C, and the Army felt that a move to the new facilities would be disruptive to its busy schedule.
Dr. von Braun had proposed to Project Orbiter  using a Redstone as the main booster for launching artificial satellites on June 25, 1954.  The day Sputnik 1 launched, October 4, 1957, von Braun had been showing incoming Defense Secretary Neil McElroy around the Redstone Arsenal.  They received the news about Sputnik as they relaxed that afternoon.  Von Braun turned to McElroy.  "We could have been in orbit a year ago," he said. "We knew they [the Soviets] were going to do it!  Vanguard will never make it.  We have the hardware on the shelf… We can put up a satellite in 60 days."  McElroy was not confirmed until the next week and did not have the power to back their proposal.  On November 8, McElroy directed the Army to modify two Jupiter-C missiles and to place a satellite in orbit by March 1958.
The first stage was soon test fired.
Eighty-four days later, on January 31, 1958, the ABMA launched the first US satellite, Explorer I, into orbit.  Following this successful launch, five more of these modified Jupiter-C missiles (subsequently re-designated Juno I) were launched in attempts to place additional Explorer satellites in orbit.  During this satellite program, the Department of the Army gathered a great deal of knowledge about space. Explorer I gathered and transmitted data on atmospheric densities and the earth's oblateness. It is primarily remembered, though, as the discoverer of the Van Allen cosmic radiation belt.
Because of its proven reliability and accuracy, the Department of Defense decided to use the Redstone missile in tests to study the effects of nuclear detonations in the upper atmosphere, Operation Hardtack I.  After being static-fired at the Interim Stand in January 1958, two missiles were shipped to the Pacific Test Range.  In July and August, the missiles became the first missiles ever to detonate atomic warheads.
In 1958, Redstone development ended and Chrysler began mass production for deployment.  Only a few of these missiles were tested at the Interim Test Stand because the propulsion system had become so reliable.
Redstone Test Stand