Telecommunications Satellites begin
Telecommunications satellites are pivotal in modern global communication, enabling the transmission of signals across vast distances. The concept originated in the late 1920s when scientists proposed systems for relaying electromagnetic signals. This foundational work culminated in the launch of the first satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958, which sparked widespread interest in satellite communication. The first operational telecommunications satellite, Telstar, was launched on July 10, 1962, and marked a significant advancement by actively amplifying and repeating signals. Following Telstar, other satellites like Relay 1 and Syncom 3 further enhanced capabilities, including geosynchronous positioning and live television broadcasts.
By the mid-1960s, satellites became commercialized with the launch of Intelsat 1, which facilitated international communications and broadcasts. The utility of telecommunications satellites extends beyond television to various applications, including weather monitoring, military communication, and global positioning systems. By the end of the 20th century, satellite communications had become integral to daily life, transforming how information is disseminated and accessed worldwide. This technology continues to evolve, playing a crucial role in shaping contemporary media and communication landscapes.
Telecommunications Satellites begin
The technological development that made possible instantaneous, global communication. Telecommunications satellites have resulted in vast changes for civilians, governments, and the military.
Origins and History
Beginning in the late 1920’s, scientists described the parts of a satellite communications system that would function by relaying electromagnetic signals from transmitters and to receivers. They theorized about and described the necessary components for geostationary satellites in orbits that would make possible instantaneous, global communication. Research continued toward these ends, and by December 19, 1958, an Atlas launch vehicle boosted the first satellite into Earth orbit and transmitted President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Christmas address to the nation. This development made the world aware of the possibilities of satellite communication.
Telstar was launched into low orbit on July 10, 1962. Although in 1960 the United States Army had launched its own communication satellite, Courier 1B, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Bell Laboratories had collaborated on Echo 1, both satellites were passive, merely relaying electromagnetic signals from transmitters to receivers. Telstar was the first active communication satellite that is, amplifying and repeating signals as well as the first communication satellite to be privately owned (by Bell Telephone and American Telephone and Telegraph). On July 11, 1962, Telstar relayed the first live television images across the Atlantic Ocean.
Telstar was followed in late 1962 by Relay 1, which RCA provided for NASA. By 1964, after two failures, Hughes Aircraft’s Syncom 3 achieved geosynchronous orbit, which allowed the satellite to remain fixed over the same spot on Earth’s surface and also provided American audiences with television transmissions from the Tokyo Olympic Games. Intelsat 1, the “Early Bird,” was launched on April 6, 1965, by Hughes for Comsat, a corporation created by Congress in 1962 as a joint venture between the U.S. government and private businesses and which became an important member of the multinational International Telecommunications Satellite Consortium (Intelsat), also formed in 1962. Intelsat 1, an important step in the commercialization of satellite communications, relayed such diverse images as those of Houston heart surgeons, French nuclear scientists, and U.S. troops patrolling in the Dominican Republic. NASA’s Applications Technology Satellite (ATS1) made history on December 16, 1966, when it photographed the full disk of Earth.
Impact
Telstar inaugurated what became an orbital and frequency traffic jam. Along with weather and military usages, satellites provided the benefits of Search and Rescue operations (SARSAT) and Global Positioning (GPS), among a plethora of other applications. By the end of the twentieth century, satellite communications had become ubiquitous. For many, the greatest impact has been on television transmission, which allows viewers immediate access to events and information previously available only on film or in printed media. Instantaneous coverage showing the horrors of the Vietnam War, for example, may have speeded the end of that conflict or at least increased opposition to the war.
Additional Information
ACTS: System Overview, published by NASA in 1994, contains detailed information about developments in telecommunications technology and application.