Telstar 1 – Scientist of the Day

Telstar 1, the world's first telecommunications satellite, was launched by NASA for AT&T and Bell Labs on July 10, 1962.

Yesterday's update was focused on the anniversary of the very first telecommunications satellite launched into space. Telstar 1, which belonged to the company AT&T, was to be the first communication satellite to deliver TV pictures, fax, and even voice calls through space. 

When the small spherical satellite was sent to space in July 1962, it transformed the way communications work for us today. Many look at that historic moment as one of the precursors into the digital age as we know it today. Although Telstar 1 carried only one transponder to relay date, it was a complex mechanism able to deliver either multiplexed telephone circuits or television channels.

However, the satellite's service didn't last long. By December of the same year of its launch, Telstar 1's fragile transistors failed. Aside from the effects of the high-pressure and high-powered launch into space, the communications satellite also faced overwhelming radiation - the effects of US testing of the high-altitude nuclear bomb Starfish Prime.

The nuclear blast not only created a huge electromagnetic pulse over the Pacific, but also release a high number of energy electrons. Telstar 1's electronic equipment, although restarted again by January of 1963, became irreparable with a transistor failure. The satellite went out of service the following month. 

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50 years ago today, 10 July, Telstar 1 became the world's first communications satellite, as well as the first privately-funded rocket launch. ATT designed the satellite, which went into commercial service shortly thereafter. Interestingly enough, the satellite was not places into geosynchronous orbit, instead having an elliptical orbit 45 degrees to the equator, giving customers a 20 minute window for transatlantic telecommunications during each 2.5 hour orbit.

All modern communications satellites have been based off of systems first tested with Telstar, and during its live provided invaluable service to people the world over. The most recent member of the Telstar family, Telstar 18, launched in June 2004.