| NASA Center: |
Goddard Space Flight Center |
|---|
| Image # : |
G-63-3266 |
|---|
| Date : |
07/26/1963
|
|---|
|
Title
Syncom, the First Geosynchronous Satellite
Full Description
By 1960, Hughes, RCA and AT&T were urging NASA to develop a
different type of communications satellite. Hughes believed that
geosynchronous satellites, which orbit Earth 22,300 miles
(35,900 km) above the ground, offered the best location because
the high orbit allowed the satellites' orbital speed to match
the rotation speed of Earth and therefore remain essentially
stable over the same spot. With the Defense Department's active
support, NASA offered Hughes a sole-source contract to develop
an experimental geosynchronous satellite, which it called
Syncom. Only 17 months after Goddard Space Flight Center awarded
the contract, NASA launched Syncom I, but it stopped sending
signals a few seconds before it reached its final orbit. Five
months later, NASA then launched Syncom II, which demonstrated
the viability of the system. The third Syncom transmitted live
coverage of the Olympic games in Tokyo to stations in North
America and Europe.
Keywords
Hughes Syncom Geosynchronous Satelitte
Subject Category
Earth Science,
Reference Numbers
- Center:
GSFC
- Center Number:
G-63-3266
- GRIN DataBase Number:
GPN-2002-000123
Source Information
- Creator/Photographer: NASA
- Original Source: DIGITAL
| Resolution | Format | Width
(Pixels) | Height
(Pixels) | Size
(KBytes) |
Thumbnail |
JPEG |
63 |
47 |
5 |
Small |
JPEG |
448 |
334 |
91 |
Medium |
JPEG |
1050 |
782 |
447 |
Large |
JPEG |
1 |
1563 |
1,577 |
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Updated October 31, 2002
• History Questions: NASA History Office
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