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By late 1962, the United States was launching new satellites at a very rapid pace. Many were destroyed on the launch pad, others never turned on once in orbit, still more turned on and operated in a crippled form and/or only for a small portion of their intended lifespans. It was a learning period for the entire satellite, rocket, mission control, Earth-based tracking stations, and the communications equipment that dialoged with the satellites. The "race" part of the Space Race moniker was literal. Popular Electronics, QST, Electronics World, and other electronics communications publications regularly printed a list of newly commissioned satellites. The lists presented here came from five different 1962-1963 editions of Popular Electronics. The feature was repeated for many years. Incidentally, the "mc" frequency unit used at the time was the common abbreviation for "million cycles per second." In 1960, the Hertz was adopted by the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) (Conférence générale des poids et mesures) to replace cycles per second (cps). About a decade was required to get most people to use Hz as the base frequency unit; old habits die hard. See all articles from Popular Electronics
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Satellites on the Air| December 1962 | March 1963 | April 1963 | May 1963 | June 1963 |
The following satellites, launched by the United States and the Soviet Union, were reported to have beacon and telemetry transmissions as of October 10, 1962. The satellites are listed by their code names, according to frequency; because some transmit on more than one frequency, they appear more than once. Explorer VII Discoverer XXXVI Transit IVA Courier IB TIROS I TIROS III Vanguard I* TIROS III Telstar Transit IVA TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Explorer XIV Injun SR-3 Traac* OSO I Transit IVB TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Alouette Transit IVA Transit IIA Transit IIA Midas IV Midas IV
*Signal may be very weak At least four more satellites are in orbit and may be transmitting. However, these are so-called "secret" satellites launched by the U.S. Air Force. If you're interested in eavesdropping on satellites, and missed our June 1962 article on the NASA-136 converter, we recommend that you look it up. Easy to construct, this sensitive converter can intercept the satellites operating in the 136-137 mc. band .
| The following satellites, launched by the United States, were reported to have beacon and telemetry transmissions as of January 15, 1963 The satellites are listed by their code names, according to frequency; because some transmit on more than one frequency, they appear more than once Transit IVA Courier IB TIROS I TIROS III Vanguard 1* TIROS III Telstar Explorer XV Relay I Transit IVA Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Ariel Explorer XIV Injun SR·3 Alouette Relay I Traac* OSO I Transit IVB Anna Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Alouette Transit IVA Transit VA Transit IIA Transit IIA Midas IV Midas IV Transit VA
*Signal may be very weak There are several more satellites in orbit and may be transmitting However, these are so-called "secret" satellites launched by the U S Air Force If you're interested in eavesdropping on satellites, and missed our June 1962 article on the NASA-136 converter, we recommend that you look it up Easy to construct, this sensitive converter can intercept the satellites operating in the 136-137 mc band
| The following satellites, launched by the United States, were reported to have beacon and telemetry transmissions as of February 12, 1963. The satellites are listed by their code names, according to frequency; because some transmit on more than one frequency, they appear more than once. Transit IVA Courier IB TIROS I TIROS III Vanguard I* TIROS III Telstar Explorer XV Relay I Transit IVA Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Ariel Explorer XIV Injun SR-3 Alouette Relay I Traac* OSO I Transit IVB Anna IB Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Alouette Transit IVA Transit VA Transit IIA Transit IIA Midas IV Midas IV Transit VA
*Signal may be very weak There are several more satellites in orbit which may be transmitting. However, these are so-called "secret" satellites launched by the U.S. Air Force. If you're interested in eavesdropping on satellites, and missed our June 1962 article on the NASA-136 converter, we recommend that you look it up. Easy to construct, this sensitive converter can intercept the satellites operating in the 136-137 mc. band.
| The following satellites, launched by the United States, were reported to have beacon and telemetry transmissions as of March 13. 1963. The satellites are listed by their code names, according to frequency; because some transmit on more than one frequency. they appear more than once. Transit IVA Courier IB TIROS I TIROS III Vanguard 1* TIROS III Telstar Explorer XV Relay I Transit IVA Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Ariel Explorer XIV Injun SR-3 Alouette Relay I Traac* OSO I Transit IVB Anna IB Explorer XVI TIROS IV TIROS V and TIROS VI Alouette Transit IVA Transit VA Transit IIA Transit IIA Midas IV Midas IV Transit VA
*Signal may be very weak There are several more satellites in orbit which may be transmitting. However, these are so-called "secret" satellites launched by the U.S. Air Force. If you're interested in eavesdropping on satellites, and missed our June 1962 article on the NASA-136 converter, we recommend that you look it up. Easy to construct, this sensitive converter can intercept the satellites operating in the 136-137 mc. band.
| The following satellites, launched by the United States, were reported to have beacon and telemetry transmissions as of April 17, 1963. The satellites are listed by their code names, according to frequency; because some transmit on more than one frequency, they appear more than once. Transit 4A Vanguard 1* Relay 1 Transit 4A Explorer 16** Tiros 4 Tiros 6 Tiros 5 Explorer 17** Ariel Explorer 14 Explorer 17 Alouette** Relay 1 OSO I Anna 1B Explorer 16 Injun 3** Tiros 6 Tiros 5 Anna 1B Alouette Transit 4A Anna 1B
*Transmits only while satellite is in sunlight - no battery power **Transmits only upon command from ground stations - not during every pass Satellites of the Soviet Union have telemetry and tracking transmissions in the 19.990 - 20.010 mc. band. Whenever a Cosmos series satellite is launched, check Radio Moscow for an announcement of tracking frequencies. Most Cosmos series satellites re-enter the atmosphere in 60-90 days. Cosmos 2, 5, and 8 are in orbit at press time, but do not seem to be transmitting. If you're interested in eavesdropping on satellites, and missed our June 1962 article on the NASA-136 converter, we recommend that you look it up. Easy to construct, this sensitive converter can intercept the satellites operating in the 136-137 mc. band.
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Posted March 30, 2014
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