Syncom
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Syncom(for "synchronous communication satellite") started as a 1961NASAprogram for activegeosynchronouscommunication satellites,all of which were developed and manufactured by the Space and Communications division ofHughes Aircraft Company(now theBoeing Satellite Development Center). Syncom 2, launched in 1963, was the world's first geosynchronous communications satellite. Syncom 3, launched in 1964, was the world's firstgeostationary satellite.[citation needed]
In the 1980s, the series was continued as Syncom IV with some much larger satellites, also manufactured by Hughes. They were leased to theUnited States militaryunder the Leasat program.
Syncom 1, 2 and 3
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Common features
[edit]The three early Syncom satellites were experimental spacecraft built byHughes Aircraft Company's facility inCulver City, California,by a team led byHarold Rosen,Don Williams, and Thomas Hudspeth.[1]All three satellites were cylindrical in shape, with a diameter of about 71 centimetres (28 in) and a height of about 39 centimetres (15 in). Pre-launch fueled masses were 68 kilograms (150 lb), and orbital masses were 39 kilograms (86 lb) with a 25-kilogram (55 lb)payload.They were capable of emitting signals on twotranspondersat just 2W.Thus, Syncom satellites were only capable of carrying a single two-way telephone conversation, or 16Teletypeconnections. As of 25 June 2009,[update]all three satellites are still in orbit, although no longer functioning.[2]
Syncom 1
[edit]Syncom 1was intended to be the firstgeosynchronouscommunications satellite. It was launched on February 14, 1963, with theDelta B#16launch vehiclefromCape Canaveral,but was lost on the way to geosynchronous orbit due to an electronics failure.[3]Seconds after theapogeekick motor for circularizing the orbit was fired, the spacecraft fell silent. Later telescopic observations verified the satellite was in an orbit with a period of almost 24 hours at a 33° inclination.
Syncom 2
[edit]Syncom 2was launched by NASA on July 26, 1963[4]with theDelta B#20 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral. The satellite successfully kept station at the altitude calculated byHerman Potočnik Noordungin the 1920s.
During the first year of Syncom 2 operations, NASA conducted voice, teletype, and facsimile tests,[4]as well as 110 public demonstrations to show the capabilities of this satellite and invite feedback. In August 1963, PresidentJohn F. Kennedyin Washington, D.C., telephoned Nigerian Prime MinisterAbubakar Tafawa BalewaaboardUSNSKingsportdocked inLagosHarbor—the first live two-way call between heads of government by satellite. TheKingsportacted as a control station and uplink station.[5][circular reference][6]
Syncom 2 also relayed a number of test television transmissions from Fort Dix, New Jersey to a ground station in Andover, Maine, beginning on September 29, 1963. Although it was low-quality video with no audio, it was the first successful television transmission through a geosynchronous satellite.[4]
Syncom 3
[edit]Syncom 3was the firstgeostationarycommunication satellite, launched on August 19, 1964 with theDelta D#25 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral. The satellite, in orbit near theInternational Date Line,had the addition of a wideband channel for television and was used to telecast the1964 Summer OlympicsinTokyoto theUnited States.[7]Although Syncom 3 is sometimes credited with the first television program to cross thePacific Ocean,theRelay 1satellite first broadcast television from the United States to Japan on November 22, 1963.[8]: 1
Transfer to Department of Defense control
[edit]By the end of 1964, Syncoms 2 and 3 had completed NASA's R&D experiments. On January 1, 1965, NASA transferred operation of the satellites to theUnited States Department of Defense(DOD) along with telemetry, command stations, and range and rangefinding equipment. DOD had, in fact, provided the communications ground stations used to relay transmissions via the two Syncoms since their launch. DOD agreed to provide telemetry and ranging data of continuing scientific and engineering interest.[citation needed]
In 1965, Syncom 3 was implemented to support the DOD's communications in Vietnam.[9]
Turned off in 1969, Syncom 3 remains ingeosynchronous orbitas of 2024.[update][10]In 50 years it has drifted east, to longitude 123 W.[11]
Syncom IV (Leasat)
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The five satellites of the 1980s Leasat (Leased Satellite) program (Leasat F1 through Leasat F5) were alternatively named Syncom IV-1 to Syncom IV-5 and called HS 381 by the manufacturer.[12]These satellites were considerably larger than Syncoms 1 to 3, weighing 1.3tonneseach (over 7 tonnes with launch fuel). At 4.26 metres (14.0 ft), the satellites were the first to be designed for launch from theSpace Shuttlepayload bay,[13]and were deployed like aFrisbee.[14]The satellites are 30 rpmspin-stabilizedwith a despun communications and antenna section. They were made with a solid rocket motor for initial perigee burn andhydrazinepropellant for station keeping and spin stabilization. The communications systems offers a wideband UHF channel (500 kHz bandwidth), six relay 25 kHz channels, and five narrowband 5 kHz channels.[15]This is in addition to the fleet broadcast frequency, which is in the military's X-band. The system was used by military customers in the US and later in Australia. Most of the satellites were retired in the 1990s, but one would remain operational until 2015. During theFirst Gulf War,Leasat would be used for personal communications between Secretary of StateJames Bakerand PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush,[16]but was more typically used by "mobile air, surface, subsurface, and fixed earth stations of the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Army."[15]
Hughes was contracted to provide a worldwide communications system based on four satellites, one over the continental United States (CONUS), and one each over theAtlantic,Pacific,andIndianoceans, spaced about 90 degrees apart.[13]Five satellites were ordered, with one as a replacement. Also part of the contract were the associated control systems and ground stations. The lease contracts were typically for five-year terms, with the lessee having the opportunity to extend the lease or to purchase the equipment outright. TheUS Navywas the original lessee.
Leasat F1's launch was canceled just prior to lift-off, and F2 became the first into orbit on August 30, 1984 aboardSpace ShuttleDiscoveryon shuttle missionSTS-41-D.F2 was largely successful, but its wideband receiver was out of commission after only four months.[16]F1 was launched successfully on November 8, 1984 aboardSTS-51-A.This was followed on April 12, 1985 by Leasat F3 onSTS-51-D.F3's launch was declared a failure when the satellite failed to start its maneuver to geostationary orbit once released fromDiscovery.Attempts by Shuttle astronauts to activate F3 with a makeshift "flyswatter" were unsuccessful.[16]The satellite was left in low Earth orbit, and the Space Shuttle returned to Earth. This failure made front-page news inThe New York Times.[17]Hughes had an insurance policy on the satellite, and so claimed a total loss for the spacecraft of about $200 million, an amount underwritten by numerous parties.
However, with another satellite planned to be launched, it was determined that a space walk by a subsequent Shuttle crew might be able to "wake" the craft. The best guess was that a switch had failed to turn on the satellite. A "bypass box" was hastily constructed, NASA was excited to offer assistance, the customer was supportive, and the insurance underwriters agreed to fund the first ever attempt at space salvage.[17]
On August 27, 1985Discoverywas again used to launch Leasat F4, and during the same mission (STS-51-I) captured the 15,000 lb stricken F3. AstronautJames van Hoftengrappled and thenmanuallyspun down the F3 satellite. After the bypass box was installed by van Hoften andBill Fisher,[18]van Hoften manually spun the satellite up. Once released, the F3 successfully powered up, fired its perigee motor and obtained a geostationary orbit. (This scenario would play out again in 1992 withIntelsat 603andSpace ShuttleEndeavour.) While F3 was now operational, Leasat F4 soon failed and was itself declared a loss after only 40 hours of RF communications.[16][18]
The stricken F4 did not remain a complete failure. Data from F4's failure permitted the saving of F1 from a premature failure. Since all of the Leasats are spin-stabilized, they have a bearing that connects the non-rotating and rotating parts of the spacecraft. After F4's communication failure, it suffered a spin lock while attempting to jostle the communications payload: the spun and despun sections locked together.[16]Remembering this second failure of F4, and with F1 beginning to wear out at the spin bearing, it was decided to "flip" F1 every six months to keep the payload in the sun.[16]Thus F1 went on to operate smoothly for its remaining life and never encountered a locked despun section.
Leasat F4 was subsequently powered down and moved to a graveyard orbit with a large amount of station keeping fuel in reserve. This was fortuitous; when another satellite suffered a loss of its fuel ten years later, Hughes engineers pioneered the use of alternative propellants with Leasat F4. Long after its primary mission had failed, F4 was powered back on to test whether a satellite could be kept on station using nonvolatile propellants.[16]F4 was used to perform numerous tests, including maneuvers with oxidizer for propulsion once the hydrazine ran out.
The fifth and last Leasat (F5), which was built as a spare, was successfully launched bySpace ShuttleColumbiamissionSTS-32on January 9, 1990. The last active Leasat, it was officially decommissioned on September 24, 2015, at 18:25:13 UTC.[19]F5 was one of the longest-serving and most successful commercial satellites. Towards the end of its 25-year life, F5 had been leased by theAustralian Defence Forcefor UHF service.
| Date | Name | ID | Launch vehicle |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963-02-14 | Syncom 1 | 1963-004A | Thor Delta B |
| 1963-07-26 | Syncom 2 | 1963-031A | Thor Delta B |
| 1964-08-19 | Syncom 3 | 1964-047A | Thor Delta D |
| 1984-11-10 | Leasat F1 | 1984-093C | Space ShuttleDiscovery,STS-51-A |
| 1984-08-31 | Leasat F2 | 1984-113C | Space ShuttleDiscovery,STS-41-D |
| 1985-04-12 | Leasat F3 | 1985-028C | Space ShuttleDiscovery,STS-51-D |
| 1985-08-29 | Leasat F4 | 1985-076D | Space ShuttleDiscovery,STS-51-I |
| 1990-01-09 | Leasat F5 | 1990-002B | Space ShuttleColumbia,STS-32 |
See also
[edit]- List of communications satellite firsts
- ATS-1– Early geostationary communications and weather satellite, launched in 1966
- John H. Rubel– United States Department of Defense official (1920–2015)
References
[edit]- ^Wichter, Zach (February 2, 2017)."Harold Rosen, Who Ushered in the Era of Communication Satellites, Dies at 90".The New York Times.
- ^"U.S. Space Objects Registry".Archived fromthe originalon October 6, 2013.
- ^"The Room-Size World".TIME.May 14, 1965. Archived fromthe originalon May 20, 2009.
- ^abcHenry, Varice F.; McDonald, Michael E. (July 1965)."Television Tests with the Syncom II Synchronous Communications Satellite (NASA technical note D-2911)"(PDF).NTRS.nasa.gov.NASA.Archived(PDF)from the original on October 9, 2022.RetrievedDecember 7,2014.
- ^Uhlig, Thomas; Sellmaier, Florian; Schmidhuber, Michael (2014).Spacecraft Operations.New York: Springer.ISBN9783709118023.LCCN2014945749.RetrievedJune 13,2020.
- ^Williamson, Mark (2006).Spacecraft Technology: the early years.London: Institution of Electrical Engineers.ISBN9780863415531.LCCN2008530215.RetrievedJune 13,2020.
- ^"For Gold, Silver & Bronze".TIME.October 16, 1964. Archived fromthe originalon April 21, 2008.
- ^"Significant Achievements in Space Communications and Navigation, 1958-1964"(PDF).NASA-SP-93.NASA. 1966. pp. 30–32.Archived(PDF)from the original on October 9, 2022.RetrievedOctober 31,2009.
- ^"Aeronautics and Astronautics, 1965"(PDF).NASA. 1966.Archived(PDF)from the original on October 9, 2022.RetrievedJanuary 2,2019.
- ^"Detailed information about SYNCOM 3 satellite, 1964-047A, TLE data for Norad 858".Infosatellites.Archivedfrom the original on March 4, 2016.RetrievedJuly 14,2024.
The spacecraft next carried out a series of attitude and velocity maneuvers to align itself with the equator at an inclination of 0.1 degrees and to slow its speed so it drifted west to the planned location at 180 degrees longitude where its speed at altitude was synchronized with the Earth.
- ^"Track SYNCOM 3 Satellite in Real Time".Infosatellites.Archived fromthe originalon March 4, 2016.Requires Javascript.
- ^"The Men Who Staff HCI's LEASAT Earth Stations Are Accustomed to Working on Their Own".Uplink.Hughes Communications. Summer 1994. Archived fromthe originalon May 5, 1999.
- ^ab"LEASAT".Military Space Programs.Federation of American Scientists. Archived fromthe originalon June 23, 2012.
- ^Fisher, Jack (January 3, 2013)."Leasat Beginnings and Significance–Boris Subbotin".Our Space Heritage 1960–2000.
- ^ab"First Satellite Designed for Space Shuttle Launch".Defense, Space & Security.Boeing. Archived fromthe originalon December 30, 2009.
- ^abcdefgFisher, Jack (November 2, 2015)."LEASAT F5, The Final Chapter-Andy Ott".Our Space Heritage 1960-2000.
- ^abFisher, Jack (April 23, 2013)."The Leasat Rescue Mission—Steve Dorfman".Our Space Heritage 1960–2000.
- ^ab"The LEASAT Program That Launched HCI Completes 13 Years Of Service".Uplink.Hughes Communications. Winter 1993. Archived fromthe originalon May 7, 1999.
- ^Nerenberg, Sharyn (January 24, 2015)."Another Intelsat Satellite Serves Customers for More Than 25 Years".Intelsat. Archived fromthe originalon September 26, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 25,2015.
Further reading
[edit]- "Boeing. Satellite Development Center. Syncom. The world's first geosynchronous communications satellite".Archived fromthe originalon November 11, 2010.
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External links
[edit]- Syncom 2 satellite description
- NASA Goddard Space Flight center descriptions: