![]() Model of a Telstar satellite, on display at Conservatoire national des arts et métiers | |
Manufacturer | Hughes, EADS Astrium, Space Systems/Loral, Airbus Defence and Space |
---|---|
Country of origin | United States |
Operator | AT&T, Telesat |
Applications | Communications |
Specifications | |
Regime | Medium Earth / Geostationary |
Production | |
Status | In service |
Launched | 21 |
Telstar is the name of various communications satellites. The first two Telstar satellites were experimental and nearly identical. Telstar 1 launched on top of a Thor-Delta rocket on July 10, 1962. It successfully relayed through space the first television pictures, telephone calls, and telegraph images, and provided the first live transatlantic television feed. Telstar 2 was launched May 7, 1963. Telstar 1 and 2—though no longer functional—still orbit the Earth.[1]