EMRFD Message Archive 8955

Message Date From Subject
8955 2013-08-14 05:13:04 Ashhar Farhan war skies and dipoles
i am sure this qualifies as experimental methods in radio ...
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/08/project-west-ford/

- farhan


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8965 2013-08-15 15:53:34 Andy Re: war skies and dipoles
> i am sure this qualifies as experimental methods in radio ...
> http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/08/project-west-ford/


Located in Westford, MA, is the Haystack Observatory. It got its name from
the Needles / West Ford projects. One of its initial goals was to send and
receive radio signals to/from the copper "ionosphere".

It's interesting how long the needles have remained in orbit. They are
still being tracked by NORAD. I guess the atmospheric drag is too small.

In hindsight (and not knowing much about space physics), I wonder whether
the idea that they would have dispersed even makes sense? What would have
pushed them apart? If anything, I would think mutual gravity might have
brought them back together.

I wonder if it is practical for hams to try using them for communications
today.

I read that the needles occasionally re-enter earth's atmosphere and gently
drift to the ground. They survive re-entry because of their tiny size and
minuscule mass. It is possible you may even have inhaled some of them.
Yecch.

It's funny that the article mentions Telstar as one of the satellites that
made the program obsolete. Telstar itself was severely damaged in part by
the Starship Prime nuclear test mentioned in the article.

Andy


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8966 2013-08-15 20:05:30 Nick Kennedy Re: war skies and dipoles
I well remember looking into the summer night sky and seeing those Echo
balloons.

The starfish thing was a new one on me. I vaguely knew that the test ban
treaty that banned atmospheric testing also included testing in space. I
didn't realize that the U.S. had set off a nuke in space prior to the
treaty.

I was a novice at the time (July 1962). Maybe a little A-Bomb enhancement
of the ionosphere could have helped my one tube transmitter and 3-tube Sky
Buddy II receiver. But probably not.

73,

Nick, WA5BDU


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8967 2013-08-15 20:38:28 William Re: war skies and dipoles
"I well remember looking into the summer night sky and seeing those Echo
balloons."

Me too. They published the orbits in the newspaper. As I recall they inflated to 10 stories high. Very bright in the sky.

Bill
N7EU
8970 2013-08-16 11:47:23 Dana Myers Re: war skies and dipoles