Hi all I remember Echo 1 very well - was actually the satellite I taught myself how to predict and was the prime reason why I wasted a year at University as I was more interested in trying to track Echo 1 than my boring academic subjects! I still have the original newspaper cutting issued very shortly after launch when passes over my area were given. Myself and several other students got on top of the University Mechanical Engineering building at some uneartly early hour and watched it pass over. Nearby one of the profs in the Electrical Engineering department tried to bounce radio signals off it - without success if I remember right. Still have some photographs I took of it as it sailed over Durban (South Africa)- made the local press. Echo II was another exciting balloon satellite - if my facts are correct - I was one of the last MOONWATCHERS to see Echo II shortly before its decay ( was about 4 hours before). I tracked Echo II on its first orbit and monitored the radio beacon that was attached to the balloon but was unable to see the planned inflation during to bad weather. Another interesting balloon satellite was Explorer 19 (63-53A) - 12 foot in diameter ( if memory correct!). This could just be seen with the naked eye. See Kevin mentioned Tiros 1 - another satellite I tracked by radio. Incidentally Tiros 10 is still transmittting but its putting out garbage as it failed many moons ago. Some satellites just dont know when to shut -up :-)) _______________________________________________ Seesat-l mailing list http://mailman.satobs.org/mailman/listinfo/seesat-l
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