© Mark Ollig
In October 1945, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke foretold the use of space satellites in an article titled “Extra-Terrestrial Relays – Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?”
He wrote it for Wireless World, an engineering and technology magazine published in the United Kingdom.
Clarke proposed a system of “extra-terrestrial relays” and used the term “space stations” to describe the concept of artificial satellites orbiting the Earth for communication purposes.
He proposed positioning three satellites 26,000 miles above Earth to provide continuous global radio coverage.
Each satellite would act like a communication relay. It would pick up signals from anywhere within its coverage area on Earth and then broadcast those signals to other locations within its hemisphere.
Clarke also addressed the need for powerful rockets to place these satellites into orbit, stating, “The development of rockets sufficiently powerful to reach orbital, and even [earth gravitational] escape velocity is now only a matter of years.”
President Kennedy signed the Communications Satellite Act Aug. 31, 1962, leading to the creation of the Communications Satellite Corporation (COMSAT), which the US Congress authorized to establish a global commercial satellite communication system.
In 1964, COMSAT played a pivotal role in the establishment of the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (INTELSAT) to oversee communications satellites for providing telephone, television, and data transmission services on a global scale.
NASA successfully launched the INTELSAT 1 F-1 satellite, named INTELSAT 1, atop a three-stage Delta rocket from Complex 17A at Cape Kennedy, FL, April 6, 1965.
It was nicknamed “Early Bird” from the saying, “The early bird catches the worm.”
It was the first satellite launched and operated by an intergovernmental consortium called INTELSAT, founded in 1964.
Hughes Aircraft Company built INTELSAT 1 for COMSAT, which was the first commercial communications satellite in geosynchronous orbit.
At an altitude of 22,300 miles, the satellite, spinning at 152 revolutions per minute, was positioned over the equator at 28° west longitude in a synchronous equatorial orbit over the Atlantic Ocean.
Early Bird matched Earth’s orbital speed, allowing it to hover above the planet.
Ground stations adjusted their antennas for a direct line of sight to the satellite, ensuring uninterrupted data transmission between North America and Europe.
This 85-pound, cylindrical satellite (28 inches in diameter, 23 inches tall) used solar cells to power its electronics, which included two six-watt transponders operating on a 50 MHz bandwidth.
The Early Bird could handle 240 simultaneous transatlantic phone calls, telegraph and facsimile transmissions, and television broadcasts.
Early Bird transmitted television coverage of the Gemini 6 spacecraft splashdown Dec. 16, 1965, with astronauts Thomas Stafford and Walter Schirra onboard.
I first became curious about the Early Bird satellite while watching a YouTube video of heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali fighting Cleveland Williams Nov. 14, 1966.
“I’d like at this time to compliment the thousands of people in the United Kingdom, who, where it is nearly four-o’clock, are jamming the theaters over there to see our telecast via the Early Bird satellite,” announced boxing commentator Don Dunphy.
The Early Bird satellite used one channel to broadcast television programs between the two continents, ushering in a new era of live international television.
The phrase ‘live via satellite’ emerged during this era of live trans-Atlantic televised broadcasts via satellite.
The success of Early Bird proved the practicality of using synchronous orbiting space satellites for commercial communications.
Early Bird ceased operation in January 1969; however, it was reactivated in July of that year when a communications satellite assigned to the Apollo 11 moon mission failed.
In August 1969, the INTELSAT 1-F1 satellite, the Early Bird, was deactivated.
In 1990, INTELSAT briefly reactivated Early Bird to commemorate the satellite’s 25th anniversary.
According to NASA, as of today, “Early Bird is currently inactive.”
An INTELSAT video of Early Bird’s April 6, 1965, launch from Cape Canaveral, FL, can be seen at https://tinyurl.com/y4uvqn2s.
In the video, look for two famous Minnesotans: Hubert Humphrey, vice president of the United States, then chairman of the National Aeronautics and Space Council, and Sen. Walter Mondale, who witnessed (via close circuit TV) the rocket launch of the Early Bird.
LIFE magazine had an article about the satellite May 7, 1965, cleverly titled, “The Early Bird Gets the Word.”
In 1965, the word was the Early Bird, which reminds me of the Minneapolis garage band The Trashman’s 1963 hit “Surfin’ Bird” with its lyrics “A-well-a don’t you know about the bird? Well, everybody knows that the bird is a word.”
Arthur C. Clarke’s 1945 article can be read at:https://bit.ly/Clarke1945.
The full 68-page October 1945 Wireless World magazine can be read at: https://bit.ly/3YYc48r.
The 59-year-old Early Bird satellite still soars approximately 22,300 miles above us in a geosynchronous orbit. Its International Designator Code is 1965-028A.
The satellite tracking website n2yo.com shows the Early Bird’s location in real-time; see it at https://bit.ly/3gLNTSB.
In 2025, INTELSAT will be donating a full-sized replica of the INTELSAT 1 satellite, aka the Early Bird, to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
