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Author Topic:   Sputnik Visibility
burnsnz
Member

Posts: 74
From: Auckland, New Zealand
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-28-2004 03:46 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for burnsnz   Click Here to Email burnsnz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Hi there

I was reading John Glenn's autobiography today and he mentioned that the 100' diameter Echo was the first satellite that was visible from earth.

Is this really true? I cannot count the number of recollections that I have seen and read of October 4th 1957 with Sputnik 1 circling overhead, changing people's lives forever etc. Is it true that no one could actually see Sputnik?

BTW - I was born in 1965.

All the Best

Burns Fallow
Auckland, New Zealand

Matt T
Member

Posts: 1368
From: Chester, Cheshire, UK
Registered: May 2001

posted 03-28-2004 06:15 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Matt T   Click Here to Email Matt T     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Hi Burns,

I've heard that what everyone thought to be Sputnik was actually the upper stage of it's launch vehicle, following along behind.

Cheers,
Matt

spaceuk
Member

Posts: 2113
From: Staffs, UK
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 03-28-2004 12:23 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for spaceuk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Like Matt said it was the rocket body that was mainly visible to the naked eye when sunlight was reflected from it. The problem with most of these early Soviet launches was that the genral public didn't really know where to 'look' or at what times. A few nespapers printed predictions but it tended to be the rocket body which was seen!

Sputnik-1 itself was photographed against the star background by members of the Moonwatch teams and by several amateur obervers including some early passes.

Of course, the biggest impact for the public was its so called "bleep-bleep" radio transmitter which many radio stations relayed at the time. Jodrell Bank 250 ft radio telescope - which had almost been completed at the time - was able to track the satellite. It is this 'event' which put Jodrell on the 'map' !!

I've an image of Sir Bernard Lovell pointing to the track of Sputnik-1 as detected by them.I'll hunt it out,reduce it in size and publish here later today.

I think its safe to agree with John Glenn that Echo-1 was the first "well known" satellite that became visble to the 'naked eye' on clear nights. Saw it myself many many times.It was great thrill the firstb time. In fact,many newspapers (including here in UK) - for many years - printed satellite viewing opportunities for the naked eye ones.


Phill UK

spaceuk
Member

Posts: 2113
From: Staffs, UK
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 03-28-2004 12:52 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for spaceuk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Here is the image of Professor Sir Bernard Lovell at Jodrell Bank Observatory pointing to Sputnik-1 radio tracking trace back in October 1957.

Somewhere I also have an image of a 'visible' photo of Sputnik-1 but I'll have to dig long and hard find it :-))


Phill
UK

STEVE SMITH
unregistered
posted 03-28-2004 06:24 PM           Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I was a Freshman in High School in Springfield Mo. when Sputnik went up. Believe me it was a very big deal, and I and my friends and everyone were very interested. I don't remember anyone ever reporting seeing it although the "beep, beep, ad nausem" was all over TV and radio.


Echo was different. My senior year in High School, a football game was actually stopped because everyone in the stands was looking, and they wanted the players to see it to.

Telstar in 1962 was not visible, but was in the buzz because of the hit instrumental song "Telstar" that ended with the music fading out like that of a satellite signal going out of range.

burnsnz
Member

Posts: 74
From: Auckland, New Zealand
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-30-2004 12:02 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for burnsnz   Click Here to Email burnsnz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Dear Matt, Phil and Steve,

Thanks for these replies - it all makes good sense and helps to clear up a misconception that I had.

All the Best

Burns

Glint
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Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-30-2004 04:13 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Glint   Click Here to Email Glint     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by burnsnz:
Is it true that no one could actually see Sputnik?

Do you suppose that Glenn meant that Echo was the first satellite visible from earth with the unaided eye? Sounds like he didn't differentiate. Even so, I have serious doubts.

Either way Sputnik was definitely visible with slight optical aid. Have you ever heard of Project Moonwatch?

MOONWATCH PROJECT

The International Geophysical Year (IGY) was intended to allow scientists from around the world to take part in a series of coordinated observations of various geophysical phenomena. In this project, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) in Cambridge, Massachusetts established a back-up network of volunteer visual observers called "Moonwatch" that would eventually involve thousands of amateur astronomers around the world. When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957, SAO was one of the few agencies in the Western World ready to track the object. Going beyond the acquisition and tracking of satellites, SAO scientists used the observational data to determine variations in the density of the Earth's upper atmosphere through the observed effects of drag on satellites.

(source: http://www.seikei.ac.jp/obs/astro/Moonw.htm )

Photographs may be found online of Moonwatch volunteers observing Sputnik. Usually, they observed from a seated position peering into telescopes that were pointed downward at a mirror flat that reflected the sky. It looked as though they were using a microscope instead of a telescope.

The observers worked in groups. I suppose that each telescope monitored a different grid of the sky. They probably timed their observations should an observer be lucky enough to catch Sputnik entering and then exiting the field of view. Perhaps the data was used for generating orbital elements.

I believe that Sky & Telescope columnist Walter Scott Houston owned one and he would frequently comment on celestial observations he made using it.

Here's a rather large image of some Moonwatch volunteers:
http://www.rose-hulman.edu/Users/groups/Observatory/History/big_pics/Moonwatch.jpg

The caption for the image is as follows:

"The Terre Haute Astronomical Society Moonwatch station at Allis-Chalmers circa 1959. The telescopes are pointed at mirrors set at 45 degrees to view the sky through openings in the roof. Various charts and graphs are on the tables in front of the observers. This arrangement made for comfortable viewing."

Here are two more smaller images demonstrating variations on the same theme w.r.t. observing Sputnik:

Surely Glenn must have been aware that Sputnik was visible from earth and that hundreds if not thousands of people indeed were successful in tracking it. If not, then these volunteers were the epitomy of the unsung hero.

Now, it may be correct to say that Echo was the fist satellite observed by millions of people, but it certainly not the first - even with the unaided eye.

[P.S. I can recall seing Echo when I was 3 or 4 and it ineed was bright. I'd say it was similar in brightness to the planet Venus. There is a deflated Echo in its canister on display at the new NASM in Chantilly!]

On edit - I see Phil mentioned Moonwatch above. My understanding is that the Moonwatch volunteers observed visually instead of photographically and that's what these image imply. Some may have used cameras though.

[This message has been edited by Glint (edited March 30, 2004).]

Glint
Member

Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-30-2004 04:39 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Glint   Click Here to Email Glint     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by STEVE SMITH:
Telstar in 1962 was not visible

Telstar was in a geosynchronous as well as a geostationary orbit and so would have been more than 150 times farther away than Sputnik 1 was when it was at perigee. So no wonder people didn't see it.

Do you think some of them actually tried?

Glint
Member

Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-30-2004 04:46 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Glint   Click Here to Email Glint     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Matt T:
I've heard that what everyone thought to be Sputnik was actually the upper stage of it's launch vehicle, following along behind.

Matt


Even so, the booster was in earth orbit and was therefore a satellite. Ergo, the book is wrong since many people saw the orbiting booster long before anyone viewed Echo.

BLACKARROW
unregistered
posted 03-30-2004 05:07 PM           Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Glint,
Sorry, but you're wrong about Telstar in 1962. It was not in geostationary orbit. It was in a relatively low orbit and could only relay TV between the USA and Europe for about half an hour at a time while it was above the horizon on both sides of the Atlantic. (I actually remember seeing live Telstar transmissions, including part of the funeral of President Kennedy). You are probably thinking about a later series of geostationary satellites, also called Telstar, in the 1980's.

spaceuk
Member

Posts: 2113
From: Staffs, UK
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 03-31-2004 06:30 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for spaceuk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The newspapers on the day after Sputnik-1 was launched - published 'predictions' as to when Sputnik-1 would be 'overhead'of certain major cities around the world. The early passes were during daylight hours for many cities and the satellite would have been impossible to see visually because of this.

People certainly attempted to visually scan for the satellite but I doubt if many knew what they were looking for or even where it would be in their local sky ! This is because no one had ever seen an artificial satellite before - this WAS the first one!

I remember looking but never saw Sputnik-1 satellite. And,of course, it didn't really stay aloft for too long.
The radio hams had more success of course.

The later Sputnik-3 was more visible if I remember.


Phill

Glint
Member

Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 03-31-2004 12:35 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Glint   Click Here to Email Glint     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by BLACKARROW:
Glint,
Sorry, but you're wrong about Telstar in 1962. It was not in geostationary orbit.

You're right. I checked and Telstar 1 had a period of only 158 minutes so it definitely wasn't in synchronous orbit.

We are lucky these days to have web access and http://www.heavens-above.com/ above to give us instant satellite visibility predictions.

Ben
Member

Posts: 1896
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: May 2000

posted 03-31-2004 01:31 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ben   Click Here to Email Ben     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Just to note: The first satellite to be put into geosynch orbit was Syncom 2 in 1963.

spaceuk
Member

Posts: 2113
From: Staffs, UK
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 04-05-2004 02:28 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for spaceuk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I was intrigued to see what the Soviets had to say about Sputnik-1 observing in the contemporary literature.

I found the following detail.

Professor B. Kukarkin,Ph.D.Vice President of the Astronomical Council of the USSR Academy of Sciences noted that the USSR had 66 optical stations and 26 radio stations for Sputnik observations. The optical stations were each said to be equipped with up to thirty AT-1 telescopes of 6x power and large field of view - typical visual tracking telescope specifications.

In addition, several observatories around the world assisted with photographic studies including observatories of Pulkovo (USSR),The Astrophysical Institute(USSR),Kharkov University (USSR), Purple Mountain (PRC),Edinburgh (GB) and Potsdam (GDR).

He noted that in '..favourable conditions, the Sputniks and carrier rockets can be seen with the naked eye...'. Such conditions were said to be in the middle latitudes when the Sputnik's crossed the sky about 1- 1.5 hours after sunset or in same time frame before sunrise.

The Soviets also published a table that showed when Sputnik-1 would make its first pass overhead of various world cities in October 1957.

Just a few are:-

New York City Day 7 Hour 6 Minutes 36
Washington DC Day 5 Hour 16 Minutes 31
London Day 6 Hour 10 Minutes 5
Paris Day 6 Hour 10 Minutes 6
Dublin Day 13 Hour 8 Minutes 29
Melbourne Day 8 Hour 12 Minutes 33
Moscow Day 5 Hour 1 Minutes 46

Phill Parker
UK

All times are CT (US)

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