NEWS R E L E A S E

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS A N D SPACE ADMINISTRATION

1520 H S T R E E T , N O R T H W E S T . WASHINGTON 2 5 . D. C.
TELEPHONES: DUDLEY 2 - 6 3 2 5 . EXECUTIVE 3-3260

FOR RELEASE: HOLD FOR RELEASE UNTIL

LAUNCH

TIROS SATELLITE PAYLOAD

T o d a y ' s l a u n c h from Cape C a n a v e r a l w i l l a t t e m p t t o p l a c e a

280-pound m e t e o r o l o g i c a l s a t e l l i t e i n t o a c i r c u l a r o r b i t , 400
m i l e s above t h e E a r t h . P r i m a r y s a t e l l i t e i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n c o n s i s t s
of two t e l e v i s i o n cameras t o p h o t o g r a p h cloud cover and i n f r a r e d

s e n s o m t o map r a d i a t i o n i n v a r i o u s s p e c t r a l b a n d s . Launching
vehicle is a Delta rocket.
With t h e e x r h e p t i o n of t h e i n f r a r e d equipment, t h i s s p a c e c r a f t

i s .*; r" t o TIROS I launched April 1, 1960. T i r o s i s a con-

~ Y . ' , , c ~'fin
I of" T e l e v i s i o n and I n f r a r e d O b s e r v a t i o n S a t e l l i t e

Shaped l i k e a round p i l l b o x , t h e s a t e l l i t e m e a s u r e s 42
i n c h e s i n d i a m e t e r and 19 i n c h e s h i g h . I t s t o p and s i d e s a r e
covel;aed w i t h o v e r 9000 s o l a r c e l l s . Extending beneath t h e
p a y l o a d are f o u r t r a n s m i t t i n g a n t e n n a s . A single receiving
a n t e n n a i s l o c a t e d on t h e t o p .
The D e l t a l a u n c h i n g v e h i c l e i s programmed t o p l a c e t h e

s a t e l l i t e i n a c i r c u l a r o r b i t , a b o u t 400 m i l e s h i g h w i t h a n
. .

- 2 -

rbital inclination t o the e q u a t o r of 48 degrees. Travelling

I a t n e a r l y 17,000 mph, t h e s a t e l l i t e w i l l c i r c l e t h e E a r t h a b o u t
e J e r y 100 m i n u t e s .
F o l l o w i n g i s a d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e T i r o s M e t e o r o l o g i c a l
s a t e l l i t e experiment.
POWER SUPPLY. The 9260 s o l a r c e l l s s u p p l y e l e c t r i c a l e n e r g y
to 6 3 nickel-cadmium s t o r a g e b a t t e r i e s which i n t u r n p r o v i d e power
to o p e r a t e t h e e x p e r i m e n t s w i t h i n t h e s a t e l l i t e package. Power

c o n s e r v a t i o n i s e,xpected to a v e r a g e a b o u t 20 w a t t s .
TRRNSMITTERS. There a r e f i v e t r a n s m i t t e r s t o r e l a y d a t a from

t h e s a t e l l i t e t o ground s t a t i o n s .
a) Two 235.0 mc t r a n s m i t t e r s o p e r a t i n g w i t h a power
o u t p u t of 2 w a t t s ; one a s s o c i a t e d w i t h each TV system and o p e r a t e d
by ground command.

b) One 3-watt 237.8 mc t r a n s m i t t e r for t h e i n f r a r e d

experiments; o p e r a t e d by ground command.

c) Two 30-mw t r a c k i n g beacons o p e r a t i n g c o n t i n u o u s l y
on f r e q u e n c i e s of 1 0 8 . 0 m c and 108 03 mc; beacon f r e q u e n c i e s w i l l
be modulated by ground command t o r e l a y s a t e l l i t e e n v i r o n m e n t a l
d a t a s u c h a s t e m p e r a t u r e , p r e s s u r e , and b a t t e r y c h a r g e . For backup
p u r p o s e s , b o t h f r e q u e n c i e s c a r r y t h e same d a t a .
TELEVISION SYSTEM. The s a t e l l i t e ' s two TV cameras, i d e n t i c a l

e x c e p t f o r l e n s equipment, a r e b o t h t h e size of a w a t e r g l a s s and

u s e a' 3 - i n c h V i d i c o n t u b e e s p e c i a l l y d e s i g n e d f o r s a t e l l i t e use'.
The cameras,which p e e r through the b a s e p l a t e of t h e T i r o s a r e
a l i g n e d p a r a l l e l to t h e s a t e l l i t e s s p i n a x i s . Each camera
 - 3 -
c o n s l i s t s o f a Vic?icon and a f o c a l p l a n e s h u t t e r w h i c h p e r m i t s

. still p i c t u r e s to be s t o r e d on t h e t u b e s c r e e n . An e l e c t r o n beam
c o n v e r t s t h i s s t o r e d ; J i c t u r e i n t o a TV-type e l e c t r o n i c s i g n a l
which c a n be t r a n s m i t t e d to ground r e c e i v e r s . C h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of
t h e camera systems a r e :
Narrow Ang 1e Wide Angle

Lens speed
S h u t t e r speed
Li l1, p e r frame
Frames per second
V i d e o kandwidth

Cover'age f Cameras v e r t i c a l 75 m i l e s ( a p p r o x ) 750 m i l e s

co t h e E a r t h ) (appro4
TV R e s o l u t l s n (Cameras v e r t i c z . 1 0.15-0 2 m i l e 1.5-2.0m i l e s
.,'J the Earth)

C o n n e c t e d t o e a c h camera i s a m a g n e t i c t a p e r e c o r d e r and t i m e r .

Out of" ground s t a t i o n r a n g e , e a c h TIROS camera c a n r e c o r d up t o

32 p i c t u r e s on t h e s t o r a g e t a p e f o r l a t e r r e l a y ; t h i s c a n be done
by programming t h e t i m e r . Or, p i c t u r e d a t a f r o n t h e cameras can
be corrmanded to by-pass t h e t a p e f o r d i r e c t t r a n s m i s s i o n to t h e
ground when w i t h i n t h e r a n g e o f a s t a t i o n (1000 m i l e r a d i u s ) The

p i a s t i c t a p e i s 400 f e e t l o n g and moves 50 i n c h e s p e r second

d u r i n g r e c o r d i n g and p l a y b a c k . The two TV systems o p e r a t e
i n d e p e n d e n t l y o f one a n o t h e r .

Photo d a t a a r e t r a n s m i t t e d from one camera a t a t i m e . Tape

r e a d o u t from b o t h cameras w i l l t a k e a b o u t 3 m i n u t e s . The s a t e l l i t e
w i l l be w i t h i n t r a n s m i s s i o n r a n g e o f ground stations up to

._I . .. . -.
I , . .-. . I .. .. . . . - . I
 10 rninut,es. T h i s means TIROS c a n t r a n s m i t d i r e c t l y o v e r 3 m i n u t e s

3f j ~ i i o t o3 a t a collected by each (,anera w h i l e w i t h i n r a n g e of t h e

. ground s t a t i o n .
HORIZON SENSOR, An i n f r a r e d s e n s c r , mounted on t h e r i m of

t h e s p i n n i n g s a t e l l i t e , s e n s e s when i t s f i e l d o f v i e w s c r o s s t h e
E a r t h ' s horizon. These d a t a a r e c a r r i e d c o n t i n u o u s l y by t h e two
t r a c k i n g beacons u n l e s s commanded t o t r a n s m i t e n v i r o n m e n t a l
information. The h o r i z o n s e n s o r c a n be used to d e t e r m i n e the
s a t e l l i t e ' s a t t i t u d e i n space.
NORTH INDICATOR. Around t h e s i d e s of t h e payload a r e n i n e

solar cells. These c e l l s g e n e r a t e i m p u l s e s which measure t h e

p o s l t i o n of t h e s a t e l l i t e w i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e s u n . This d a t a i s
t r a n s m i t t e d w i t h t h e TV t r a n s m i s s i o n t o t h e ground s t a t i o n s where
i t i s p r o c e s s e d by a computer to show which d i r e c t i o n i s n o r t h i n
esch picture.
MAGNETIC O R I E N T A T I O N CONTROL. ,'? s a t e l l i t e spinning i n space
can d e v e l o p a m a g n e t i c d i p o l e which i s e q u i v a l e n t t o a small b a r
magnet. T h i , s i s c a u s e d by c l o s e d c u r r e n t l o o p s i n c i r c u i t r y and

by any m a g n e t i c m a t e r i a l s p r e s e n t i n t h e s a t e l l i t e . The m a g n e t i c
d i p o l e , i n t e r a c t i n g w i t h t h e E a r t h ' s m a g n e t i c f i e l d as t h e
s a t e l l i t e o r b i t s , produces t o r q u e -- a t u r n i n g f o r c e . T h i s slowly
changes t h e d i r e c t i o n o f t h e s a t e l l i t e ' s s p i n a x i s i n s p a c e , and
s o changes t h e d i r e c t i o n i n which t h e TV cameras a r e p o i n t i n g ,
T h i s e f f e c t d i s c o v e r e d i n t h e changes i n d i r e c t i o n of t h e s p i n a x i s

of' TZROS I ,
S c i e n t i s t s s a y t h e s t r e n g s n of t h e magnetic d i p o l e , and
t h e r e f o r e t h e s p i n - a x i s d i r e c t i o n changes, can be c o n t r o l l e d t o
 some e x t e n t by programming by ground command var'ious s t e a d y
. c u r r e n t s t h r o u g h a c o i l of w i r e wound a r o u n d t h e o u t s i d e of t h e
satellite. An experiment to t e s t t h i s t h e s i s has been i n c o r p o -
r a t e d i n t h i s TIROS s a t e l l i t e , and a t t e m p t s w i l l be made to o r i e n t
t h e s p i n a x i s t o o b t a i n optimum p e r f o r m a n c e f r o m t h e TV and i n f r a r e d
systems.
An aluminum w i r e i s wound around t h e s i d e s of t h e s a t e l l i t e .
j u s t above t h e b a s e p l a t e . C u r r e n t from t h e TIROS' power s u p p l y
w i l l be f e d a t ground command t h r o u g h t h e c o i l . The c u r r e n t c a n
b e t u r n e d on or off or v a r i e d when t h e s a t e l l i t e i s u n d e r c o n t r o l

o f one o f t h e ground s t a t i o n s .

INFRARED RADIATION EXPERIMENTS. There a r e two r a d i a t i o n

experiments One c o n s i s t s of f i v e i n f r a r e d d e t e c t o r s . These a r e

oriented a t 45 d e g r e e s t o t h e s p i n a x i s and s c a n t h r o u g h a
c o m b i n a t i o n of t h e s a t e l l i t e ' s r o t a t i o n and i t s movement a l o n g t h e
orbit. The s p e c t r a l bands and o b j e c t i v e s of t h e s e d e t e c t o r s a r e :
1. E a r t h ' s albedo -- t h e percentage o f r e f l e c t i v i t y of

r a d i a n t e n e r g y or l i g h t : 0 2-5 m i c r o n s .
2, I n f r a r e d r a d i a t i o n e m i t t e d 'cy E a r t h and a t m o s p h e r e
combined: 7-3O/ m i c r o n s .
3. E m i t t e d r a d i a t i o n t h r o u g h t h e a t m o s p h e r i c r'window'f (where
t h e a t m o s p h e r e i s q u i t e t r a n s p a r e n t ) : 8-12 m i c r o n s . Information
h e r e s h o u l d i n c l u d e : (a) c l o u d d e t e c t i o n , e s p e c i a l l y a t n i g h t t i m e
-
and o v e r a r e a s where t h e TV cameras a r e n o t o p e r a t e d ; (b) c l o u d

t o p t e m p e r a t u r e s and, a c c o r d i n g l y , a rough measure of c l o u d top

height; ( c ) s u r f a c e t e m p e r a t u r e s over c l o u d - f r e e a r e a s .

. .
 - 6 -
4, R a d i a t i o n from w a t e r v a p o r band: 6 . 3 micr2c)rs f 5 $
T h i s w i l l measure t h e g e o g r a p h i c d i s t r i t u t i o n of w a t t r l - i a p o r a t

t h e t p o p o p a u s e which i s a b o u t '25 t o 30 t h o u s a n d f e e t a l t i t u d e .
5. V i s u a l r a n g e : 0.5-0.7m i c r o n . T h i s v i s u a l c h a n n e l i s
i n t e n d e d to g i v e a map s i m l l a r t o t h e o t h e r r a d i a t i o n maps which
c o u l d be used to i-elate t h e TV p i c t u r e s and r a d i a t i o n maps.
The second I R e x p e r i m e n t c o n s i s t s of two s e n s o r s , one
w h i t e t h e o t h e r klachqwhich t o g e t h e r measure t h e h e a t b a l a n c e of
t h e a r e a of t h e E a r t h viewed by t h e w i d e - a n g l e TV camera. The
w h i t e body m e a s u r e s t h e h e a t r a d i a t i o n from t h e e a r t h w h i l e t h e
b l a c k kody measures b o t h v i s i b l e ( r e f l e c t e d s o l a r r a d i a t i o n )
and h e a t r a d i a t i o n ,
The p u r p o s e behind t h e IF! e x p e r i m e n t s i s to f i n d o u t how
nuch s o l a r e n e r g y i s a b s o r b e d and e m i t t e d by t h e E a r t h and i t s
atmosphere, w h i c h may l e a d t o a b e t t e r u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f the
t ? e t e o r o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s of t h i s phenomenon.
GROUND STATIONS, The two p r i m a m j ground command and d a t a

Tead-out s t a t i o n s a r e l o c a t e d a t San N i c o l a s I s l a n d , C a l i f o r n i a
(p8i-t Gf t h e P a c i f i c Missile Range), hnd a t Fort Mownouth,
\
IVew Je&E:y. A backup s t a t i o n - ? s lc,ca.ted at P r i n c e t o n , New J e r s e y .
OPERATION, When t h e p a y l o a d i s s e p a r a t e d from t h e t h i r d

s t a g e o f t h e D e l t a l a u n c h v e h i c l e , i t will be s p i n n i n g a t bout
126,rpm. About 10 m i n u t e s a f t e r s e p a r a t i o n , a t i m e r w i l l r e l e a s e

a d e - s p i n mechanism t o slow t h e r e v o l u t i o n s t o a b o u t 1 2 rpm.

The d e - s p i n mechanism c o n s i s t s of tvro we-ights attac!hed t o c a b l e s
wound 6round t h e s a t e i i i c c . As the ;reicht:; iiri:ri.nd they slow t h e
r a l e of s p i n , and when c o m p l e t e l y uniiound Lhey d r o p off
 - '7 -

. qutomatically.

To remain s t a b l e i n o r b i t , TIEOS must m a i n t a i n a s p i n r a t e

of a t l e a s t 9 r p m ~ When s p i n slows t o t h - i s mipimum, one of f i v e
p a i r s of c o n t r o l r o c k e t s w i l l be f i r e d t o s,;eed up r o t a t i o n .
L o c a t e d around t h e b a s e p l a t e of TIROS, e a c h p a i r , a c t i v a t e d by
ground cormand, can be u s e d o n l y once.
S i n c e TIROS i s s p i n s t a b i l i - z e d , it w i l l n o t be " l o o k i n g " a t
t h e Eayth a t a l l t i m e s . Based on t r a c k i n g i n f o r m a t i o n , F t . Monmouth
and San N i c o l a s I s l a n d w i l l program t h e cameras to t a k e p h o t o g r a p h s
o n l y a t t h o s e t i m e s when t h e s a t e l l i t e i s [iewing t h e E a r t h and
when t h e a r e a to be p h o t o g r a p h e d i s i n s u n l i g h t . Program commands
c a n be g i v e n as much as f i v e h o u r s i n advance. Pictures taken
w h ; l e TE?C)S i s o u t of r a n g e of t h e ground s t a t i o n s w i l l be s t o r e d

on t a p e for l a t e r r e l a y . I n t h e rmote mode, a n e l e c t r o n i c t i m e r

starts t h e camera, powero and Lransmit'cer f u n c t i o n s . Each r e a d -
o u t wipes t h e t a p e c l e a n . It i m m e d i a t e l y rewinds f o r its n e x t
recording.
When t h e s a t e l l i t e i s w i t h i n r a n g e of' a s t a t i o n , ground
cormand c a n d i r e c t l y t u r n on the c a n e r a s and p h o t o g r a p h s t a k e n
above t h e s t a t i o n w i l l be r e l a y e d i m m e d i a t e l y below, b y - p a s s i n g
t h e magnetic t a p e .

Data from t h e i n f r a r e d e x p e r i m e n t s a r e r e c o r d e d c o n t i n u o u s l y
f o r one o r b i t on m a g n e t i c t a p e for p l a y b a c k on command from one
o f t h e ground s t a t i o n s . If n o t r e a d o f f a f t e r one o r b i t , t h e t a p e
Will %UtOmatiCalby S t a r t e r a s i n g its p r e v i o u s d a t a as it b e g i n s

r e c o r d i n g l a a d i a t i o n d a t a d u r i n g t h e next o r b i t . However t h e t a p e
always has %he last 108 m l n u t e s o f r a d i a t i o n d a t a s t o r e d on i t f o r
f o r p 1ayback whenever commanded,

., . .I-.. - . - .
 - 8 -
A% t h e grolxid s t a t i o n s , c l o u d cover p i c t u r e s w i l l b e displayed on

Kinescopes foT photographing. I n a d d i t i o n , b o t h photo and i n f r a r e d

d a t a w i l 1 b e recorded on magnetic tape:;.
The infrared t a p e s w i l l b e s e n t t o NASA's Goddard Space F l i g h t
Center f o r processing and a n a l y s i s . Negatives of c l o u d p i c t u r e s
w i l l b e s e n t t o t h e TJ,S, Naval Photographic I n t e r p r e t a t i o n Center

f a r photo deveeoping and processing.

There w i l l be meteorological teams a t b o t h primary ground
stations, They w i l l analyze some of t h e most immediately u s e f u l
d a t a and some p i c t u r e s w i l l b e t r a n s m i t t e d i n re21 time through
weathe33 communications network2 1'31 1-irnited experimental u s e

The 'I'IROS s s t e 2 9 i t e I s expectfed Lo oper-ate J ' o ~ ? ,ibout t h r e e

monbhs, Wen its usePL13ness e n d s g t h e t r a c k i n g bC::ic.>ns can b e

comanded o f f 0

T h i s iJ. S o Zamching i s parz: rJf a long-range program de-

develop a satellite capability fcLGp y c v i d i n g world-wide
meteoro2cgi :.ai Information, 'LPe ?dltimate gcal of the weatherman
is t o have world-wide meteom2cgica.l observations a t h i s f i n g e r
t i p s fear. ar,alysis. Such a wea2F.h ~f data would l e a d t o a more
eomp1et.e understanding of o u r weather, and t h i s would assist him
I n pmparing h i s mather forecasts
The three major aims behind development of meteorological
sat;el1itaes are :
 -9-
1. To p r o d u c e global o b s e r v a t i o n s o f t h e a t m o s p h e r e o v e r

* the entire g l o b e -- o c e a n i c and d e s e r t a r e a s a s well as i n h a b i t e d

areas.
2. To p r o v i d e as complete@ c o n t i n u o u s o b s e r v a t i o n s as i s
s c i e n t i f i c a l l y r e q u i r e d and t e c h n o l o g i c a l l y p o s s i b l e .
3. To s t u d y how t h e si n ‘ s e n e r g y i s c o m e r t e d i n t o atmos-
p h e r i c motions ‘by m e a s u r i n g t h e v a r i a t i o n s in t h e s o l a r e n e r g y and
v a r i a t i o n s i n t h e E a r t h ‘ s u s e of t n i s e n e r g y .
TIROS I, l a u n c h e d A p r i l 1, 1960, d e m o n s t r a t e d t h e f e a s i b i l i t y
of meteorological s a t e l l i t e s . It t r a n s m i t t e d 22,952 c l o u d c o v e r
p h o t o s d u r i n g i t s o p e r a t i n g l i f e t i m e o f n e a r l y t h r e e months. It
r e l a y e d m e t e o r o l o g i c a l i n f o m a t i o n from many s e c t i o n s of t h e w o r l d
where w e a t h e r i n f o r m a t i o n had been s c a n t y or u n t i l t h i s p o i n t
nonexistent.
T h i s l a t e s TIROS satellite i s an e x p e r i m e n t - - i n i t s e l f it

c a n n o t be c o n s i d e r e d a n o p e r a t i o n a l w e a t h e r system.. Its u s e f u l
l i f e t i m e i s expecked t o be o n l y a b c u t t h r e e months, However,
the Weather Bureau, t h e A i r F o r c e Air Weather S e r v i c e and t h e
Navy Wca.ther S e r v i c e p l a n t o u s e some of t h e c l o u d c o v e r d a t a on
a l i m i t e d , experimental operational b a s i s .
NASA and t h e U . S . Weather Bureau have i n v i t e d weather a g e n c i e s
i n 21. f o r e i g n c o u n t r i e s to
p a r t i c i p a t e i n meteorological research i n connection w i t h t h i s

TIROS experiment. It was s u g g e s t e d t h a t w e a t h e r a g e n c i e s a b r o a d

m i g h t o b t a i n u s e f u l s y n o p t i c results bY i n t e n s i f y i n g s t a n d a r d

m e t e o r o l o g i c a l o b s e r v a t i o n s , o r by a r r a n g i n g f o r s p e c i a l
o b s e r v a t i o n s , coordinated i n time w i t h passes of t h e s a t e l l i t e .

. . . ... . - ..-
 -10-
- h e i n v i t a t l o n i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of t h e U . S . e f f o r t of e n c o u r a g i n g
i n t e r n a t i o n a l cooperation i n space research.

N A S A w i l l p r o v i d e o r b i t a l i n f o r m a t i o n to t h o s e c o u n t r i e s

i n t e r e s t e d i n p a r t i c i p a t i n g to assist c o o p e r a t i n g groups i n
timing loca,l weather observations. A f t e r p r o c e s s i n g , TIROS cloud
c o v e r p h o t o s w i l l be f o r w a r d e d to p a r t i c i p a n t s for c o m p a r i s o n w i t h
t h e i r supplementary o b s e r v a t i o n s . If t h e i n f r a r e d r a d i a t i o n

e x p e r i m e n t p r o v e s s u c c e s s f u l , t h i s d a t a w i l l a l s o be s e n t t o co-
operating f o r e i g n weather agencies. The c o o p e r a t i v e e f f o r t w i l l
p r o b a b l y g e t u n d e r way a b o u t one month a f t e r s u c c e s s f u l l a u n c h .
'Weather a g e n c i e s which have a1read.y e w n r e s s e d
an i n t e r e s t b participating are !\us t r a l i a ,

F e d e r a t e d Repurr;i i c, P r a n c e , I n d i a '7 ;an, Mexico, N e t h e r l a n d s ,

O t h e r i n t e r e s t e d c o u n t r i e s may also u l t i r n a t c i y o b t a i n t h e
s c i e n t i f i c d a t a , i n c l u d i n g cloud cover $hotos, through t h e world
data centers.
O f f i c i a l s c o n c e r n e d w i t h t h e TIROS e x p e r i m e n t i n -.c l u d e :
Dr. M o r r i s Tepper, Chief of M e t e o r o l o g i c a l S a t e l l i t e Programs,
N A S A Headquart e m .

Dr. Rudolf A , S t a m p f l , P r o j e c t Manager, NASA's Goddard

Space F l i g h t C e n t e r .
W i l l i a m G , S t r o u d , Head of t h e Meteorology Branch a t Goddard.
 -11-
Abraham Schnapf, P r o j e c t Manager f o r R C A ' s R s t r u - E l e c t r o n i c s

Division.
Dave Johnson, P r o j e c t Manager f o r t h e Weather B u r e a u ' s
Meteorological S a t e l l i t e Laboratory.
John Maskasky, U.S. Army S i g n a l R e s e a r c h and Development
L a b o r a t o r y , NASA's S e n i o r R e p r e s e n t a t i v e a t t h e F o r t Monmouth
ground s t a t J-' 0 .

J o h n Masterson, P a c i f i c M i s s i l e Range, P o i n t Mugu, C a l i f . ,

NASA's S e n i o r R e p r e s e n t a t i v e a t t h e San N i c o l a s ground s t a t i o n .

- END -
 - 12 -

TTROS
PROJECT PARTICIPANTS

The o v e r a l l r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r t h e p r o j e c t r e s t s w i t h t h e N a t i o n a l
A e r o n a u t i c s and Space A d m i n i s t r a t i o n . The o p e r a t i o n a l p h a s e of t h e
p r o j e c t i s u n d e r t h e d i r e c t i o n of NASA's Goddard Space F l i g h t C e n t e r .
Goddard w i l l p r e p a r e t h e command programming which t h e ground s t a t i o n s
will r e l a y CQ the s a t e l l i t e . These plaogrms w i l l be b a s e d on
i n f c m a t i o n from NASAls Computing C e n t e r and t h e M e t e o r o l o g i c a l
S a t e l l i t e L a b o r a t o r y of" t h e U , S . Weatner Bareau. The r a d i a t i o n
e x p e r i m e n t s were d e s i g n e d and t h e d a t a s t o r a g e and t e l e m e t r y e q u i p -
ment a s s o c l a t e d w i t h them were c o n s t r u c t e d by Goddard where t h e I R
d a t a w i l l , be a n a l y z e d . O p e r a t i o n a l t r a c k i n g w i l l b e p r o v i d e d by t h e
n i t r a c k network.
With t h e e x c e p t i o n of t h e i n f r a r e d e x p e r i m e n t s , t h e s a t e l l i t e
was d e s i g n e d and c o n s t r u c t e d by t h e A s t r o - E l e c t r o n i c s D i v i s i o n of
RCA, P r i n c e t o n , N, J o , u n d e r c o n t r a c t t o NASA. I n a d d i t i o n , RCA
w a s r e s p o n s l b 3 e f o r t h e s p e c i a l ground s t a t i m e q u i p m e n t , Barnes
E n g l n e e r l n g Company, S t a m f o r d , Conn. u n d e r NASA c o n t r a c t , p r o v i d e d
the midiation detectors, The U,S. Army S i g n a l Corps m o n i t o r e d t h e
p a y l o a d and ground s t a t i o n equipment c o n t r a c t f o r NASA d u r i n g t h e
d e v e l o p m e n t a l p h a s e s of t h e TIROS e x p e r i m e n t ,
The U,S, Army S i g n a l R e s e a r c h and Development L a b o r a t o r y ,
F o r t Monmouth, N. J o y o p e r a t e s one cf t h e TPROS ground s t a t i o n s ,
The o t h e r , o p e r a t e d by t h e U.S. Navy, i s on San N i c o l a s I s l a n d ,
C a l i f o r n i a , a p a r t of t h e P a c i f i c Missile Range. A backup

, r a t i o n I s l o c a t e d a t R C A I s f a c i l i t y i n P r i n c e t o n , N, J.

" . .
 Douglas A i r c r a f t Company i s prime c o n t r a c t o r f o r t h e Delta
.launch v e h i c l e , I n a d d i t i o n , i t i s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r launching s e r v i c e s ,
supported by t h e A i r Force M i s s i l e Test Center which operates t h e
A t l a n t i c M i s s i l e Range, The Delta u s e s a B e l l Telephone Laboratories
guidance system, employing Rernington Rand Univac equipment.
The Meteorological S a t e l l i t e Laboratory of t h e U , S . Weather
Bureau, under NASA funding, i s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r a n a l y s i s of cloud
cover data. Cooperating i n t h e p r o j e c t are t h e U . S . Navy Photo-
graphic I n t e r p r e t a t i o n Center, t h e Geophysics Research D i r e c t o r a t e
of t h e A i r Force Cambridge Research Laboratories, t h e A i r Force
A i r Weather Service, and t h e Navy Weather S e r v i c e . The Weather
Bureau and t h e m i l i t a r y weather s e r v i c e s w i l l attempt t o use some
o f the cloud cover data on a l i m i t e d , experimental
basts

. . . . . . .
 LAUNCH VEHICLE

The Delta v e h i c l e used t o launch Tiros 11, has t h e s e

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s:
Height - 92 f e e t

Max. d i a e t e r - 8 feet
LifS-off weight - a l i t t l e l e s s than 112,000 pounds
F i r s t s t a g e (modified USAF Thor) :
Fuel - l i q u i d (LOX and kerosene)
Weight - about 100,000 pounds f u e l e d
Thrust - about l50,OOO pounds
Burning t i m e - 160 secoP.ds
Guidance - r a d i o guidance system (mounted on second stage)

and r o l l ar-d p i t c h p r o g r a m e r s
Second stage (Aero jer; General) :
Fuel - liquid
Weight - more t h a n 4,090 pounds
Thrust - about 7,500 pounds
Eturning time - 109 seionCs
Guidance - r a d i o guidance system (Douglas A i r c r a f t f l i g h t
c o n t r o l l e r p l u s B e l l Telephone Laboratory)
T h i r d stage (Allegany B a l l i s s i c s Laboratory X248):
Fuel - solid
Weight - m ~ r et h a n 500 pounds
Thrust - about 3,000 poucds
Burning time - 40 seconds ( a f t e r 7 minute c o a s t )
Guidance - spin-stabilized
(more)
i. .I
-. . -..- .. , .. . . . . .. . I - . .... . --
 Orbit planned:
Circular, about 400 miles high and 48 degrees to t h e qua I OF.

Launching angle - 46.5 degrees

Orbital period - 100 minutes
Firing sequence:
The first stage falls away on burnout. The second s b a g e
ignites immediately. The nose f a i r i n g which covers <;bird stage
and payload is jettisoned after 20 seconds of' second stage burning.
The third stage doesn't ignite until 7 minutes of coasting aft,er
second stage burnout. Then the third stsgr; is spin-stabilized
and the second stage falls zway. Tk?z kh?ird st-sge reaches an

orbital velocity of a l m o s t 17,000 miles per k o ~ l r .

The second Deita lzuxhed '~l-12 Gt;ha 1 carmu:licstions m ' k l l i t c

on August 12, 1960. The first Delta. was umuccessful in 1aun);hing

a similar satellite 012 Nay 1-3,ILg6i).
-- ./

NASA Hq D e l t a Projee5 ManLageT ~ f i x e n ' cL. Johnson

Delta technical direc%or, Qoddard Sprce ?light Center -
William Schindler
Head, Goddard Field P r o j e ~ t sBranch a$ A: lmtic Missile Range
Rober'r; Gray

Delta Project Manager, Douglas Aircraft, San:,a Monica, Calif. -

50r3,ce 1 i3Jir-l
Douglas Manager at AM€? - Bill E. Stitt
 NEWS R E L E A S E
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
1520 H STREET, NORTHWEST ' WASHINGTON 2 5 , D. C.
TELEPHONES: DUDLEY 2 - 6 3 2 5 . EXECUTIVE 3 - 3 2 6 0

FOR RELEASE: November 23, 1960

RELEASE NO. 60-299

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLA. -- The United S t a t e s today launched a

280-pound meteorological s a t e l l i t e equipped w i t h t w o t e l e v i s i o n
cameras t o photograph t h e E a r t h ' s cloud cover and w i t h i n f r a r e d
equipment t o make h e a t measurements of t h e E a r t h ' s s u r f a c e ,
atmosphere, and cloud tops.
The t h r e e - s t a g e Delta rocket c a r r y i n g t h e experiment was
launched h e r e a t 6:13 a.m., EST.
- - - - - - - - - -
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLA. -- The second and t h i r d s t a g e s of t h e
Delta rocket v e h i c l e used t o launch a meteorological s a t e l l i t e
have been f i r e d . F u r t h e r information on t h i s experiment w i l l
b e r e l e a s e d by NASA's Office of Public Information, Washington, D, C .

WASHINGTON, D. C . -- NASA Administrator T. Keith Glennan today

named t h e s u c c e s s f u l l y launched meteorological s a t e l l i t e TIROS 11.
The i n i t i a l c a l c u l a t i o n s show a p e r i g e e of 415 s t a t u t e miles and
an apogee of 435 miles. The p e r i o d i s 98 minutes.

. ..