Editing Relay program (section)

==Relay 1 {{anchor|Relay 1}}==<!-- redirect target and direct link from other articles -->
[[File:NASA FACTS PROJECT RELAY G-12-62 page 08-cropped.jpg|thumb|Relay 1 launch: Delta second stage hoisted to mate it with first stage in background]]
[[File:Relay 1 work cropped.jpg|thumb|Relay 1 satellite under assembly (1962)]]
'''Relay 1''' ([[COSPAR]] satellite ID: Relay 1 1962-Beta-Upsilon 1 (62BU1)) was launched atop a [[Delta B]] rocket (355/D-15) on December 13, 1962, from [[LC-17A]] at [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Delta-B |url=https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_lau_det/delta-b.htm |access-date=2024-04-10 |website=Gunter's Space Page |language=en}}</ref> Its payload included [[radiation]] experiments designed to map the Earth's [[radiation belt]]s. 

The [[spin-stabilized satellite]] had an initial spin rate of 167.3 rpm and an initial spin axis orientation with a declination of -68.3 deg and a right ascension of -56 deg. Its orbital period was 185.09 minutes, with an apogee of 7500 &nbsp;km and a perigee of 1300 &nbsp;km.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19660000937/downloads/19660000937.pdf|title=Final Report on the Relay 1 Program|year=1966|work=NASA-SP-76|publisher=NASA|pages=63|access-date=2021-02-07}}</ref> 

Shortly after launch, two basic problems evolved. One was the satellite's response to spurious commands, and the other was the leakage of a high-power regulator. This leakage caused the first two weeks of satellite operation to be useless. After this period, satellite operation returned to normal. The satellite carried one transmitter for tracking and one for [[telemetry]]. The telemetry system was [[Pulse-code modulation|PCM]] at 1152 bit/s. Each 128 words per telemetry frame (of one second duration) used 113 words for the particle experiment. 

Relay 1 was the first satellite to broadcast television from the United States to Japan. The first broadcast during orbit 2677 (1963-11-22, 2027:42-2048 (GMT), or 1:27 pm Dallas time) was to be a prerecorded address from the president of the United States to the Japanese people, but was instead the announcement of the [[John F. Kennedy assassination]]. On orbit 2678, this satellite carried a broadcast titled ''Record, Life of the Late John F. Kennedy'', the first television program broadcast simultaneously in the U.S. and Japan.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19660000937/downloads/19660000937.pdf|title=Final Report on the Relay 1 Program|year=1966|work=NASA-SP-76|publisher=NASA|pages=663|access-date=2021-02-07}} (list of actual orbit dates and times)</ref> In later orbits, [[NBC]] transmitted coverage of the funeral procession from the White House to the cathedral.<ref>{{cite book|author=NBC News|title=There Was a President|location=New York|publisher=[[Random House]]|year=1966|author-link=NBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Shepard|first=Richard F.|title=TELEVISION POOLS CAMERA COVERAGE|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 26, 1963|page=11}}</ref> In the three days following the Kennedy assassination, Relay 1 handled a total of 11 spot broadcasts; eight to Europe and three to Japan. All the useful passes of the satellite were made available to permit immediate coverage of the tragic events.<ref name="NASA-SP-93">{{cite web|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19660009169_1966009169.pdf|title=Significant Achievements in Space Communications and Navigation, 1958-1964|year=1966|work=NASA-SP-93|publisher=NASA|pages=30–32|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100514083032/https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19660009169_1966009169.pdf|access-date=2021-02-07|archive-date=2010-05-14}}</ref>

In August 1964, this satellite was used as the United States-Europe link for the broadcast of the [[1964 Summer Olympics]] from [[Tokyo]],<ref>{{Citation |title=NASA SYNCOM 3 GEOSYNCHRONOUS COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE PROMO FILM 19114z |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_kE4z-LYHA |access-date=2023-04-07 |language=en}}</ref> after the signal was relayed to the United States via [[Syncom 3]].<ref name="martin_2000" /> This marked the first time that two satellites were used in tandem for a television broadcast.<ref name="NASA-SP-93" />

The leakage problem caused the [[spacecraft]] to revert to a low voltage state early in 1965. Sporadic transmission occurred until February 10, 1965, after which no usable scientific data was obtained.