ATS-6 - Credit: NASA. 24,501 bytes. 332 x 348 pixels.

In addition to its technology experiments, ATS-6 became the world's first educational satellite. During its 5 year life, ATS-6 transmitted educational programming to India, the US and other countries. The vehicle also conducted air traffic control tests, was used to practice satellite-assisted search and rescue techniques, carried an experimental radiometer subsequently carried as a standard instrument aboard weather satellites, and pioneered direct broadcast TV. The satellite also played a major role in the Apollo/Soyuz docking in 1975 when it relayed signals to the Houston Control centre. It was boosted above GEO when thruster failures threatened to prevent further control of the spacecraft. Spacecraft: 9 m diameter deployed antenna reflector. Pointing accuracy 0.1 deg.2 half cylinder drum arrays on booms provide 645 W BOL.3 axis stabilised. Payload: VHRR (Very High Resolution Radiometer) instrument, millimetre wave propagation experiment, L-band communications package, C-band communication equipment

Design Life: 2 years. Total Length: 8.5 m. Total Mass: 930 kg.

Application Technology Satellite; experimental commsat. - Also conducted Cesium ion engine test.

• 2 - McDowell, Jonathan, The United Nations Registry of Space Objects, Harvard University, 1997. HTML when accessed: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/QEDT/jcm/space/un/un.html
• 6 - JPL Mission and Spacecraft Library, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 1997. HTML when accessed: http://msl.jpl.nasa.gov/home.html
• 279 - McDowell, Jonathan, Launch Log, October 1998. HTML when accessed: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/~jcm/space/log/launch.html