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Chronology

  • 1945 Arthur C. Clarke Article: “Extra-Terrestrial Relays”
  • 1955 John R. Pierce Article: “Orbital Radio Relays”
  • 1956 First Trans-Atlantic Telephone Cable: TAT-1
  • 1957 Sputnik: Russia launches the first earth satellite.
  • 1960 1st Successful DELTA Launch Vehicle
  • 1960 AT&T applies to FCC for experimental satellite communications license
  • 1961 Formal start of TELSTAR, RELAY, and SYNCOM Programs
  • 1962 TELSTAR and RELAY launched
  • 1962 Communications Satellite Act (U.S.)
  • 1963 SYNCOM launched
  • 1964 INTELSAT formed
  • 1965 COMSAT’s EARLY BIRD: 1st commercial communications satellite
  • 1969 INTELSAT-III series provides global coverage
  • 1972 ANIK: 1st Domestic Communications Satellite (Canada)
  • 1974 WESTAR: 1st U.S. Domestic Communications Satellite
  • 1975 INTELSAT-IVA: 1st use of dual-polarization
  • 1975 RCA SATCOM: 1st operational body-stabilized comm. satellite
  • 1976 MARISAT: 1st mobile communications satellite
  • 1976 PALAPA: 3rd country (Indonesia) to launch domestic comm. satellite
  • 1979 INMARSAT formed.
  • 1988 TAT-8: 1st Fiber-Optic Trans-Atlantic telephone cable