SURCAL

The Surveillance Calibration (or SURCAL) satellites were a series of radar calibration satellites for the Naval Space Surveillance radar system. They were launched in the 1960s.

Background
SURCAL 5

The SURCAL series of satellites were produced by the Naval Research Laboratory to act as test and calibration targets for the Naval Space Surveillance radar. The first SURCAL satellite was intended to remain attached to the launch vehicle[1] and was a 5.5 inch long, 5.5 inch diameter cylinder.[2] The other four SURCAL satellites were box-shaped with solar panels, a transponder, and antennas.[3] They transmitted a 216 MHz signal on command.[4]

Launches
SURCAL 1
SURCAL Satellites
Name COSPAR[5] Launch date[5] Rocket[6] Mass (kg) Re-entry [7]
SURCAL 1 N/A 24 January 1962 Thor-Able-Star[1] 98.5 kg[8] Launch failure
SURCAL 2[lower-alpha 1] 1962 B Tau 4 13 December 1962 Thor-Agena-D[10] 37 kg[9] 18 Jan 1966
SURCAL 3[lower-alpha 2] 1962-021F 15 June 1963 Thor-Agena-D[10] 3 kg[11] 5 Jul 1963
SURCAL 4[lower-alpha 3] 1965-016G 9 March 1965 Thor-Agena-D[10] 5 kg[12] 27 March 1981
SURCAL 5 1965-065K 9 March 1965 Thor-Able-Star[10] In orbit
  1. Also listed as SURCAL 1A[9]
  2. Also listed as SURCAL 1B[6]
  3. Also listed as SURCAL 2B[6]

Other vehicles

Astronautix includes passive satellites such as the SURCAL 150B and SURCAL 160 target objects as part of the SURCAL program.[6]

References
  1. Krebs, Gunter D. "Surcal 1". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  2. Deac, Wilfred P (1 April 2008). "The Navy's Spy Missions in Space". U.S. Naval Institute. 22 (2). Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  3. McDowell, Jonathan (1997). "Naval Research Laboratory Satellites 1960-1989" (PDF). Journal of the British Interplanetary Society. 50: 427–432. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  4. Olson, Richard D., ed. (August 1965). "NRL Satellites". Naval Research Reviews. 18 (8): cover.
  5. McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 9 September 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  6. Wade, Mark. "SURCAL". www.astronautix.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  7. McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 9 September 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  8. "NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  9. "NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  10. Krebs, Gunter D. "Surcal 2, 3, 4, 5". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  11. "NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-10-08. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  12. "NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
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