Its often said that the Early Bird catches the worm and this phrase was used by the newly formed Communications Satellite Corporation (ComSat) to nickname its first tele-communications satellite sent into geosynchronous orbit, in order to relay TV signals across the globe. ComSat's intention was to use the facility as a 'rent-a-satellite' basis, with the facility to transmit colour and b/w programmes across the globe.
I'd been generally familiar with 'Early Bird' from a raft of space books and from the excellent Brooke Bond 'Race into Space' card set, which had Early Bird as card No 18 in the series. So when I spotted a neat little commemorative paperweight on ebay, I couldn't resist.The object consists of a small model of the satellite embedded in a cube of perspex acrylic, with an image behind it and a decal laid on top, illustrating the signal being bounced by the satellite.
There's a minor flaw in the base of the resin, but the little model is perfect in every detail and very close to the image on the Brook Bond card too!
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Race Into Space Card No.18 |
Early Bird began a revolution in telecommunications and was eventually decommissioned in 1969, by which time other cheaper, more powerful satellites witnessed and relayed images of mans first moon landing.