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OSCAR-1
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Orbiting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio-1 (OSCAR-1) was the first amateur radio satellite, and the first non-military satellite ever launched. OSCAR-1 transmitted 140 mW of power through a spring-loaded 2 m vertical antenna. It was launched on December 12, 1961, and operated for 22 days from a low Earth orbit between 152 and 295 miles above Earth.
OSCAR-1's signal consisted of "HI" in Morse code (.... ..), which is amateur radio shorthand for laughing. The speed at which the characters were sent indicated the temperature of the satellite.
Reference: "Amateur Radio's Very First Satellite: The Amazing Story of OSCAR-1", Monitoring Times magazine, May, 2012, p. 8.
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Frequencies |
| Frequency | Bandwidth | Use | Service | Table |
| 144.983 MHz | 0.1 kHz | OSCAR-1 beacon frequency | Amateur-satellite | N |
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