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Aviation History
1957
1957 - 1472.PDF
562 WORLD LEADER in its class is the Avro Aircraft Arrow, here unveiled ai Malton. (See news item and drawing on this page.) FROM ALL QUARTERS First Man-made Satellite ON October 4 the Soviet Union became the first country tolaunch a man-made vehicle into an orbit around the earth, and thereby achieved one of the most spectacufer scientific advances to date. The following is a slightly abbreviated version of an announcement made in Moscow the following day: — "AB a result of intense, large-scale research conducted by Sovietresearch institutes and design organizations, the world's first artificial earth satellite has been developed in the Soviet Union. On October 4,1957, the first satellite was successfully launched in the U.S.S.R. Accord- ing to preliminary data, the carrier rocket gave the satellite the requiredorbital speed of some 8,000 m/sec (17,897 m.p.h.). At the present moment the satellite is orbiting the earth along an elliptic trajectory and can beobserved in the light of the rising and setting sun through the simplest optical telescopes. "According to calculations, which are now being verified by visualobservation, the satellite will revolve at heights of up to 900 km (559 miles), making one complete revolution in 1 hr 35 min, the angleof its orbit to the equatorial plane being 65 degrees. "On October 5 the satellite will pass twice over the Moscow area,at 0146 and at 0642 hr Moscow time. Reports on the subsequent movement of the satellite will be broadcast regularly by Soviet radiostations. The satellite is in the form of a sphere with a diameter of 58 cm (22.835in), and weighs 83.6 kg (184.3 1b). It carries two radiotransmitters emitting signals at 20.005 and 40.002 Mc/s (some 15 and 7.5 m wavelength). The transmitters are powerful enough to ensuregood reception by many amateur radio operators. The signals are sent in the form of telegraph messages lasting some 0.3 sec with intervalsof the same duration; the signal on one frequency being sent during the pause in the transmission on the other. "Since the density of the rarefied upper layers of the atmosphere isnot known for certain, no data are at present available for determining with precision the duration of the satellite's existence and the placewhere it will enter the dense layers of the atmosphere. It has been calculated that because of its tremendous speed, the satellite will burnup on reaching the dense layers of the atmosphere at the height of several score of kilometres. "The possibility of cosmic flight with the help of rockets was firstscientifically substantiated in Russia, as early as the end of the 19th century, in the words of the outstanding Russian scientist KonstantinTsiolkovsky. The successful launching of the first man-made satellite makes a tremendous contribution to the treasure house of world scienceand culture. . . . The Soviet Union proposes to send up several more satellites during the IGY. These will be bigger and heavier and willhelp to carry out an extensive programme of scientific research." Since the first communique was broadcast, Moscow radio com- mented further in frequent announcements. Thus, at 1215 G.M.T. on October 5, Moscow reported: — "At 1204 Moscow time the satellite's position was in the area of thecity of Johannesburg. Since the moment of its passage over the Moscow area at 0146 on October 5, it has circled the earth about 6i times.The period of its orbit round the world, according to precise assessment, lasts 96.2 min. The radio transmitters are working uninterruptedly. . . .The appearance of the satellite is expected today in the areas of the following cities (Moscow time): Detroit, 1630; Washington, 1631;Magadan, 1752; Calcutta, 1916; Ulan Bator, 1923; Karachi, 2054; Alma Ata, 2058; Baghdad, 2232. On October 6: Yakutsk, 0025; Prague, 0149;Riga, 0151; Moscow, 0152; Oslo, 0327; Rangoon, 0528; Bandoeng, 0535; Leningrad, 0649; Moscow, 0650; Bombay, 0703; Damascus, 0834;Manchester, 1005; Paris, 1006; Rome, 1009. On October 5 the B.B.C. Monitoring station at Caversham, Berks, reported the following observations on the 20 Mc/s signal: First transit: 0002 G.M.T., weak signal; 0005, increasing; 0015, variable; 0023, strong and clear; 0025, weakening; 0026, out. Second transit: 0140, very weak; 0145, increasing; 0200, strong; 0205, weakening; 0206, out. Third transit: 0325, very weak; 0339, increasing; 0340, peak reception; 0350, out. Fourth transit: 0510, very weak; 0517, increasing; 0522, peak reception; 0530, out. Signals were clearly audible in the 20 Mc/s band, but very poorly received in the 40 Mc/s band, where the signal, though audible, hardly rose above the amplification noise level. It appears unlikely that the Russian satellite is carrying any instrumentation; but such equipment is certain to be carried by its successors and also by the smaller American satellites which are scheduled to be launched early next year. It is not yet known whether this successful satellite firing was preceded by failures. Nor is there information about the launching vehicle, apart from Soviet statements that it comprised three stages, the first powered by a 264,000-lb motor burning out at about 4,500 m.p.h., the second with a 79,000-lb motor burning out at something over 12,000 m.p.h. "and a third with a small motor designed to give a tangential push and establish the satellite in its orbit. The Arrow Unveiled A WEEK ago—on Friday, October 4—the first Avro CF-105Arrow Mk 1 was "rolled out" from the company's plant at Malton, Ontario. The following are extracts from an announce- ment issued at the time: — "Canada's first supersonic aircraft, was unveiled today (Friday) atAvro Aircraft, Ltd., Malton, Ontario. On a signal from Mr. George R. Pearkes, V.C., Canadian Defence Minister, the huge white delta-winged fighter emerged from the production bay before a massed gathering of government, military, civic and industrial leaders whileCF-lOOs, flown by Avro test pilots, swooped low in salute. Repre- senting the Hawker Siddeley Group's parent body in the U.K. wasSir Roy Dobson, Group director and chairman of A. V. Roe Canada, Ltd. "This was the first public viewing of the supersonic successor to theCF-100. Initial flight testing of the Arrow—formerly known as the CF-105—will be carried out from Malton. "Roll-out of the first Arrow, in a record four years from the timeAvro was given the 'go-ahead,' climaxes a mass of engineering research and manufacturing techniques in fields completely unknown when theproject was undertaken. It was in July 1953 that the Canadian govern- Avro ArrowMki Span .. .. 50ft Length 77ft 9.6in Height.. 21ft 3in
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