Molniya 1

Molniya-1

Molniya-1, 1:1 model in the Tsiolkovsky State Museum of the History of Cosmonautics
Manufacturer	OKB-1
Country of origin	Soviet Union
Applications	Communications satellite
Production
Status	Active
Launched	7
Maiden launch	4 June 1964 (fail) 23 April 165 (success)
Last launch	20 October 1966

Molniya 1 (Russian: Молния-1) is the first Soviet communications satellite. A total of 5 experimental devices were launched to create a long-distance radio communication line between Moscow and Vladivostok. Later, a series of Soviet and later Russian communications satellites were developed on the basis of the Molniya-1 spacecraft: Molniya-1+ (1967), Molniya-2 (1971), Molniya-3 (1974), Molniya-1T (1983), Molniya-3K (2001). These devices solved the problem of providing long-distance telephone and telegraph communications to remote areas of the Russian Far North, Siberia and the Russian Far East and retransmitting Soviet Central Television channels. For the first time, a digital communication system was used as a means of communication with the satellite.^[1] Since 2006, the Molniya satellites have been replaced by more advanced Meridian devices.