Communications Technology Satellite

Communications Technology Satellite
NamesCTS
Hermes
Mission typeCommunications
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID1976-004A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.08585
Mission duration2 years (planned)
3 years, 9 months (achieved)
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerCommunications Research Centre Canada
Launch mass680 kg
Power1200 watts
Start of mission
Launch date17 January 1976, 23:28:00 UTC
RocketDelta-2914 (D-119)
Launch siteCape Canaveral, LC-17B
ContractorMcDonnell Douglas
Entered service21 May 1976
End of mission
Last contactOctober 1979
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeGeosynchronous orbit
Longitude116.0° West
Epoch17 January 1976
Transponders
BandKu band

The Communications Technology Satellite (CTS), known as Hermes,[1] was an experimental high-power direct broadcast communications satellite. It was a joint effort of Canadian Department of Communications, who designed and built the satellite, NASA who tested, launched and operated the satellite, and European Space Agency (ESA) who provided the 1200 watts solar panels and other devices. The three agencies shared the satellite and the data from the experiments.

Although the launch of the ATS-6 spacecraft in 1974 marked the end of NASA's program of experimental communications satellites. NASA participated in a Canadian satellite venture known initially as "Cooperative Applications Satellite-C" and renamed Hermes. This joint effort involved NASA and the Canadian Department of Communications. NASA's Lewis Research Center provided the satellite's high-power communications payload. Canada designed and built the spacecraft; NASA tested, launched, and operated it. Also, the European Space Agency provided one of the low-power traveling-wave tubes and other equipment. Hermes was launched 17 January 1976 and operated until October 1979.[2]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Display was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "SP-4217 Beyond The Ionosphere: Fifty Years of Satellite Communication, chapter 6, 1958-1995". NASA. 1997. Retrieved 22 June 2020. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.