''Astérix'' or A-1 (initially conceptualized as FR.2 or FR-2) is the first
French satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioi ...
. It was launched on 26 November 1965 by a
Diamant A rocket from the
CIEES launch site at
Hammaguir
Hammaguir (also written Hamaguir and Hammaguira) ( ar, حماقير) is a village in Abadla District, Béchar Province, Algeria, south-west of Béchar. It lies on the N50 national highway between Béchar and Tindouf. The location is notable fo ...
,
Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
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. With ''Astérix'', France became the sixth country to have an artificial satellite and the third country to launch a satellite on its own rocket. Its main purpose was to test the Diamant launcher, though it was also designed to study the
ionosphere. ''Astérix'' continues to orbit Earth as of 2022 and is expected to remain in orbit for centuries.
Background
The French space agencies
Centre national d'études spatiales
The (CNES; French: ''Centre national d'études spatiales'') is the French government space agency (administratively, a "public administration with industrial and commercial purpose"). Its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is und ...
(CNES) and
Centre national d'études des télécommunications (CNET) were developing ''Astérix'' concurrent with
FR-1, another satellite, as early as 1963.
FR-1 was the first step of an ambitious French plan to launch six FR-series satellites, each meant to study a different aspect of the
Earth's atmosphere
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing fo ...
.
FR-1 was generally designed to study the Earth's magnetic and electric fields in the
ionosphere and
magnetosphere.
''Astérix'', ultimately France's first satellite, was initially conceptualized as the second FR satellite under the name FR-2.
Like FR-1, FR-2 would study the ionosphere.
FR-3 was to be a "scaled-up" version of FR-2, with FR-4 to carry instruments measuring
hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic ...
distribution in the
upper atmosphere Upper atmosphere is a collective term that refers to various layers of the atmosphere of the Earth above the troposphere and corresponding regions of the atmospheres of other planets, and includes:
* The mesosphere, which on Earth lies between th ...
, FR-5 to study "magnetic impulses" and serve as a platform for future research, and FR-6 to be a
solar-stabilized spacecraft with final
payload to be determined based on experimental results from its antecedents.
Initial plans called for a late 1964 or early 1965 launch of FR-1, with ''Astérixs launch scheduled for early 1965.
It appears ''Astérix'' was put into orbit prior to FR-1 because
Charles de Gaulle and CNES wanted France to become the third space power by launching an independently-developed satellite on a French launcher, a
propaganda coup for
French exceptionalism during the
Cold War.
Spacecraft design
France managed to design, construct, and launch ''Astérix'' and FR-1 relatively quickly thanks to three related factors: postwar knowledge gained from
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
scientists and their work on the
V-2 rocket
The V-2 (german: Vergeltungswaffe 2, lit=Retaliation Weapon 2), with the technical name ''Aggregat 4'' (A-4), was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was develop ...
; France's independent development of nuclear
IRBM launchers including the
Saphir rocket, a precursor to Diamant; and France's collaborative civilian research with the United States (through
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...
) and other European countries (through
CERN and
ESRO
The European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) was an international organisation founded by 10 European nations with the intention of jointly pursuing scientific research in space. It was founded in 1964. As an organisation ESRO was based on a ...
).
Measuring approximately in diameter and 55 centimetres high, ''Astérixs exterior casing is made of
fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...
and resembles a
top
A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect.
Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few ...
.
Its black stripes purportedly provide
passive
Passive may refer to:
* Passive voice, a grammatical voice common in many languages, see also Pseudopassive
* Passive language, a language from which an interpreter works
* Passivity (behavior), the condition of submitting to the influence of o ...
solar gain
Solar gain (also known as solar heat gain or passive solar gain) is the increase in thermal energy of a space, object or structure as it absorbs incident solar radiation. The amount of solar gain a space experiences is a function of the total in ...
.
Equipped with
accelerometer
An accelerometer is a tool that measures proper acceleration. Proper acceleration is the acceleration (the rate of change of velocity) of a body in its own instantaneous rest frame; this is different from coordinate acceleration, which is acc ...
s measuring vertical and horizontal movement and angular
velocity
Velocity is the directional speed of an object in motion as an indication of its rate of change in position as observed from a particular frame of reference and as measured by a particular standard of time (e.g. northbound). Velocity i ...
, a
radio beacon,
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
transponder
In telecommunications, a transponder is a device that, upon receiving a signal, emits a different signal in response. The term is a blend of ''transmitter'' and ''responder''.
In air navigation or radio frequency identification, a flight trans ...
,
thermometer
A thermometer is a device that measures temperature or a temperature gradient (the degree of hotness or coldness of an object). A thermometer has two important elements: (1) a temperature sensor (e.g. the bulb of a mercury-in-glass thermometer ...
, and
telemetry
Telemetry is the in situ collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Greek roots ''tele'', "remote", an ...
transmitters, the satellite was designed to report its position back to Earth.
It is unclear whether ''Astérix'' was capable of making
ionospheric
The ionosphere () is the ionized part of the upper atmosphere of Earth, from about to above sea level, a region that includes the thermosphere and parts of the mesosphere and exosphere. The ionosphere is ionized by solar radiation. It plays a ...
measurements as originally planned.
The satellite was originally designated A-1, as the
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...
's first satellite, but later renamed by the press after popular
French comics
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
character
Astérix
''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...
.
The names ''Zébulon'' and ''Zebby'', after another cartoon character from the French children's television program ''
Le Manège enchanté
''Le Manège enchanté'' (British English: "The Magic Roundabout", American English: "The Magic Carousel") is a popular French animated children's television series of hundreds of episodes each five minutes long, which premiered on October 5, 196 ...
'', were also considered.
Specifications
* Weight:
*
Perigee
An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion.
General description
There are two apsides in any ell ...
:
*
Apogee
An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion.
General description
There are two apsides in any ell ...
:
*
Inclination
Orbital inclination measures the tilt of an object's orbit around a celestial body. It is expressed as the angle between a reference plane and the orbital plane or axis of direction of the orbiting object.
For a satellite orbiting the Eart ...
: 34.3 degrees
*
Orbital period
The orbital period (also revolution period) is the amount of time a given astronomical object takes to complete one orbit around another object. In astronomy, it usually applies to planets or asteroids orbiting the Sun, moons orbiting planets ...
: 107.5 minutes
Mission and results
France carried out two
suborbital ''Astérix'' prototype flights on 31 May and 3 June 1965 using
Rubis rockets from the
CIEES launch complex Bacchus at
Hammaguir
Hammaguir (also written Hamaguir and Hammaguira) ( ar, حماقير) is a village in Abadla District, Béchar Province, Algeria, south-west of Béchar. It lies on the N50 national highway between Béchar and Tindouf. The location is notable fo ...
,
Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
.
''Astérix'' was launched on 26 November 1965 by a
Diamant A rocket from the CIEES launch complex Brigitte/A at Hammaguir.
The Diamant launcher measured tall and weighed , and was filled with a mix of
turpentine
Turpentine (which is also called spirit of turpentine, oil of turpentine, terebenthene, terebinthine and (colloquially) turps) is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin harvested from living trees, mainly pines. Mainly used as a spec ...
and
nitric acid
Nitric acid is the inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but older samples tend to be yellow cast due to decomposition into oxides of nitrogen. Most commercially available nitri ...
fuel.
The
payload fairing ejected from the rocket ten minutes after launch, during which the satellite's telemetry equipment was damaged.
Depending on the source, due to this damage ''Astérix'' either failed to transmit any signals,
or stopped transmitting them after two days
or 111 days.
Nevertheless, American radar scans confirmed the satellite successfully entered orbit.
Legacy and status
With ''Astérix'', France became the sixth country to have an artificial satellite in orbit after the
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
(''
Sputnik 1'', 1957), the United States (''
Explorer 1'', 1958), the United Kingdom (''
Ariel 1
Ariel 1 (also known as UK-1 and S-55), was the first British satellite, and the first satellite in the Ariel programme. Its launch in 1962 made the United Kingdom the third country to operate a satellite, after the Soviet Union and the United Stat ...
'', 1962), Canada (''
Alouette 1
''Alouette 1'' is a deactivated Canadian satellite that studied the ionosphere. Launched in 1962, it was Canada's first satellite, and the first satellite constructed by a country other than the Soviet Union or the United States. Canada w ...
'', 1962), and Italy (''
San Marco 1'', 1964). France also became the third country after the USSR and US to launch a satellite on its own rocket: the British, Canadian, and Italian satellites were launched on American rockets.
''Astérix'' remains in orbit as of December 2020. Due to the relatively high altitude of its orbit, it is not expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere for several centuries.
The
Musée de l'air et de l'espace in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
Le Bourget
Le Bourget () is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.
The commune features Le Bourget Airport, which in turn hosts the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace (Air and Space Museum). A very ...
displays a prototype of the satellite, while the
Cité de l'espace
The Cité de l'espace ( French for Space City) is a scientific discovery centre in France focused on spaceflight. It was opened in June 1997 and is located on the eastern outskirts of Toulouse. , there had been more than four million visitors.
...
in
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
displays a replica.
See also
*
FR-1 (satellite)
FR-1 was the second French satellite. Planned as the first French satellite, it was launched on 6 December 1965—ten days after the actual first French satellite, ''Astérix''—by an American Scout X-4 rocket from the Western Range at Vanden ...
*
French space program
The French space program includes both civil and military spaceflight activities. It is the third oldest national space program in the world, after the Soviet (now Russian) and American space programs, and the largest space program in Europe.
B ...
*
Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes
This Timeline of artificial satellites and Space probe
A space probe is an artificial satellite that travels through space to collect scientific data. A space probe may orbit Earth; approach the Moon; travel through interplanetary space; fl ...
References
External links
Free paper model of ''Astérix'' satellite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asterix (Satellite)
Satellites of France
Satellites orbiting Earth
Spacecraft launched in 1965
First artificial satellites of a country
Asterix