Vela 1A (or Vela 1) was a
military satellite developed to detect nuclear detonations to monitor compliance with the 1963
Partial Test Ban Treaty by the
Soviet Union.
Launch
Vela 1A was launched on October 17, 1963 from the
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station,
Florida, by an
Atlas-Agena launch vehicle. Vela 1A was launched along with
Vela 1B
Vela 1B was a military satellite developed to detect nuclear detonations to monitor compliance with the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty by the Soviet Union.
Launch
Vela 1B was launched on October 17, 1963, from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Stati ...
and with
ERS 12.
Mission
Vela 1A was a spin-stabilized 124-kg satellite comprising the first launch in a series of six Vela launches. Together with its twin Vela 1B, their objectives were to monitor nuclear weapons explosions in space and to study
x-rays,
gamma-rays,
neutrons, and charged particles as the satellites passed through
interplanetary space
Interplanetary may refer to:
*Interplanetary space, the space between the planets of the Solar System
*Interplanetary spaceflight, travel between planets
*The interplanetary medium, the material that exists in interplanetary space
*The InterPlanet ...
, the bow shock, the magnetosheath, and the
magnetotail.
See also
*
Vela (satellite)
References
1963 in spaceflight
Military space program of the United States
{{satellite-stub