Telstar 1: The Satellite That Connected the World

Launched on July 10, 1962, Telstar 1 became the first active communications satellite to relay live television signals, telephone calls, and fax images through space. Its unique spherical design, covered in solar cells and antenna panels, made it a technological icon of the early Space Age. Telstar 1 successfully transmitted the first live transatlantic television broadcast, marking the beginning of global satellite communications. Though it operated for only a few months due to radiation damage from nuclear tests in space, its impact on telecommunications history was profound.