Telstar 1 - The Satellite That Changed the World

[@rustyfox81]

I knew Telstar died because the early electronics was not radiation hard, however I never realised the source of the radiation was from man made nuclear bombs ! excellent video as usual !

[@garrysekelli6776]

Probably just fake NASA propaganda.

[@machdaddy6451]

There were some real atomic "coyboys" back in those days.

[@dziban303]

@@machdaddy6451 Admiral Blandy, notable "atomic playboy" kzbin.info/www/bejne/qoPFlo1-nrNpgqM

[@davidtaflan941]

…and l thought Tomorrow is Yesterday was just science fiction.

[@Frostbait]

@@machdaddy6451 coyboys .. cowboys but with Kois

[@forcivilizaton5021]

I just adore your daughter Abigail. My kid and I love watching your episodes and always look forward to a new upload. Great Job on this one piece of amazing history.

[@patrickscalia5088]

Something tells me that Abigail is probably the smartest, best educated kid in the UK. Imagine having Mr. Droid as your pop. She was probably studying engineering when she was still in diapers.

[@ProbeGT2]

I'm so glad for your little girl that she's able to still enjoy her dad, thanks to today's and future science. I did not know you were a father and i can hardly imagine how hard it was for you during those hard times. Long life for you and all your familly!

[@willpemberton6823]

Not enough fact based channels and vids out there . Curious Droid is always well made, informative and interesting. Up the droid!

[@Games_and_Music]

He _is_ the droid you're looking for.

[@billweirdo9657]

Absolutely agree. Most of the " fact based channels " are " you won't believe" click baits that aren't actual facts but instead a bunch of false hoods

[@v8matey]

Well America science these days is like this. If you multiple genders studies with climate change. How much of a spectrum of rainbows an pronouns do you get? You will get any answer right depending on your skin colour and victimisation mindset.

[@TheLexiconDevils]

fact boy has all the channels but he needs better shirts … and a shave

[@MindBodySoulOk]

He needs to try and take over the world in the a video.

[@RevMikeBlack]

Being born a few months before Sputnik One, I grew up with the space age. Telstar One (and its awesome hit theme song by The Tornadoes) is the first non-manned spacecraft I remember. The satellite was discussed in my second grade class and the American news networks often aired brief segments from the UK. It was a BIG deal and an inspiration for elementary school students. Despite my familiarity with Telstar, I learned several new things in this video regarding Telstar's highly elliptical orbit and its unfortunate demise. Thanks for a great video, CD!

[@captainjohnh9405]

For those who want to hear the song.... kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5mvqXdoYsitn80

[@tdolan500]

My slightly interesting fact was that Telestar was the first US number 1 by a British group and one of the members of the Tornadoes is Matt Bellamy’s (Muse) father.

[@RevMikeBlack]

@@captainjohnh9405 What a strange video, especially the musicians and the astronaut.

[@RevMikeBlack]

@@tdolan500 It was on the radio all the time. I liked it so much that my father bought me the 45 rpm record, which is still in playable condition.

[@vincentl.9469]

@@RevMikeBlack that satellite is still out there in space !. I think before we think about driverless cars and whatever else, we need to pull the junk orbiting the planet

[@dflsam]

A new Curious Droid video is always a pleasant treat!

[@hawaiianpineapple7303]

Just to see what kind of shirts he wears 🤓

[@mikedrop4421]

I can definitely see where they got the inspiration for R2-D2's head after seeing that satellite

[@t.g.2777]

Definetly underrated channel, always interesting

[@mjproebstle]

been a while

[@Mike88Actual]

Thank you Paul!!!! Very nice to see you!

[@marsgal42]

I remember when TV by satellite was a big thing and they always had "Live via Satellite" or something similar on the screen.

[@philgiglio7922]

I can remember getting up in the middle of the night to watch Echo pass over. They printed the time and where to look in the local paper!

[@MatSpeedle]

Great to have your content back in the Sub feed again Paul, Hope your health is improving and you're doing well sir. Thank you for the great videos as always.

[@paulhaynes8045]

Many thanks, Paul. Brought back a lot of memories to those of us of a certain age. Would have been nice to have had a bit of Telstar by the Tornados at the end!

[@ZER0ZER0SE7EN]

I thought of the Ventures version of Telstar. Just found out the Ventures was a cover of the Tornadoes.

[@wpbshow]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/oV7Ilmmmad9lb7M

[@aturegano87]

Indeed! great song from Tornados. 👍

[@lindongreen8922]

@@aturegano87 just listened to it. Yep, you're right. Great track

[@nmcgunagle]

Your daughter is adorable, it was a delight to have met her. She’s very lucky to have such a science/technological minded father. I’m sure she’ll grow up to be a very smart woman. Make your papa proud lol! I love stuff like this where you get a glimpse into your favorite KZbin creators family and personal lives. It’s silly, but it makes me feel like we’re friends. Shut up everyone, don’t make fun of me lol.

[@neithere]

Well said, no need to make fun of you. I'd only remark that the kids shouldn't have to prove anything to their parents and make them conditionally proud.

[@philgiglio7922]

Good to see you plugging a learning tool

[@ShellyXveeHehehe]

Thank you so much! If you don’t know me I am paul shillito Daughter

[@jacobbecker7741]

Honestly you're an adorable dad. Keep up the great content!

[@patreekotime4578]

Clarke didnt just propose satellite communication, he proposed the geosynchronous orbit that would make more advanced communication satellites work. Really groundbreaking stuff!

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

Not really. Pretty far from the ground actually. Maybe "skybreaking" though.

[@nickpike7976]

@@Ugly_German_Truths What on earth are you talking about?

[@patrickscalia5088]

It's amazing how some prescient science fiction authors can predict the future. Like the atom bomb. The term _atomic bomb_ was coined not by any scientist but by none other than H.G. Wells. The term, and the concept, first made their appearance in his novel _The World Set Free_ which was about an atomic war. Written in 1915 (!) In fact it was the true father of the atomic bomb, physicist Leo Szilard, having just read the novel, who suddenly realized that his own science field made an immensely powerful atomic bomb possible. It came upon him so suddenly and so vividly that he almost walked out into busy traffic without realizing it. And what followed afterwards was the well-known story: Szilard realized that if he had thought of it then without doubt the very smart scientists in Hitler's Germany had also thought of it and were working on it. That caused him to contact Albert Einstein and convince him to add his signature to the very famous letter Szilard wrote and they sent it to the US president and, well, you know the rest of the story. If Clarke is the father of the communications satellite, then H.G. Wells is the father of the atomic bomb. He even coined the term.

[@aarondavis8943]

@@nickpike7976 It's not rocket science. Keep *up.*

[@justicevanpool9025]

Good to have you back Sir Droid! Also, I usually swipe past the ads but putting the kiddo in it made it a lot of fun. Nice one!

[@dmeemd7787]

This is still, by far, one of the top channels on youtube..period! Glad your health is doing well and keep up the amazing content man, I know there are a WHOOOLE bunch of us out there that really really appreciate it!!

[@aarondavis8943]

Presentation, editing, research, writing all top notch. He owns this space.

[@morzee94]

The only sponsor spot I didn’t skip today! What a lovely moment.

[@john-r-edge]

I visited Goonhilly a few years back. The steerable dish antenna used for Telstar is still there - a real monster which moved horizon to horizon in 45 minutes. Most of the dishes there now have minimal ability to move since they are focused on geostationary satellites. Goonhilly is well worth a visit.

[@jefffiore7023]

Loved the video as usual - so cool of you to include your daughter in the video! If I was blessed with a child, I’d subscribe to that service in a heartbeat. Warm wishes from Houston, Paul!

[@Ed123-h7i]

I stood in my folk's living room and watched Telstar's first live TV signals from Europe. The impact on me was profound....because I knew, that on that day, the world had changed. I was then and still am a ham radio guy. Telstar brought a tear to my eyes that day. Bravo Bell Labs....

[@xDR1TeK]

It's one thing to throw a satellite in orbit, and it's another building a reliable radio transfer device out of transistors that works from orbit. Quite remarkable on all achievements.

[@Henchman1977]

In the 60s/70s my dad worked on the other end of satellites, the ground stations. Northern Canada and around the equator in Mexico/Carribean. He was the company man on the ground making sure the work got done. Mostly government contracts.

[@igorsmihailovs52]

It would be great to have a video on those ground stations!

[@iamt_tl]

Paul's videos never failed to make me stuck to the monitor. Even the sponsor video. Way to go Abigail! You have the most awesome dad.

[@isaacplaysbass8568]

OMG - What an awesome promo segment! I think that a Curious Droid science spin-off channel is much needed!

[@brianmessemer2973]

Paul, it was very sweet to involve your daughter in the sponsor plug. I'm sure you're a wonderful father, and she a wonderful daughter. Very precious! Best wishes to you and your family.

[@JamesTurfKing]

Glad to see more of your videos man! Even better to see the family get involved! What a blast

[@alexmirica]

Again, one of the finest videos of all times! I clicked 'Like' before video had started! Thank you, mister'

[@YuvskiK]

I love your videos, no matter the subject, your delivery is perfection! Thank you for your work! Big Thumbs up!!!

[@viccie211]

Great video as always Paul! It's good to see you back to doing what you love! Thanks for making such detailed but concise content.

[@dextercampbell796]

oh how freakin awesome!! That was a really amazing introduction to the video, just like usual curious Droid comes out with quality content 💜

[@GerardHammond]

As a 30 yr professional coder this history is amazing and forgotten. Most coders nowadays don't need to know that every bit counts. What a fantastic episode. the SpaceX Starlink crowd should re-watch this and consider how great these scientists were. great stuff

[@-_James_-]

I'm pretty sure most coders these days don't even know what a bit is.

[@andrasbiro3007]

What SpaceX is doing is no less amazing.

[@DrWhom]

@@-_James_- Your comment is satire sadly teetering on the the edge of truth.

[@zakiducky]

Your daughter is beyond adorable. She reminds me of one of my little sister’s best friends lol. And it’s always great when your younger siblings or kids take an interest in what you enjoy.

[@demin-e]

I love this channel so much! Thank you Paul for interesting videos!

[@rickintexas1584]

That was fascinating. It is amazing what these men achieved. Today we benefit from the fruits of their labor.

[@Bramon83]

Heck yessssss new video! Hope you're well Paul, we all love ya brother.

[@creepychris420]

i havent heard ur voice in a long time for some reason, nice to see the algorithm showing you some love (but also thumbnail and title on point 🔥)

[@darranmills7207]

Great content. Love the way you explain everything

[@prudencepineapple9448]

Good to see you back and that you're well!

[@rang930]

love your stuff, out of all science channels u r my fav

[@4ysx]

Only sponsored segment I didn't skip, wish I had kits like that as a kid

[@J1NX123]

This is EASILY one of my favorite channels!

[@bleakrevel]

Another excellent video Paul keep them coming.

[@BruceMusto]

Excellent video as always. Thank you. It's amazing to me, having been born right around the very beginning of the space age; the technology that once seemed like science fiction becoming reality now seems quaint and antiquated. It was however, a pretty cool time to live and to be able to witness all the advances in science and technology (some good, some not so much) that have occurred over the last 60 years or so. Truly amazing.

[@martinross6416]

CD. You are the most accurate as well as interesting of all the Science KZbinrs. Thank you!

[@MrEazyE357]

Thank you for another well made and super informative video! Had to comment for the ag.

[@Ro32da72]

More superb content Paul; thank you. Tracking link is excellent - gone straight in the bookmarks!

[@fvillamil82]

Wow this is so crazy, just yesterday I watched the Bell Labs video and wondered if there was a Curious Droid video about TelStar!!

[@space_0027]

Great video! Hope you are staying well Paul!

[@Nobos]

Thanks for the content ❤️ Hope you feeling good

[@hamslicemcdooogle8080]

Bruh you spoiling us with 2 uploads in one week, you better be careful or else we might just get used to it! Fantastic shirt, I knew this before you even appeared but even after it still applies!

[@Yoti1980]

I remember back in the day having to select from the Telstar and Galaxy satellites for our big ol powered dish... Punch in T#'s or G#'s and the dish would swing around and find that sat... This brings back memories lol

[@Bkim5033]

Hadn't seen any of your videos in a long time, ever since the one you spoke about being unwell. Went looking for you today and found your channel, I noticed the bell wasn't turned on. I hope you are doing better and my condolecense for losing the Queen.

[@marvinochieng6295]

i dont know if there are any Kenyan viewers on your channel but i just gotta say i love the style of your content. Keep up the good work from a random kenyan

[@i-love-space390]

This one of your many videos that answer the question "what good has the space program done?" Aside from the fact that most of the government investment money went directly back in the economy (since those engineers and technicians bought cars, houses and shopped at the A & P), it was definitely government sponsored R & D for private industry that laid the groundwork for most of our modern age. The American economy has lived on the investments made during World War II, the Cold War and in the Apollo program for the last 50 years +. I doubt if even a fraction of that money would have done half the good for progress in living standards if it was just spent on social programs. (I am NOT against Social Programs BTW, just I am realistic about how much money would actually be spent on those programs. I also recognize that we must be challenged to overcome obstacles to achieve progress. I you want to really harness the power of scientists and engineers, just dare them to do the impossible.)

[@lorenhenderson2900]

Your video's do not disappoint always well done this one is no exception

[@SPLfish88]

Very nice sponcer segment. Your daughter is very cute. I work in the chemical industry for almost 20 years now and i think its very importent to show kids that chemistry can be fun and fascinating.

[@Antony_Jenner]

Paul! your shirt looks like a Hawkwind album cover. Great vid mate.

[@Earthislife1031]

I came for the shirt. I left with knowledge.

[@itswift]

Nice shout out to N2YO! His website was my favorite satellite tracker when I was big into ham radio satellites.

[@MrStevos]

Love to learn new & in depth knowledge about things I apparently just thought I knew about ! Always good info presented so clearly +++

[@bullettube9863]

Telstar really started my space education, along with reading sci-fi which predicted hopefully a new era in worldwide communications.

[@hagerty1952]

Great video, as always, but why no mention of the hit pop/rock song "Telstar" by the British group "The Tornados?" It was emblematic of the popular excitement of this achievement, which I remember (I was 10 when it launched). Of course, the song didn't really, uh, take off until "The Ventures" did a cover of it.

[@aturegano87]

Great video. Thanks for sharing so many interesting facts for this artificial satellite. I knew it was important milestone in space history but I was not aware of such relevant and broad applications this satellite had

[@TRC98]

I went to goonehilly once. That satelite dish was so big it used to create piles of dead birds from how much it had to amplify the signal

[@Carl2k7]

Amazing content as always!

[@tweaker1968]

Another brilliant video... Keep up the good work ...

[@jontallman3878]

Super video! Nice experiment to boot!!

[@northerncaptain855]

I remember as a child visiting the Telstar Land Earth Station at Andover Maine US. The newspapers of the day would publish the local time of Satellite transits and the family and neighbors would go out into the yard to watch.

[@frankgulla2335]

Paul, Thanks once again for an informative reminder about another little-mentioned technology that brought the modern world to fruition.

[@BeastOrGod]

Subbing to this channel has been one of my greatest life improvements

[@MrEazyE357]

I still can't believe we were just shooting nukes into space just to see what would happen. That definitely seems like one of those things where the risk outweighs the reward. What was the reward?

[@TucsonDude]

Knowledge.

[@MozTS]

Scaring the soviets so they don’t make the world a better place

[@jamiewilliams5134]

Thanks for including Goonhilly. We celebrated this event for our 60th birthday with a festival. Today, we're the world's first and only provider of commercial deep space communications.

[@P5ychoFox]

Now I’ve got that Telstar song stuck in my head.

[@grrfy]

By far the coolest channel sponsor products ever!

[@TheCrulZ2348]

Was hoping there would be mention of the 1962 instrumental rock hit Telstar by The Tornados

[@ConradSpoke]

I had no idea it was still up there! Awesome stuff.

[@markdonaldson5834]

Correction, Andover is in Massachusetts, abbreviation for Maine is ME not MA. The plant in Andover Massachusetts is called the Merrimack Valley Plant which was also the location for Mission Control for the satellite, a friend of mine was an engineer on that project and manned mission control.

[@machdaddy6451]

Always very informative and entertaining.

[@RV4aviator]

Brilliant research and educating effort..! Curiosity propells technology forward. My Company is named after this first "civilian " sat tech..! Thanks mate, love the funky shirts..!

[@pomodorino1766]

Thanks Paul!

[@avayu2289]

I am learning so much! Thank you!

[@robscott8834]

You always produce videos which are solidly researched for historical, cultural, and technological aspects of the subject. Always interesting and worth a watch. Thanks.

[@NavyDood21]

Always love seeing the shirts during each video.

[@alm5992]

*Eisenhower recording talking from space* Military: Sir! An imposter president from space is claiming to be you! Eisenhower: Promise me, even if I am not president still- you will nuke those alien imposters!

[@andymouse]

Fascinating stuff !...cheers.

[@maxsmodels]

OK, that was a good intro!

[@daz4627]

"Telstar" is my favourite (and in my opinion, one of the best) instrumentals ever written and recorded... written and produced by the genius 60's producer Joe Meek and recorded by that sensational 60's band 'The Tornadoes' in 1962.... first heard it as a kid a long, long time ago and still love it ... fun fact - it was reportedly Margaret Thatcher's favourite track too (not that I was ever a fan of Thatcher) :-)

[@Jasona1976]

Well done and very fascinating...thanks!!

[@handyandyaus]

Paul, you better watch out. Abbie will be hosting before you know it! Gorgeous.

[@RWBHere]

Excellent video, Paul. Thank-you. 🙂👍 Can you also make a video about Early Bird, please?

[@nacoran]

It looks more like R2D2 didn't have protection when he logged into the Death Star's computer system and they had a baby than a straight prototype of the Death Star. :)

[@mark6245]

It is good to see a man interested what he does

[@joshuabruce9599]

Abigail is lucky to have you as a father, mate. Great video as always.

[@ShellyXveeHehehe]

Thank you!

[@vvh1z]

Congratulations on your millionth subscriber!

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

Great video, Paul...👍

[@bobhamulak3646]

In the mid-80's, I worked in AT&T's Bell Labs (in the Murray Hill section of New Providence, N.J.). In the front of the inside of the reception and main office building, they had (or still have?) a small museum area, where they had one of the Telstar satellites on display! I remember being very impressed with it's small size...it was a very sophisticated-looking sphere about 3 feet in diameter. I always imagined satellites being much larger, like the size of a car or even 1bigger. The satellite was almost completely covered in small solar panels, and it had many pieces of small 90-degree metal tubes, or 'jets' sticking out of it to help orient it's position. It was a really cool thing to see, and I would urge anyone in that area to go see it! (Although, I'm not positive that it's still on display...I think Bell Labs was sold to (the French firm) Alcatel some time ago, and I don't know if they retained that display.)

[@daffidavit]

In 1980 I worked for one year at Bell Labs in Whippany N.J. as a legal assistent helping ATT in the U.S. v. ATT and the Litten Industries v. ATT cases just before the baby Bell breakup. My office was shared by three other legal assistants in a room adjacent to the hallway where Telstar was rolled down after it was built years earlier. I'm not sure if there was testing going on at the time. Bell labs in Whippany, NJ is no longer there but it was a beautiful campus for its day.

[@waitingforanalibi2224]

That is super cute. I love doing things like that with my kids. I can say one thing, kids remember memories like that.

[@davewestner]

Who else immediately had Joe Meek/the Tornados "Telstar" running thru their head?

[@MadBiker-vj5qj]

Yup, great tune. kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2a3c2ahismqY5I

[@dougcastleman9518]

Or The Ventures version of the same song.

[@jeanbonnefoy1377]

Was 12 years old and then living in France. I still remember this original live broadcast transmitted by RTF, the French national tv channel. A few years later, it was the Beatles singing 'All You Need is Love' for all the world to see in July 67...👍. And by the way The Tornadoes Telstar EP remains one of the favourites in my collection 🙂

[@2manyIce]

I thought Telstar 1 went down ages ago. It's allways good to watch a video to it's end.

[@spavatch]

Oh, and one more thing. The iconic soccer ball, the Adidas Telstar ⚽️ Now you know why 😉

[@jonnyphenomenon]

I live in Maine, not terribly far from TelStar high school, which is in a town called Bethel, about a half hour away from Andover. The school might have been built in Andover, but with a population of only 750-760 according to the census data, Bethel was probably a better fit.