Talk:PAGEOS

31m, 100 foot and volume

I have no source, (which is why i mention it here,) but i think i've spotted (and fixed) an inconsistency: The old version said the diameter was 31m, which would be 102 feet. That sounded a bit strange for an American satellite, why not say "let's build a one hundred foot-satellite"? Then i checked, and the given volume gives a radius of 50.01 feet. So if anybody has a source for the diameter/radius, ey should remember to correct the volume as well.--ospalh (talk) 13:39, 20 July 2010 (UTC)

This NASA link gives "100-foot-diameter (30.48 m)".--ospalh (talk) 05:54, 21 July 2010 (UTC)

I thought "exactly" was suspicious. Possibly Pageos was always in sunlight the first few years, so the gas and the plastic would expand to 101 feet in diameter or a bit more due to the warmer temperature. Pageos would shrink very slowly due to minor gas leaks, then shrink more as Pageos cooled in the shade of Earth, with still more shrinking when the gas presure dropped to zero following the first disintgration.66.177.106.56 (talk) 03:18, 17 January 2013 (UTC)66.177.106.56 (talk) 03:05, 17 January 2013 (UTC)

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PAGEOS (Passive Geodetic Earth Orbiting Satellite) was a balloon satellite which was launched by NASA in 1966. It was placed into a polar orbit (inclination 85–86°) with a height of approximately 4000 km, which became gradually lower during its nine years of operation. The satellite partly disintegrated in July 1975, which was followed by a second break-up that occurred in January 1976 resulting in the release of a large number of fragments. Most of these re-entered the Earth's atmosphere during the following decade. This photograph shows a test inflation of a PAGEOS satellite in a blimp hangar at Weeksville, North Carolina, in 1965.

Photograph credit: NASA

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Breakup

This bit I can't find a proper source for. This (https://orbitaldebris.jsc.nasa.gov/library/hoosf_16e.pdf) might work, but it is a primary source. This (https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=41044.0) explains why the breakup probably happened, and is interesting, but probably can't be cited. If anyone could find another source for the explanation of how the mylar degraded that would be nice to add. Mrfoogles (talk) 02:45, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

This one is good too. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Stamping_the_Earth_from_Space/O4LgDQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=PAGEOS&pg=PA44&printsec=frontcover Mrfoogles (talk) 18:55, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

That one I added Mrfoogles (talk) 04:05, 26 March 2024 (UTC)

Usage section

The usage of the satellite is confusing, so the Usage section is currently a merge of several books. There are several sources, and all give an account of some kind of global effort at triangulation. One book talks about an effort by the US Geodetic Service, another about an effort with 45 stations, another about an effort by the US Geodetic Service with 45 stations. I think it's all the same thing, but it's not clear. And somehow, 45 stations are used, plus 12 "mobile tracking stations," but only 38 points are fixed on the globe? If anyone knows, the section could use an explanation. Mrfoogles (talk) 23:00, 27 March 2024 (UTC)