History of Satellites, Glossary
A Glossary of satellites from the 1950s to the early 21st century
Preface
The following information was derived from the works listed below.
Secret Spy Satellites by Timothy R. Gaffney.
America's Space Sentinels by Jeffrey T. Richelson.
Body of Secrets by James Bamford.
Secret Sentries In Space by Philip J. Klass.
Wizards of Langley by Jeffrey T. Richelson.
Scientific American, June 2004: "Nuclear Explosions in Orbit."
Wired Magazine, February 2006, page 129, article entitled "I Spy."
This document is divided into two sections. One section consists of an alphabetical glossary, and the second section is a
chronology in a different group of web pages. These works are meant to be a quick-reference of historical information on
satellites, the framework that supported them, related topics, and the dates that events occurred.
Through the end of 1965, the US military had launched 231 satellites. Of these, 132 (57.1 percent) carried classified
payloads.
Between February 1959 and May 1972, 145 Discoverer/Corona series spy satellites were launched. 120 of those missions
(83 percent) were successful.
Although I have attempted to gather and arrange the data into a comprehensive, understandable format, any
errors and omissions are mine and not attributable to any other authors or works.
Click one of the letters across the top to access information beginning with that letter.