U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for July 11: Telstar

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

TELSTAR

Profile America — Monday, July 11th. The distant reaches of planet Earth came into electronic proximity for the average American on this date in 1962. The occasion was the successful relay of a transatlantic TV signal by Telstar, the first privately owned satellite launched the day before. While a major communications advance and a sensation of the day, Telstar did not last long. It failed in December, was restored briefly, and then went dead in February 1963. Today, dozens of communications satellites allow television signals, telephone calls, and computer hookups to all points of the Earth, and we take such instant communications for granted. Across the U.S., there are some 8,200 people employed in nearly 500 firms providing satellite telecommunication services. The value of satellite telecommunications is over $6.8 billion annually. Profile America is in its20th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.

Sources: Kane's Famous First Facts, 7069

Development/accessed 5/4/2016: http://www.satmagazine.com/cgi-bin/display_article.cgi?number=511938650 
Usage/accessed 5/4/2016:
http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/still-in-orbit-telstar-the-50yearold-satellite-and-genesis-of-telecommunications-for-the-masses-20120711-21uhb.html 
Problems/accessed 5/4/2016:  http://www.wired.com/2012/07/50th-anniversary-telstar-1/ 
Telecommunications firms and employment/NAICS 517410: http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/BP/2014/00A1//naics~517410 
Telecommunications receipts/NAICS 517410: http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ECN/2012_US/00A1//naics~517410 

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotion of the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics and accounts drawn from cited non-Census sources are employed for illustrative or narrative purposes, and are not attested to by the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Audio" in the "Library" pull-down menu). 

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SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau

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