Telstar I launched on July 10, 1962 and operated for less than a than a year, conveying phone calls, fax transmissions, and the first live transatlantic television transmission. The first TV images made it across the Atlantic Ocean on July 11.
I’ve always loved the instrumental song “Telstar” so what better opportunity to play The Ventures’ version:
Note: Telstar’s transistors fried from Van Allen belt radiation in a little over a year but the groundbreaking satellite’s burned out hulk is still in orbit, circling the earth every two and a half hours. See its real-time tracking here.
Just found this terrific “dueling pianos” version by “Rob n’ Craig”:
