Vela nuclear test detection satellites
E570823
The Vela nuclear test detection satellites were a series of U.S. spacecraft launched during the Cold War to monitor compliance with nuclear test ban treaties by detecting nuclear explosions in space and the atmosphere.
Statements (50)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
United States military spacecraft
ⓘ
satellite constellation ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| developedBy |
Los Alamos National Laboratory
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Sandia National Laboratories NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| equippedWith |
X-ray detectors
ⓘ
charged-particle detectors ⓘ gamma-ray detectors ⓘ neutron detectors ⓘ optical sensors ⓘ |
| era | Cold War ⓘ |
| hasPart |
Vela 1A
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Vela 1B NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 2A NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 2B NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 3A NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 3B NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 4A NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 4B NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 5A NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 5B NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 6A NERFINISHED ⓘ Vela 6B NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| lastSatelliteDeactivated | 1984 ⓘ |
| launchEndDate | 1970-04-08 ⓘ |
| launchStartDate | 1963-10-17 ⓘ |
| launchVehicle |
Atlas-Agena
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Titan IIIC NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| notableDiscovery | first detection of cosmic gamma-ray bursts ⓘ |
| notableEvent |
1969 detection of unexplained gamma-ray bursts
ⓘ
detection of the 1963 Soviet high-altitude nuclear tests ⓘ |
| numberOfOperationalPairs | 6 ⓘ |
| numberOfSatellitesLaunched | 12 ⓘ |
| operator |
United States Air Force
ⓘ
United States Atomic Energy Commission NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| orbitRegime | Earth orbit ⓘ |
| orbitType |
high Earth orbit
ⓘ
highly elliptical orbit ⓘ |
| programName | Vela NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| programPeriod | 1963–1984 ⓘ |
| purpose |
detect nuclear explosions in space
ⓘ
detect nuclear explosions in the atmosphere ⓘ monitor compliance with nuclear test ban treaties ⓘ support nuclear test monitoring during the Cold War ⓘ verify Partial Test Ban Treaty compliance ⓘ |
| relatedToTreaty |
Partial Test Ban Treaty
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Threshold Test Ban Treaty NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| status | retired ⓘ |
| successor |
Defense Support Program
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Integrated Operational Nuclear Detection System NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.