Camp Evans and Satellite Development

Camp Evans

and

Satellite development

Thanks to Mr. Howard Camp for donating most of these photos and a copy a booklet describing the environmental test facilities..

Camp Evans opened space communications in 1946 by proving the ionosphere could be pierced by radio waves. Radar signals were bounced off the moon. America and the Soviet Union began a race to develop communications equipment that could survive the stress of a rocket blastoff, survive the vacuum and cold of space and work as long as possible before its batteries could no longer supply power. The U.S. Army Signal Research and Development Laboratory ( USASRDL ) played a part in helping America design and prove the designs of its early satellites. Working with contracted partners in industry, for example Bell Laboratories and RCA the Army began America's space exploration as it laid the foundation for the modern battlefield satellite communications techniques used by the military today.
Gradually, this complex work would be transferred to NASA by the late 1960's.

    This page focuses on the special equipment located at Camp Evans used to test early satellite designs to make sure they would operate in the vacuum of space. Materials that worked reliably on earth would often fail up there. For example certain rubber components or plastics used in electronic equipment have gasses disolved in them. At sea-level the air-pressure would keep the gasses inplace. In the vacuum of space the gasses would boil-off causing the gasket or insullator to fail. Another example is some electronic components would over-heat and fail without air to cool them. In space there in no cooling air.
    In these special chambers satellite designs and satellite components were tested to see how they would work or fail of sent into space. Many a componet or design may have gone back to the drawing board after a test in these chambers.
    This chamber simulated the conditions of space up to 500,000 feet.

A description of the Thermal Vacuum Chamber in building 9088

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Two views of pumps and equipment Thermal Vacuum Chamber in building 9088

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Early satellites in the Thermal Vacuum Chamber being setup for a test.
1959 1961
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In the History of Communications - Camp Evans is a unique place...

As the Belmar Marconi Wireless high-power station,Camp Evans played a roll in the opening of the modern radio with the Edwin Armstrong regenerative circuit test in 1914, then during WWI a major advance in communication science was made here in static elimination by Roy Weagant, major advances were made here during WWII in radar, in 1946 using modified FM radar equipment designed by Edwin Armstrong the space age was opened with Project Diana.
Camp Evans was an important satellite tracking center. The Army played a major roll in the development of technology to receive cloud cover photos from a satellite orbiting above the ionosphere. The signals from TIROS I and II were received here.

From the early days of wireless, to radio, to radar, to TV, to space communications and satellites Camp Evans played a part.

Space research we have evidence Camp Evans played a roll...
Satellite design proposal
Project 'Lunchbox'

Satellite tracking
Astro-observatory
Mini-track system

Satellite power supplies
Employing solar cells in space
Space batteries using a radioactive source

Satellite Design testing

Page updated February 1, 2004 Page created February 1, 2004

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