Timation
Timation was a navigation satellite program operated by the United States Naval Research Laboratory .
The four satellites were launched from 1967 to 1977. They sent a precise time signal that was evaluated on the ground for navigation purposes. Timation (later called Navigation Technology Satellite) was used to test GPS technology, which was no longer based on the Doppler effect .
| satellite | Start ( UTC ) | Launch site | Launcher | NSSDC ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timation 1 | May 31, 1967, 9:30 am | VAFB , SLC 2-W | Thor Agena D SLV-2 | 1967-053E |
| Timation 2 | September 30, 1969, 1:40 pm | VAFB , SLC 1-W | Thor Agena D SLV-2G | 1969-082B |
| NTS-1 | July 14, 1974, 5:17 am | VAFB , SLC 3-W | Atlas F / PTS 69F | 1974-054A |
| NTS-2 | June 23, 1977, 9:16 am | VAFB , SLC 3-W | Atlas F 65F / SGS-1 | 1977-053A |
Web links
- Description on navy.mil (English)
- U.S. Patent 3,789,409 (English)
- Timation in the Encyclopedia Astronautica (English)
- Gunter's Space Page: Timation 1, 2 , NTS-1 NTS-2 (English)
- Range navigation using the Timation II satellite (English; PDF; 1.8 MB)