· On this day, 1971
Prospero (flight spare pictured), the first British satellite launched on a British rocket, lifted off from Launch Area 5B in Woomera, South Australia.
1971 55 years ago
The Prospero satellite, also known as the X-3, was launched by the United Kingdom in 1971. It was designed to undertake a series of experiments to study the effects of the space environment on communications satellites and remained operational until 1973, after which it was contacted annually for over 25 years.
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