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The Nome Nugget
Nome, Nome County, Alaska
What is this article about?
A mysterious dark satellite, possibly of Soviet origin, was observed tumbling in a near-polar orbit by US Navy stations three weeks ago, sparking Pentagon speculation about it being a space spy; Moscow remained silent, and British scientists reported no knowledge of recent Soviet launches.
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WASHINGTON, (A) - A dark satellite that the Pentagon said may be of Soviet origin tumbled through space yesterday in an orbit of mystery.
Its path over the poles was one that would be desirable for any type of "seeing eye" space spy.
Moscow was saying nothing about it.
Here's all that's known about the mystery object, according to the Defense Department:
It appears to be in a near polar orbit. It is dark and is probably less than 19 feet long. It is silent as far as U. S. monitors are concerned.
But American space scientists have not ruled out the possibility that the satellite could be sending messages if triggered by a remote receiving station in the Soviet Union. However, these scientists have learned from experience that it is difficult to receive signals from a space vehicle tumbling in orbit, as this one appears to be.
At Jodrell Bank in England, scientists at the British radio telescope said they knew of no satellite sent aloft by the Soviets recently and that they have no information on any new satellite around the poles.
Navy tracking stations first spotted the object about three weeks ago, but the Defense Department said nothing about it.
There was no official comment until after word was publicized Wednesday that the Pentagon was buzzing with "what is it?" speculation.
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Where did it happen?
Foreign News Details
Primary Location
Soviet Union
Event Date
Spotted About Three Weeks Ago, Tumbling Yesterday, Publicized Wednesday
Outcome
object unidentified; moscow silent; no signals detected by us monitors
Event Details
A dark satellite possibly of Soviet origin in near-polar orbit was spotted by US Navy tracking stations about three weeks ago. It tumbled through space yesterday, appearing silent to US monitors but potentially capable of triggered messages. Pentagon speculated on its spy potential; Defense Department provided details on its size and orbit. British scientists at Jodrell Bank reported no knowledge of recent Soviet satellite launches.