| .....The
Sputnik 1 satellite was a 58.0 cm-diameter
aluminum sphere that carried four whip-like
antennas that were 2.4-2.9 m long. The
antennas looked like long "whiskers"
pointing to one side. The spacecraft
obtained data pertaining to the density
of the upper layers of the atmosphere and
the propagation of radio signals in the
ionosphere. The instruments and electric
power sources were housed in a sealed
capsule and included transmitters
operated at 20.005 and 40.002 MHz (about
15 and 7.5 m in wavelength), the
emissions taking place in alternating
groups of 0.3 s in duration. The downlink
telemetry included data on temperatures
inside and on the surface of the sphere. .....Since the
sphere was filled with nitrogen under
pressure, Sputnik 1 provided the first
opportunity for meteoroid detection (no
such events were reported), since losses
in internal pressure due to meteoroid
penetration of the outer surface would
have been evident
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