SPA< i S< 11XCE. APPLICATIONS AND ADVANCED RhSLARCH, 1963-69 245 



in the sustaining university program. The Fulton recommittal motion, 

 as was mentioned in chapter VI, passed by a rollcall vote of 239-157. 

 In 1968 and 1969, the sustaining universitv program quivered and 

 gradually expired. The Karth subcommittee supported the budget 

 requests and Congress voted only $10 million and $9 million, respec- 

 tively, for 1968 and 1969. So this program was still another which fell 

 victim to the war in Vietnam. The Karth subcommittee gave the 

 program strong support down through the years, and fought hard to 

 keep it alive. Certainly the program thrived for a longer period with 

 the Karth subcommittee righting for the program's life. 



APPLICATIONS TECHNOLOGY SATELLITES 



Historically, the applications technology satellite grew out of a 

 1962 advanced Syncom study project at Hughes Aircraft Co. Following 

 the establishment of the Communications Satellite Corp. in the 

 early 1960's, NASA decided to reorient the advanced Syncom program 

 away from communications research and development, in line with 

 the efforts to turn such developments over to private enterprise. 

 Instead, NASA developed a satellite with the broader ability to carry 

 experiments in several different areas of technology. This led to the 

 "advanced technological satellite" program which eventually was 

 renamed "applications technology satellite." 



From the start, the Karth subcommittee strongly supported more 

 aggressive work in this area. As Karth told the House on May 6, 1965: 



It is the development of applications satellites — spacecraft which perform 

 meteorological, communications and navigation services — where the United States 

 has its greatest opportunity for continuing leadership in space technology. I believe 

 Congress should fully support this effort. 



In 1968, as the ATS program began to bloom with several suc- 

 cessful launches, Karth remarked to his colleagues: 



I want to mention one other aspect of the unmanned program which I consider to 

 be the most significant — the so-called applications satellite project * * *. NASA is 

 continuing its important research and development of equipment for use in future 

 communications systems with the ATS program. Closely related to this work in 

 communications, research in navigation and traffic control techniques and equipment 

 has already indicated that satellites can assist over-ocean aircraft and ships at sea to 

 obtain more precise position information under all weather conditions and will some 

 day aid in air-sea traffic control, and in coordination of emergency rescue operations. 



In the 1969 hearings, the Karth subcommittee discussed what was 

 to become the highly successful use of the ATS-6 satellite over India 

 for communications purposes in the furtherance of education, agricul- 

 ture, medicine and many other forms of communication for the 

 assistance of the people in villages throughout India. 



