SATELLITE -TRACKING PROGRAM — ^HAYES 



315 



Figure S. — Typical layout of a IMoonwatch team in action, 1957. 



Congo (1) ; Chile (6) ; Formosa (2) ; Denmark (1) ; Egypt (1) ; 

 Guatemala (3) ; India (1) ; Iran (1) ; Italy (2) ; Japan (30) ; Liberia 

 (1) ; Mexico (1) ; Netherlands West Indies (1) ; Peru (2) ; Philip- 

 pines (2) ; the Union of South Africa (4) ; Germany (10). 



HEADQUARTERS ORGANIZATION 



COMPUTATIONS 



The functions of the computing section of the Observatory were 

 defined by early 1957 as: (1) to predict future motions of a satellite 

 after initial observations had been made by the Moonwatch teams; 

 (2) to supply the Baker-Nmin stations with all data necessary for 

 them to photograph transits of the satellites; (3) to measure exactly 

 the position of the satellite on the photographs taken by the Baker- 

 Nunn stations; and finally (4) to analyze all orbital data received 

 from the Moonwatch teams, the Baker-Nunn stations, and other 

 sources, as a basis for evaluating geophysical constants and geodetic 

 positions. 



As a first step the Observatory held a conference on units and 

 constants for satellite-orbit computations late in January. Attend- 

 ing this conference, and already members of the Smithsonian staff, 

 were Drs. Hynek, Jacchia, Lautman, Schilling, and Sterne, and Mr. 

 Slowey, as well as a number of other scientists. They discussed earth 

 constants and atmospheric constants and considered what values 



