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FINAL REPORT 

BIT MISSION 7055 

17 February 1965 

37 SFS 141e55 

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SPECIAL HANDLING 

FINAL REPORT 

BIT MISSION 7055 

MISSION SUMMARY. 

1. 1 tr‘L Program Objectives. 

As part of the over-all problem of determining the vulnerability 

of the Agena satellites to Soviet radar detection and tracking, the 

objective of the BIT program is to determine if and when the radar 

system-associated with the signal acquires and tracks the Agena 

vehicle, The BIT system, designed to fulfill this objective,' covers 

the frequency range from 154 to 162 Mc and accepts only those 

signals which have characteristics similar to On those signals 

which qualify, the system will measure frequency, PRF, and signal 

amplitude along with the time of intercept to enable an analyst to identify 

the signal characteristics and to estimate a geographical area within 

which the emitter is located. 

1. 2 "4%54 Mission Highlights. 

The results of this mission show that the vehicle was neither 

detected nor tracked by the emitter during the 198 orbit mission 

life. No signals were intercepted which qualified on the basis of pulse 

width and PR.F. The only intercept made where the signal exceeded 

the 24-microsecond pulse width criterion occurred on orbit 70 when the 

vehicle was passing approximately 300 miles southeast of Sary Shagan. 

It is concluded that the signal does not represent a vehicle detection 

or tracking event. On orbit 89 two 5 rpm scanning signals were 

intercepted in the high level (PLD-A) channel while the vehiCle was 

passing over the western part of the Mediterranean. It is believed 

that these events are intercepts of the IIIIIMIIIMIEIIradar. The 

system response to the Signal Simulator showed that the. BIT fun4tioned 

properly during the entire mission. 

1. 3 Flight Summary. 

Vehicle Number 1608 

Launch Date 15 January 1965 

Launch Time 2100 GMT 

Indlination 75 degrees 

Apogee 246. 6 nautical miles 

Perigee 100. 3 nautical miles 

Period 90. 6 minutes 

This Document Consists of Pages. 

Copy No-5'. ofit Copies, Serie l EDL 

SEZ1E7 

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2. 2. 2 Non-Qualified Intercepts. 

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Z. DATA ANALYSIS. 

Z. 1 l'SL System Coverage. 

The BIT system was programmed on during every orbit of the 

198 orbit mission life while the vehicle was over the northern' hemisphere 

with an emphasis on the coverage over Europe, the USSR and Asia. On 

27 occasions, the unit was on throughout the period while the vehicle 

was over the, southern hemisphere. Data were not recovered on 

readout orbits 164 and 167 because the vehicle was temporarily deactivated 

from orbit 158 to 174. Data from readout orbits 181, 183 and 189 were 

also lost: becausethe ground tracking stations failed to acquire the vehicle. 

This system monitors the 151- to 162-Mc frequency range with 

a receiver sensitivity of -53 dbm. With the inclusion of the antenna 

pattern; the over';:all system sensitivity varies from approximately 

-47 dbm at the horizon to -53 dbm looking straight down. Signals 

intercepted by the system are rejected by qualification circuitry if the 

pulse widths are less than approximately 24 microseconds and if the 

PRFs do not fall within the 95- to 101-pps PRF acceptance band or 

harmonics of this band. The system measures the amplitude, frequency, 

and PRF of those signals which qualify. If a signal has a power level 

at the receiver of -30 dbm or greater, it will also be fed into a high 

level channel which requires no qualification other than amplitude and 

which measures only the signal amplitude. 

2. 2 MissionResults. 

Z. Z. 1 1154.. Qualified Intercepts. 
2.2.2 -- Continued. 

SYSTEM PERFORMANCE EVALUATION. 

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3. 1 System Specifications. 

A sunimary of the system specifications for the BIT system 

used on this mission is given below. A block diagram of the system 

is shown in Figure 1. 

Minimum Detectable Signal -53 dbm PLD-B 

-30 dbm PLD-A 

Antenna Gain 

Minimum Acceptable Pulse Width 

PRF Qualifier Acceptance Range 

RF Passband at -50 dbrh 

0 db on axis (nadir) 

-6 db at ± 60 ddgrees (horizol 

24 microseconds 

95 to 101 pps 

189 to 202 pps 2nd harmonic) 

151.4 to 161.4 c 

3.2 1S11 System Performance. 

With the exception of the Signal Activity Indicator, PRC-B, 

the BIT system performed as designed for the duration of the mission. 

Comparison of the system's response to the Signal Sirhulatoi• during 

the mission with its response prior to launch showed that the system 

maintained its original calibration and sensitivity levels. 

The PRC-B channel was saturated during the entire bead-in . 

duration on every orbit of the mission. There is insufficienit information 

available to determine if it was due to a malfunction in the circuit 

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3. 2 )"1),) -- Continued. 

itself or to an excessively noisy signal environment consisting of 

pulses less than 24 microseconds in duration. The operation of the• 

circuit was similar to that on Mission 7053 with the exception that on 

this mission the channel was completely saturated and it did not react 

at all to the Signal Simulator operation. For this reason, it is suspected 

that the problem was due to a circuit failure rather than to a noisy 

signal environment. 

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