"OSCAR" Hits 70

The amateur radio space program has reached another milestone with the issuance of OSCAR (Orbiting Satellites Carrying Amateur Radio) numbers to the two FASTRAC satellites launched recently by the University of Texas.

FASTRAC OSCAR-69 & 70
Courtesy FASTRAC Website

  According to Newsline, the two satellites were designated, respectively, as FASTRAC OSCAR-69 (FO-69) and FASTRAC OSCAR-70 (FO-70). This brings to 70 the number of amateur radio satellites that have been successfully built, orbited and placed in operation by AMSAT North America, its predecessor, Project OSCAR and other AMSAT groups around the world. The numbers do not include Russian-built ham satellites, which had their own RS-series of satellite numbers.