Project West Ford
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'''Project West Ford''' (also known as '''Westford Needles''' and '''Project Needles''') was a test carried out by [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]'s [[Lincoln Laboratory]] on behalf of the [[Military of the United States|United States military]] in 1961 and 1963 to create a ring of 3.5{{e|8}}<ref name="Lovelletal1962" /> [[copper]] [[dipole antenna]]s (1.78cm long and 25.4μm (1961) and 17.8μm (1963) diameter needles)<ref name="Lovelletal1962">{{citation
| title = West Ford Project, Interference to Astronomy from Belts of Orbiting Dipoles (Needles)
| last1 = Lovell
| first1 = A. C. B.
| last2 = Blackwell
| first2 = M. Ryle
| last3 = D. E.
| last4 = Wilson
| first4 = R.
| year = 1962
| date = June 1962
| journal = Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society
| volume = 3
| page = 100
| url = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1962QJRAS...3..100L
}}</ref><ref name="Wiedemannetal2001">{{citation
| title = Modeling of copper needle clusters from the West Ford Dipole experiments
| last1 = Wiedemann
| first1 = C.
| last2 = Bendisch
| first2 = J.
| last3 = Krag
| first3 = H.
| last4 = Wegener
| first4 = P.
| last5 = Rex
| first5 = D.
| journal = Proceedings of the Third European Conference on Space Debris
| editor1-last = Sawaya-Lacoste
| editor1-first = Huguette
| volume = 1
| publication-place = Noordwijk, Netherlands
| place = Darmstadt, Germany
| publisher = ESA Publications Division
| isbn = 92-9092-733-X
| pages = 315 - 320
| year = 2001
| date = March 19-21, 2001
| publication-date = October 2001
| url = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2001ESASP.473..315W
}}</ref> in orbit which would allow global [[radio]] communication. The dipoles collectively provided passive support to Project West Ford's [[parabolic dish]] (located in the [[Westford, Massachusetts|town of Westford]]) to communicate with distant sites.
After a failed first attempt launched on [[October 21]], [[1961]]<ref name="Wiedemannetal2001" /> (the needles failed to disperse), the project was eventually successful with the [[May 9]], [[1963]]<ref name="Wiedemannetal2001" /> launch, with radio transmissions carried by the man-made ring. However, the technology was ultimately shelved, partially due to the development of the modern [[communications satellite]] and partially due to protests from other scientists.<ref>{{cite web
| url = http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=516
| title = Earth's Artificial Ring: Project West Ford
| accessdate = 2006-10-16
| first = Anthony
| last = Kendall
| date = [[May 2]], [[2006]]
| publisher = DamnInteresting.com
}}</ref> The needles were placed in orbits between 3500 and 3800 km high at 96 and 87 degree inclinations and contributed to Earth's [[orbital debris]].<ref name="debris">{{citation
| url = http://iaaweb.org/iaa/Studies/spacedebrismitigation.pdf
| publisher = [[International Academy of Astronautics]]
| publication-place = Paris, France
| edition = Final Issue Approved for Publication
| title = Position Paper on Space Debris Mitigation - Implementing Zero Debris Creation Zones
| journal = International Academy of Astronautics
| year = 2005
| date = [[October 12]] [[2005]]
| publication-date = [[October 15]] [[2005]]
}}</ref>
British radio astronomers, together with optical astronomers and the [[Royal Astronomical Society]], protested this action.<ref name="af">{{citation
| url = http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/space/terrill.pdf
| title = The Air Force Role in Developing International Outer Space Law
| last1 = Terrill Jr.
| first1 = Delbert R.
| journal = Air Force History and Museums Program
| publisher = Air University Press
| publication-place = Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
| year = 1999
| date = May 1999
| page = 63
| chapter = Project West Ford
}}</ref><ref name="nasa">{{citation
| url = http://history.nasa.gov/SP-4217/intro.htm
| title = Beyond the Ionosphere: The Development of Satellite Communications
| chapter = Introduction
| series = The NASA History Series
| publisher = NASA
| work = history.nasa.gov
| editor1-last = Butrica
| editor1-first = Andrew J.
}}</ref><ref name="Bondi1962">{{citation
| title = West Ford Project, Introductory Note by the Secretary
| last1 = Bondi
| first1 = H.
| year = 1962
| date = June 1962
| journal = Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society
| volume = 3
| page = 99
| url = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1962QJRAS...3...99.
}}</ref> The Russian communist paper [[Pravda]] also joined the protests under the headline ''U.S.A. Dirties Space''.<ref name="nytimes1961">{{Citation
| last =
| first =
| author-link =
| publication-date = [[October 23]] [[1961]]
| date = [[October 22]] [[1961]]
| year = 1961
| title = Protests Continue Abroad
| periodical = [[The New York Times]]
| series =
| place = London
| publisher = Reuters
| volume =
| issue =
| page = 12
| url =
| issn = 1674510
| doi =
| oclc =
| accessdate = 2008-04-17
}}</ref>
The issue was raised in the [[United Nations]] where then UN Ambassador [[Adlai Stevenson]] defended the project.<ref name="nytimes1963">{{citation
| last = Teltsch
| first = Kathleen
| author-link =
| publication-date = [[June 16]] [[1963]]
| date = [[June 15]] [[1963]]
| year = 1963
| title = 6 Soviet Space Failures Believed To Have Been Probes of Planets
| periodical = [[The New York Times]]
| series =
| place = United Nations, NY
| publisher =
| volume =
| issue =
| page = 2
| url =
| issn = 1521970
| doi =
| oclc =
| accessdate = 2008-04-17
}}</ref>
Stevenson studied the published journal articles on Project West Ford. Using what he learned on the subject and citing the articles he had read, he successfully allayed the fears exhibited by the vast majority of UN ambassadors from other countries. He and the articles explained that [[solar sail|sunlight pressure]] would cause the dipoles to only remain in [[orbit]] for a short period of approximately three years. The international protest ultimately resulted in a consultation provision included in the 1967 [[Outer Space Treaty]].<ref name="af"/><!-- pages 66,67 --> Contrary to the project's supporter's claims, as of 2008, several clumps of the needles are still in orbit,<ref name="vt">{{citation
| url = http://web.archive.org/web/20070312200131/http://www.aoe.vt.edu/~cdhall/Space/archives/000289.html
| title = West Ford dipoles
| last1 = Hall
| first1 = Christopher D.
| publication-place = Blacksburg, Virginia
| publisher = Virginia Tech Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering
| year = 2003
| date = [[September 18]] [[2003]]
| quote = many clumps of the needles are indeed still in orbit
}}</ref> and occasionally re-entering.<ref name="rae">{{citation
| url = http://satlist.nl/RAE/RAE1963.doc
| title = RAE Table of Earth Satellites
| year = 2008
| date = [[January 20]] [[2008]]
| page = 34
| quote = 148 pieces, 94 have decayed
| publisher = Royal Aerospace Establishment / Defence Research Agency
| publication-place = Farnborough, England
| place = Medemblik, The Netherlands
| editor1-last = Barhorst
| editor1-first = L.J.C.
}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
==External links==
*[http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=516 Article on Project West Ford]
[[Category:Space hazards]]
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[[de:Project West Ford]]