A COMMUNICATIONS satellite has come back from the dead after vanishing without trace 20 years ago, and has presented its owners with some tricky technical and legal problems.
Last week satellite sleuth Pat Gowen was scanning the airwaves when he picked up a brief signal from the satellite, dubbed Oscar 7. The probe disappeared six years after it was launched in 1974, when it developed a leak in its battery that short-circuited its solar cell. It was originally sent up to serve as a communications satellite for ham radio enthusiasts, tirelessly bouncing Morse and voice signals across the planet.
But…
