Magion 1

Magion 1 was the first Czechoslovak satellite. It was launched into space in 1978 and it was also the first of five microsatellites of the Czechoslovak, i.e. Czech space programme, which were intended for investigating the parameters of the magnetic field, ionosphere and the Earth’s plasma (the satellite’s name, Magion, is derived from the words “magnetic field” and “ionosphere”). The satellite was developed in the Institute of Geophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences and its construction was designed by the Division of Surface Communications, a part of TESLA Research Institute of Telecommunication Technologies. It was in service for almost three years before burning up in the atmosphere on 10-11 September 1981.

It was launched into space on 24 October 1978 from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Soviet Union, in a Kosmos-3M rocket, together with the satellite Interkosmos-18. Czechoslovak engineers were supplying instruments for the Interkosmos programme in the 1970s and were therefore aware of the fact that rockets needed to be centered and balanced during takeoff. Interkosmos-18 required exactly 15 kilograms of weight for stabilisation and it occurred to the Czech scientists that the weight could also serve another function. Thus they constructed an additional satellite, which would not only stabilise the mother satellite, but also investigate the magnetosphere and the ionosphere. The process of approval of this suggestion lasted for eight years until the Soviet Union finally allowed the Czechoslovak engineers to launch the satellite, but only under the condition that it does not weigh more than 15 kilograms. In the end, Magion 1 weighed precisely 15 kilograms and had the shape of a cuboid measuring 30x30x16 centimetres.

Magion separated from the Soviet satellite three weeks after their launch. On 14 November 1978, the two satellites entered their own individual orbits around the Earth. The surface of Magion 1 was covered by a layer of gold 5 micrometres thick, which helped maintain stable temperature. The satellite’s body contained solar panels producing electricity and communication antennae. Its stability in space was ensured by a magnetic system interacting with the Earth’s magnetic pole.

The satellite was monitored until the end of its lifespan (10-11 September 1981) from the observatory in Panská Ves, located near the town of Dubá, in the Česká Lípa district of the Liberec Region.

Owing to the popularity of this series of Czechoslovak satellites, a children’s show named Magion was made for television. The show, broadcast between 1984 and 1996, contained foreign animated fairy tales, series and interviews with interesting people.