Ariel 1 was launched on April 26, 1962, into a 390-by-1,214-kilometer orbit by a Thor-Delta rocket from Cape Canaveral.
Ariel 1's experiments studied ionization in the upper atmosphere due to sources like solar X-rays and cosmic rays.
Ariel 1 malfunctioned due to radiation damage caused by the Starfish Prime nuclear weapon test conducted on July 9, 1962.
The United Kingdom accepted the United States' offer to launch individual experiments integrated into NASA's satellite Ariel 1.
The seven instruments aboard Ariel 1 focused on the interaction between the Sun and the Earth's ionosphere.
Ariel 1 and Alouette 1 were among the first spacecraft to study the ionosphere and magnetosphere as part of NASA Goddard's contributions to space science.
Starfish Prime created an artificial radiation belt and caused damage to several spacecraft in low Earth orbit, including Ariel 1.
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center was heavily involved in the Ariel 1 and Alouette 1 missions.
Ariel 1 had a mass of 62 kilograms and a design lifetime of one year.
Ariel 1 was designed, built, launched, and operated as the first international satellite by the United States and the United Kingdom.
The Starfish Prime blast disabled around two dozen satellites, including the British satellite Ariel 1.
The timer system of Ariel 1 was disabled as a result of the nuclear test, but there was no major impact on its overall functioning.
Ariel 1 was the first satellite launched by the United Kingdom.
The nuclear test created radioactive particles in space that impacted the functioning of Ariel 1.
The solar panels of Ariel 1 sustained damage during the Starfish Prime test.